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⊰ 7 ⊱ An Unlucky Night
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2024-10-29 19:42:56From doing nothing for 6 months to 2 weeks of HR trainings and being bombarded with Layer 2 troubleshootings, it feels a lot like going back to school after taking a semester off. Actually, between the troubleshootings and being assigned documentation for three higher-level engineers, it feels exactly like going back to school after taking a semester off.
That’s what I did, once upon a time.
As much as I like to pretend otherwise, Cade breaking up with me over a letter in the mail destroyed me that way. It took so much out of me that I took a semester off and transferred to another university to finish out the last two semesters in a place that didn’t remind me of him.
Fortunately, unlike then, this time, I’ve managed to hold myself together.
Between the pressure of getting ready to start the IPv6 migration as soon as possible and day-to-day work, I’ve been too busy to worry about anything else. In fact, were it
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The shrill of my phone cuts through the quiet of the afternoon, startling Naomi from her play. I glance at the screen, my heart sinking as I see Ava’s name flashing there. Just like it has every day for the past two weeks.I've been avoiding her calls, still raw from the revelation of her involvement in Cade's hypnosis. But today, something makes me pause. Maybe it's the weariness of carrying this anger, or maybe it's the tiny voice in my head reminding me of all the years of friendship we shared.Whatever it is, I find myself answering.“Hello?” My voice sounds strained even to my own ears.“Elys?” Ava’s voice is hesitant, hopeful. “I… I wasn’t sure you’d pick up.”I close my eyes, fighting the urge to hang up. “What do you want, Ava?”“I’m in town,” she says quickly, as if afraid I’ll cut her off. “I was hoping we could talk. Face to face.”Part of me wants to refuse, to shut her out completely. But another part, the part that remembers late-night study sessions and shared secrets,
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⊰ Cade ⊱I approach my father’s office, not bothering to knock. I push the door open, stepping into the spacious office that’s been the backdrop for so many of our conversations over the years. The room is bathed in the soft glow of a desk lamp, casting long shadows across the polished mahogany furniture and the floor-to-ceiling windows that offer a panoramic view of the city below.And there he is, David Sinclair himself, looking up from his desk with a mixture of surprise and annoyance on his face. His salt-and-pepper hair is immaculately styled as always, his crisp white shirt a stark contrast to the dark wood of his chair.“Cade? What are you doing here at this hour?”I meet his gaze, unflinching. “We need to talk, Dad. About a lot of things.” I eye him for a moment, letting the words sink in before adding, “Let’s start with the hypnosis.”The color drains from his face, but he quickly composes himself, his features settling into a mask of confusion like the perfect actor he is. “
Heartprints in the Void ⊰ 11.5 | 1 ⊱ A Reckoning: Part 1
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Heartprints in the Void ⊰ 11 ⊱ Fragments of Truth
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