"Let's quickly recap.
It'll be a full day's work - 9-to-5.
You will meet at my office tomorrow morning, and we will be going to an external location.
You'll walk step-by-step through the architecture behind a glass house.
A team of builders will be present to realize your dream, however, we encourage you to contribute to the making if you can.
There'll be a panel of 5, including Lin, myself and three other judges. We will assess you based on your demonstration of theoretical, experiential, and the execution of such knowledge.
If you're successful, you'll be a full-time Glassitect, and will have a small project house by the end of the day to be proud of."
Following the end of a rather interesting working day, Ember and her trainer Phil headed toward the exit of the Aquatecture building. The two arrived at the front lobby, with Phil coming to a stop, and as a result, Ember too.
Phil leaned an arm on the front desk in a pose, prompting Ember to face him.
"You have nothing to worry about. We've seen what you can do. It's just on you to tell yourself you can." he reckoned.
In a surprising move of admiration, Phil gently placed a hand on Ember's PPE-protected shoulder. Still, a bit taken off-guard by the move, Ember looked over at his hand blankly, her breath shortening before gradually dimming with a warm smile.
"Best of luck, and rest up. It'll be a big day tomorrow." Phil said.
He patted her exactly three times on the shoulder - being the methodical fellow he is. Rather than up and leaving at that moment, Ember stopped her heart racing, standing still and taking in the moment. Tomorrow, she could very much move into the next phase of her life.
"Thank you. I will." she admired.
With that good wish, she slowly strolled out of the Aquatecture building, burning a comfortable flame.
Positive thoughts danced around her head like ballerinas - a welcome change given the daunt that living in a new city brought.
As always, she waved goodbye to the security guard Blob on her way past.
"Bye'a, Blob," she said.
"Have a good evening, Ms Lumen," he replied.
Riding that exam-confirmed high, she stopped, turning to give him her attention.
"I will. Thanks." she admired.
She continued her merry way past, heading homeward. As she walked the Aquatecture front courtyard out, she looked down to the artsy path below her, smirking and chuckling to herself.
Finally off-premises, she crossed the busy road and headed up toward the elevated railway to get the train home.
She enjoyed the train ride home. Though it was usually busy in the post-work peak hour, it brought a sense of comfort knowing that she'd finished the stressful part of the day. In fact, she enjoyed heading into the night - a bit of a night owl of sorts.
Luckily for her, the train arrived promptly at 5:30 pm, providing little waiting time in getting home. She boarded it with her backpack slung over her shoulder, taking a gentle seat and decompressing.
As it began to depart, she placed her bag on the floor, rummaging through it to find her exam draft. She found it and took it out, looking it over in admiration. She wore a prideful smile, taking and holding it against her chest with her eyes closed. She let out another decompressing breath, opening them and looking down at it again.
"Tomorrow... tomorrow's gonna be great." she thought to herself.
She gently placed the draft back in her bag, taking her phone out from one of the front pockets. She opened the lock screen.
"Five and a half hours..." she recalled.
It had been five and a half hours since Wade last reached out to her. Though the day she had was comforting in comparison to the other days, there was that underlying stress in her still. It was her dewdrop after all; she cared about him more than anything in the world.
Unfortunately, she delved into that headspace for just a moment, her smile gently decaying.
BZZT-BZZT
Gone as fast as the wind, her breath briefly shortened in excitement, quickly looking down at her phone.
See this memory, 1 year ago!
She groaned like her father would at the tediously-timed notification, begrudgingly opening it as if she had nothing better to do on the ride home.
To her gentle surprise, it was a picture of her and Wade on their first date at the Alkali Theater. She let out a smile in admiration, leaning her head on a hand. That trance was briefly interrupted by the train announcer...
Next stop, Waterford Towers
"Oh- that's me." she thought, lighting up in engagement.
She put her phone back into her bag and zipped it all up, getting up and holding onto an overhead handle.
A short half a minute later, the train arrived home at roughly 5:45 pm. Ember gently disembarked and began power-walking like the home called to her. She strolled down the elevated railway to street level, crossing the road below.
As she did, she stopped and looked up at Casa de la Sea-Near; home. She chuckled thankfully, taking a breath and walking onward.
She arrived at the front lobby of the apartment complex and walked up to the elevator. She hoped right in it. Its doors close, and with it her public-worn face.
Two levels of comfort overcame her; the first of the fact that she had arrived home, and the second that she got to see her little dewdrop again. In fact, the second became a rush of sorts, causing her to flash white in excitement.
The elevator opened to the 25th level and out jogged a voracious Ember. She ran up to the front door, knocking on it in a sing-song manner. After a moment's wait, Uncle Sea-Near eagerly opened it, extending a welcoming hand.
"Ember! Welcome home!" he exclaimed.
Ember let out an eager chuckle, slinging her bag to her side.
"Thanks, Mr S! How was your day?" she replied.
"Oh- the firm lost its marbles today! Something about a dodgy bar up in Ashenwood. So many insurance claims!" Uncle Sea-Near said with an air of exciteable frustration.
Ember naively swam through the room as he went on, making haste for her bedroom upstairs. As she arrived at the staircase, she clung to it momentarily, looking back at Uncle Sea-Near.
"That's no good. After me, you'd think fire people weren't all that rambunctious." Ember quipped.
Uncle Sea-Near let out a chuckle at Ember's quip, holding his stomach.
"Heh. It would appear not," he remarked.
Ember let out a gentle smile in appreciation, promptly heading upstairs to the bedroom. She closed the door behind her and let out an exhale. She threw her bag off her shoulder and got out of her stinking PPE uniform. A wave of tire overcame her as she went up and fell back first onto her bed.
She let out an exhale in relief, cozying up on it. Still a little fireball of energy, following roughly 10 seconds, she quickly sat up. She looked past the foot of her bed to where she placed her bag, and that was the moment she realized...
Wade's stuff wasn't there...
She gently sat back down in disappointment, looking over to his bed and hunching.
"Hey, dewdrop. I- I'm home," she announced gently.
No reply came. Appropriately, she lost her smile ever so gently. She laid back down on her back, exhaling sharply.
"Still not home?" another voice asked.
Suddenly, a visiting Uncle Sea-Near parked himself at the doorway. Ember got out of her post-work slump, looking down with legs crossed.
"No. Not yet," she answered.
Uncle Sea-Near let out an exhale in tribute to the hurt she must be feeling.
"I'm sure it's just work. His work at the EBID does deal with Ashenwood-type stuff." he comforted.
Ember looked back up at Uncle Sea-Near with a blank expression.
"Work. Yeah... I hope it's that." she retorted, an air of coping playfulness about her.
Hesitantly, Uncle Sea-Near entered the room, parking himself on the foot of her bed. Slightly apprehensive, she scooched away a foot or so and curled up into a ball.
"I hope you know that he, Aunty S and I are so proud of you." he recognised.
Ember let out a chuckle at the rather-cliche line of comfort.
"Heh. I do now," she remarked.
Uncle Sea-Near let out a chuckle in tandem, tapping the foot of Ember's bed below him with a finger. Following a couple of seconds of tense silence, he leaned forward slightly.
"You know, back when I met Mrs S, I didn't think anything else mattered besides her." he began.
Surprised at his sudden shift to exposition, Ember looked at Uncle Sea-Near, unsure of what to think or say.
"Huh?" she sounded.
"It's true. When you're in love, all you can think about is the other. But something I wished I learned sooner is that... sometimes the best thing to do is just take some space from one another. Not outright, but periodically. So that your worth doesn't rely on the other's thoughts of you all the time." Uncle Sea-Near wisely put.
Ember lost her smile as she began to take in his words.
"Really?" she asked.
"Absolutely. The moment I learned to stop relying on her for happiness, the more I appreciated the happiness I had when we were together." he elaborated.
Ember smirked at the wise line, looking down as she thought about it.
"Huh." she sounded in acknowledgment.
"Look, I only say this because you and Wade... you're still young. Though you may think you've been with each other forever, you're only just touching the surface..." he said.
Emphasising the point, Uncle Sea-Near slid a hand slightly closer to her.
"...so don't feel bad if one of you has a night to yourself." he finished.
Ember held her hands in her lap, exhaling.
"I'll try," she replied.
With a sense of pride, Uncle Sea-Near let out a smile at her. He tapped the bed with both hands in an announcement.
"I think this calls for a celebration. Take out tonight?" he queried.
Ember looked at him sharply, a bit taken off-guard.
"What kind?" she asked half-heartedly.
"Oh, I dunno- Ristorante Tutto?" Uncle Sea-Near offered with a playful stare.
Ember let out a naive laugh, shaking her head.
"What is that?" she asked, shuffling about and livening up.
"Only the most tasty inter-elemental food there is! They got liquids, gases, solids- you name it!" Uncle Sea-Near excitedly put.
Ember laughed with a genuine smile, folding her arms.
"Oh- okay! That sounds great." she agreed.
"Awesome! I'll pull up the menu." Uncle Sea-Near said.
He pulled up the Ristorante Tutto menu on his phone. Ember gently leaned over to him, still a bit daunted to get too close - he being water and her being fire after all.
"Alright. Let's see...
They got ash-fried Kol-nuts?" Uncle Sea-Near began.
"Hmm... I've had 'em too much lately. How about something else?" she said.
"Okay. How about a hot log?" he offered.
"Yeesh. Too fattening." she denied.
"Right... well, how about flamin' ash salad instead?" he added.
". . .
What am I, a savage?" she denied, shaking her head.
"Oh- kay.
. . .
Ooh! What about a hot pot?" he excitedly added.
He leaned over to show Ember a picture of the dish. To her surprise, it was a big bowl of fire; fiendishly gourmet. She stared at the dish, lighting up and licking her lips.
"Okay. That looks really good!" she agreed.
"It's settled! Hot pot it is!" he excitedly put.
He let out a laugh, prompting Ember to do so in tandem. She shook her head, folding her arms with a big smile. Uncle Sea-Near calmed as he watched Ember become a bit more cheerful, smiling at her in a friendly manner.
"You know, I'm doubling down; the wife and I are proud of you." he suddenly admired.
Still cheery, Ember chuckled, raising an eyebrow.
"Heh. Where did that come from?" she asked.
"I'm just saying! We think Wade chose right in you." he admired.
The two exchanged a nice stare at each other.
"It's only been a worker's week, but we'd gladly call you family," he told.
Ember let out a grateful smile, touched almost to the point of tears.
"You really think so?" she queried.
"Oh, I know so! You make one of our dearest nephews the happiest dewdrop in the world! ...and so much more." he emphasised.
Ember let out an uncomfortable laugh, unable to take the compliment.
BZZT-BZZT
Interjecting into the gentle scene, a notification quickly sounded. Ember let up her hopes quickly, sharply looking over at her phone.
Still, no Wade...
She let out a disappointed sigh, shaking her head.
"Okay! Just got the order confirmation. Should be here in a half hour." Uncle Sea-Near said.
He got himself up off Ember's bed, heading toward the doorway out of the room. Just before he headed out, he stopped, looking back toward her.
"In the meantime... maybe just dim your lights. You've had a big week," he suggested.
Ember let out an exhale in agreeance, flopping down onto her bed again.
"You could say that again." she concurred showmanlike.
Uncle Sea-Near let out a chuckle, tapping on the doorframe.
"You'll hear my call out when it's here," he said.
Leaving her with a moment to breathe, he gently closed the door and departed.
With that, Ember sat, staring up at the ceiling now alone with her thoughts. She quickly brought up her phone again, unlocked it and began to surf the internet. Once again, another memory notification came up...
See your memories!
With not much else better to do in wait for dinner, she clicked on it.
To her surprise, it was a small photo album of her and Wade. The first picture; the same photo as the one on the train home. She began to scroll through it in slight interest.
The second was at the Ripple's; the moment before she met Wade's Mom for the first time.
The third; was at Garden Central station; the moment before she saw her favourite flower for the first time thanks to her favourite dewdrop.
A fourth, to her surprise, was barely a couple of days ago; on the boat out of Element City. The two housed a tired smile; especially her. Perhaps the mediator aboard the boat had already ruined her mood at that time. Present her laughed at her tired likeness, her happiness returning as she put herself into that time.
She scrolled onward, reaching the fifth and final picture of the album. It was a picture of the Polaroid Wade took of himself and her, arriving at the docks of Elementopia for the very first time and in front of the mural.
This was her favourite of the lot, for it showed a comfortable rapport far beyond the ones before. It was as if the two had been together for years. She took her time in taking it in, smiling thankfully. She closed her eyes, putting herself into the shoes of past her and thinking about that time...