LesleyLSmith
Stories
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Wonderful Life
| by Lesley L. Smith Someone knocked on the open door. "Hey, you lab rats. It's party time."
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"Here, daddy, paste it," came from the sound system of our holo-movie project. I looked at the imaging area and could almost make out a 3-d man sitting on a 3-d bed.
"Party?" Ted poked his head out from behind some equipment. "Why didn't I hear anything about a party?"
Liz grimaced. "Beats me. I only sent out about ten emails about it. Anyway, now you've heard about it -- so I'll see you there, right?"
"Count me in!" said Ted.
Liz smiled and went on down the hall.
"We can't afford to go to a party," I said to Ted. "We don't have time."
He got up and came over to me. "All work and no play makes Cassie a dull girl." He stood right next to me and looked at me with those twinkling blue eyes of his.
In the background I heard, "George, why must you torture the children?" I shook my head and then had to brush my hair out of my eyes. "We have a deadline, in case you forgot. The clients aren't going to be happy if we don't deliver."
"C'mon, Cassie, don't be such a Scrooge." He touched my wrist.
I quickly withdrew my arm and put my hand in my lab coat pocket. "But the deadline...." I was weakening and Ted could read me like a book.
He gave me an encouraging smile, which emphasized the cleft in his chin.
"Oh, what the hell," I said and turned for the door. "Let's go."
We walked down the hall at a brisk pace, passing empty labs, many of which had twinkling lights strung around their doorways. We went outside through the double doors at the end of the hall.
I was surprised to see it was snowing and had been for quite a while by the looks of it. There were mounds of snow pooled here and there, and where the lights from the covered walkway hit them they sparkled. I hugged my lab coat more tightly around me. "I guess we should've got our jackets." Puffs of snow hit one side of my face and melted instantly, leaving tiny wet spots. I wiped my cheek with the arm of my lab coat.
Ted shrugged and pointed down the sidewalk. "We're almost there."
We picked up the pace as more fluffy snowflakes surrounded us.
Ted reached the doors first. As he opened them, a gust of hot air rushed out, carrying with it laughter, muted conversations, and the clink of glasses.
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