We Leapt Into the Sky

Chapter 19

Seph stretched his legs. He sat on the cushioned bench in the friends-and-family area outside Antony's hospital room. The cushion was red and plush, a bright pop of color in contrast to the sterile space on the other side of the glass.

Antony sat in his white chair, his brows furrowed. "The doctor started talking about prosthetics," he said. The dark circles under his eyes weren't as pronounced today, and a wave of gray hair curled attractively over his forehead. "If I'm considering one, my plans, and so on."

"That's a good sign, isn't it?"

"Yeah, it is." He didn't sound convinced. He buried himself in the robe he wore over his pajamas. "But my arm's gone. I don't know how I feel about having something else there. And I'm kind of afraid of the hardwired ones. What if it goes rogue and like—" He grabbed his neck, gagged, and stuck his tongue out.

"Has that ever happened to anyone?"

"I don't think so. But still."

Seph shrugged. "Nobody's going to make you get a hardwired one. There are plenty of prosthetics you can remove."

"Yeah, I guess so," Antony said.

"Are you excited about getting out of observation tomorrow?"

"I can't wait." His voice was light, but his eyes told a different story. They were too wide, his shoulders too rigid. He ran his fingers through his beard and drummed them on his chin. "You don't know how glad I am that you stuck around."

"Of course. I know it means something to have someone nearby," he said.

Antony cleared his throat. "Anyway, where are you heading after this, home? That's Lythrum-9 for you, right?"

"Yeah, have you been there?"

"Once, a long time ago. It was very green. Your family still lives there?"

Seph nodded. "Yeah, many of them do. My parents, aunts and uncles."

"Think you'd ever move back to your hometown?"

"Oh god no," Seph said with a low laugh. "I wouldn't mind living on Lythrum-9 again, but not in my hometown. There are other cities that are close to family while still maintaining some separation." He pulled up a hologram on his wearable and sent Antony images of mountains and forests. "I took these on a hiking trip with my cousins," Seph said. "Lythrum-9 is a colony world, populated for about 500 years. Used to be home to plants, bugs, and fungi, but that's about it. The population density stayed low and even the larger cities aren't over-crowded."

"The photos are gorgeous," Antony said. "I used to live in a city that was just a mess of skyscrapers. Can't deal with the people or the noise anymore. It's impossible for me to hold a conversation."

"I can imagine." He folded his arms as memories of loud cafeterias and crowded corridors came to mind. "You know, I worked on a research vessel, developing learning algorithms to make asteroid mining easier. Interesting work, but I couldn't tolerate the environment."

"Sleeping on a bunk bed with eight to a room?"

Seph snorted. "Four. Which was three too many roommates for me."

Antony nodded and leaned forward in his chair. There seemed to be genuine interest in his expression. "How did you get into research vessel work?"

"Bria. After my university shut down, I tried to get another tenure-track job, but it was tough luck. She suggested the research vessel." Seph wrinkled his nose. "No space, too many people, and an abysmal leave policy. Sure, you could take leave and visit some touristy planet nearby. But Lythrum-9 was a three-day trip, minimum. I signed on for three years and didn't see my family once during that time."