Dream Theory - Chapter 3 (Patreon)

Leaning against the intake desk in the lobby, Yang observed the station while waiting for Casey to get back to her.  She only wanted to see the check-ins over the past few months - following a hunch that the person she was searching for had already been booked in - but apparently the log file was missing.

It wasn’t exactly the best look for a police station to lose track of something, but files were misplaced or moved all the time.  That was, unfortunately, the result of so many officers working in the same systems at the same time. Plus, some of them were shockingly bad at keeping cases and logbooks organized.

“Coming through!”

As soon as Yang turned towards the voice, someone howled with rage and shoved the arresting officer into the nearest desk.  The tank of a man, who was suddenly freed of an escort, looked wildly around the lobby before making a break towards the front door.  But he didn’t make it very far before four other officers descended upon him - herself included.

The two patrolmen in front of her grabbed the man by the shoulders and dragged him to the floor before piling on top of him.  The man roared with anger and nearly tossed the two patrolmen right off of him while trying to regain his feet. That’s when Yang and another patrolman arrived, falling to their knees by the man and using their leverage to push him back down.

“Backup to the lobby,” someone spoke into a radio while they subdued the perpetrator on the floor.  

“Woah there, buddy,” Yang said, pressing down with all her weight while he struggled against them.  “You’ll rack up more felonies like that.”

He didn’t heed her words - not that he seemed capable of comprehending anything while his eyes frantically searched for an escape.

“What’s he on?” she asked the arresting officer, who’d regained his feet and was helping hold the man in place while waiting for extra help to arrive.

“Everything.”

“Everything?”

“Caught him selling in the park.  Genius swallowed everything he had to avoid a possession charge.”

“Damn.”  Looking in the man’s eyes - whose pupils were as big as she’d ever seen - Yang shook her head.  “You’re in for quite a trip,” she told him, although he didn’t seem to hear her.

Two more officers rushed into the lobby at that moment, and Yang waited for them to get in position before stepping away and letting them lift the man to his feet.  A pair of electric cuffs immediately went around his ankles, preventing another escape attempt while he was marched into the back for processing and probably a medical evaluation.

Dusting off her hands and returning to the intake desk, she made it there right as Casey returned from the back.

“Is it just me, or are they making those guys bigger and bigger?” she joked before motioning for him to talk.  “Tell me you have good news.”

“I found it.”  While Yang clenched one fist in success, he slid a copy of the file across the desk to her.  “Someone moved it to the folder with all the lunch menus.”

Pressing her palm to the tiny slip of metal and downloading the data, Yang shook her head and scoffed.

“Those lunch menus are very important, Casey,” she said in a playfully-serious tone.  “If we don’t know what we’re ordering for lunch, how will we survive the day?”

“Damn right,” he replied with a smooth smile before running a hand through his short brown hair.  “Oh, that reminds me - I was wondering if, maybe, we could get a drink or something after shift? I owe you like...infinite drinks for agreeing to help me study.”

Caught off guard by the request, which sounded like more than a strictly-friendly invitation, Yang felt her mouth open but no words came out.

“Or, I dunno, we could hit up a Dreamscape tonight or something?  I’ve got a new prefab that’s pretty cool.”

She flinched at the second offer, and he suddenly looked horrified that he just asked.

“Uh, thanks,” she said, struggling to find a response that wouldn’t hurt his feelings or make things awkward between them.  “But I...I just haven’t felt like going out recently -”

“Right,” Casey cut in with an understanding nod and embarrassed smile.  “That’s right. Your, uh, your -”

“You can call her my ex.”  

Internally, Yang grimaced at the word, but she couldn’t think of a better term at the moment.

“Right.”  Looking like he wished he’d never broached the topic, Casey shifted between his feet and brushed his hand across his hair a second time.  “She was like, the master dreamscaper, huh. You probably saw some crazy ones.”

“I did,” Yang replied with a sad smile.

“I heard some people got the new system already.”  Latching onto the subject change for dear life, he finally broke out one of the smiles Yang had grown accustomed to seeing.  “Got them as ‘thank you’ gifts for help on a case.”

“Really?” 

“Yeah.  I’m so jealous...Tina in Evidence has one - she’ll tell you how awesome it is.”

As soon as Yang felt the conversation return to normalcy, she backed away, hoping to escape before that question showed up again.  Not that Casey looked willing to make a second attempt down that path.

“I’ll go see her if I want to be jealous for the rest of the night,” Yang joked before turning and waving over her shoulder while leaving him behind.  It wasn’t until she passed through the security doors, however, that she sighed and felt her shoulders slump.  

Apparently, an invisible timer was up, and she was available for dating again. 

Honestly, she should’ve seen Casey’s request coming from a mile away.  The two of them had been harmlessly flirting for the past couple of months - light-hearted teases here and there.  To Yang, it was just a little flirting - it made her feel normal and gave her a good laugh or two throughout the day.  But she should’ve paid more attention to the subtle advances he made - the subtle suggestions that he’d like to see her outside of work.  And now that she’d agreed to help him study for the detective exam…

She could keep it professional.  She would tell him a flat-out ‘no,’ if she had to.  But she also needed to realize that she was no longer protected by the shield of being ‘off the market.’  

When she was with Blake, she could flirt and everyone understood that it was just for fun.  Now, it would become harder to explain herself as time progressed. And she really didn’t want to lead anyone on, because flirting with her would lead nowhere.  Her heart would only ever belong to one person.

Besides, she couldn’t dream sequence with anyone else.  For one thing, it would be too painful to experience that with someone other than Blake.  For another, Blake had made it very clear that she didn’t want Yang sequencing with someone else.  

Blake normally didn’t issue orders like that, and Yang normally didn’t take orders like that, but she understood the sentiment.  Sequencing with someone else would be akin to cheating, especially with how closely the machine was tied to their relationship. Besides, that was the only time they could spend together now, and no way was she missing a single night.

Hurrying back to her office, she reminded herself that everyone just wanted her to be fine.  They wanted her to be so fine, in fact, that they wanted her to start dating again.  She knew all of the excuses they’d make for her. She was still young; she had her whole life ahead of her; the explosion happened a lifetime ago.

It happened a lifetime ago, yet the aftereffects still drove her life.

Realistically, if Blake really was gone, Yang wasn’t sure she’d ever date again.  Not that anyone would want to date the emotional wreck she’d be...

Fortunately, if there was anything to feel fortunate about in this situation, she could always hide behind the excuse of not wanting to date anyone from work.  That should buy her enough time to...well, it should buy time. She wasn’t entirely sure what she was buying time for - for old age to creep up to her? For the next ice age to arrive, in which case Blake might finally deem it safe to come home?

In the meantime, Yang would sit at her desk and move through her cases like usual, all while wishing for the good ‘ol days when she was firmly and loyally taken.  Things were less complicated then.  ‘I have a girlfriend’ was all she needed to say to end the conversation. ‘I had a girlfriend’ felt slightly less persuasive.

“You still kind of have one,” she muttered to herself while unlocking her computer and pulling up the list of check-ins she’d been searching for.  “You just...don’t know where she is.”

Feeling the familiar twinge of sadness at the edge of her mind, she shook her head and focused on the names in front of her.  Her culprit was somewhere on this list - she knew it. Or at least, she felt it. She could be chasing another wild, unfounded hunch though.

“True detective work,” she mumbled while reading the names.  If she was Ruby, she’d create a program to scan the list for exactly what she was searching for.  It would take her about fifteen seconds and then she’d be done.  

But she wasn’t Ruby, so she did this the old-fashioned way - reading one name at a time.

She was only halfway through the list when two quick knocks interrupted her concentration.  As she looked towards the door to her office, it opened and Casey poked his head inside.

“Detective,” he said, giving her the same smile he always did.  Yang had only a second to feel relieved by the normalcy before she recognized the person standing by his side - someone she hadn’t seen in quite some time.

“You have a visitor,” Casey continued while Yang stood up to greet her guest.

“Lyla,” she said with a warm smile, walking over to meet the petite young woman.  Taking the greeting as permission for her to stay, Casey gently closed the office door and returned to the front of the station without further interruption.

“Hi Yang,” Lyla replied with a smile of her own.  Aided by a cane, she took a couple of steps to meet Yang in the middle of the office.  Each step looked labored, but she didn’t complain while resituating the cardboard box tucked underneath her other arm.  

With straight, sandy-blonde hair and a fair complexion, Lyla was the type of nerdy-pretty Yang would expect to find in a laboratory.  Which was perfect, because that’s exactly where Lyla worked.

“How are you?” Yang asked.  “I haven’t seen you since…”

Words trailing off, Yang tried to remember the last time they’d seen each other.

“The Christmas party two years ago,” Lyla replied with a small nod.  “It’s been a long time.”

“It has.”  Noticing the way Lyla leaned away from her bad leg, Yang quickly moved aside and gestured towards one of the chairs in front of her desk.

“Please sit -” she offered while pulling the chair closer, but Lyla waved off the offer.

“I don’t want to take up too much of your time.  And today’s one of those days where...if I sit, I’ll take up too much of your time.”  Patting her bum leg, Lyla gave an apologetic smile.

“I don’t mind.”  Leaving the chair nearby just in case, Yang didn’t press the issue.  Instead, she glanced at the box Lyla carried and asked, “What brings you here?”

It seemed like the next logical question, and it probably was, but Lyla’s eyes clouded as she looked at the box.

“They finally went through everything,” she whispered before extending the box to Yang.  “They were going to mail it, but I thought...it would be better to deliver it personally.”

Understanding what Lyla had just gifted to her, Yang swallowed against the lump growing in her throat.

“Is this going to make me cry?” she asked, feeling the first pinpricks of tears while holding the box in both hands.

“Depends.  Do you cry at pictures of yourself?”

It was the perfect response at the perfect time, allowing Yang to laugh rather than focus on her pain.

“Sometimes!” she joked with a nod.  “Really depends on what my hair’s doing that day.”

When Lyla laughed as well, Yang felt a little better, for now.

“I tried to get some of her notes for you,” Lyla explained, leaning against her cane for temporary support.  “But she did this weird thing where she wrote about work in work notebooks. It was deemed too classified to leave the building.”

Smiling at the small joke, Yang raised the box in front of her but didn’t dare look inside.

“Thank you,” she said before setting it on her desk.  “I’ll go through it later, when no one’s around to witness my vanity.”

Fortunately, Lyla nodded and willingly dropped the subject so Yang didn’t have to focus on it any longer.

“I believe I just met your sister in the lobby,” Lyla said instead.

“Ruby?”

“That was her.”  Lyla nodded at the name and broke into a smile.  “She has a wonderful energy about her.”

Yang laughed at the description and leaned against her desk.

“That’s one way to describe her.”

For a few seconds, the two of them lapsed into silence.  Lyla glanced out the glass wall of the office, where a pair of officers hurried past, before returning her gaze to Yang.

“How’s it going over here?  Have you made any progress finding...who did it?”

Yang sighed and shook her head at the question.

“I’m not on the case, for obvious reasons, but I’m sure they’ll put together an announcement if they ever have something to say.”

“Ah.”  Reading the context in Yang’s non-answer, Lyla nodded and didn’t pry any further.

“What about you though?” Yang quickly asked.  “You have the big release soon.”

“We do.”  Briefly turning to the side, Lyla sighed.  “Honestly, I’m ready for it to be over. Then we can start fixing the bugs and move past the craze.”

“I hear ya there.”

When Yang chuckled, Lyla smiled.  

“You wouldn’t happen to want one, would you?  I’m sure I can get you one as a...a token of appreciation, at least.  Blake’s work is an integral part of the Daydreamer.”

Yang was so unaccustomed to people saying Blake’s name aloud, she actually flinched when Lyla did.  But, surprisingly, it didn’t fill her with pain like she thought it would. If anything, it was...nice...that Lyla said it - that she actually acknowledged Blake’s existence rather than tiptoeing around the name like it might summon a ghost.

“That’d make me the most popular person in the station,” Yang joked before shaking her head at the offer.  “I appreciate it, but I’ll pass. I can’t really use it anymore. Not since…”

Thankfully, she didn’t have to finish the sentence.  Lyla already understood, and she nodded to signal as much.

“If you ever change your mind…”

“I know where to find you.”  Smiling at the kind offer, Yang waved her hand in a friendly manner.  “Anything I can help you with while you’re here? Any crimes or mysterious occurrences to report?”

“Fortunately not.  I only stopped by to drop off the box.”  Lyla nodded towards the box on Yang’s desk before motioning towards the door.  “But I should probably head back to now.”

“Sure.”  Standing from her perch, Yang followed Lyla to the door.  “I’ll walk you out,” she offered while pulling open the door and waving Lyla through first.

“Thank you,” Lyla replied before the two of them stepped into the hall together.  “How are you doing?” she asked as they headed towards the lobby. “With...everything.”

Taking care to match Lyla’s slow pace, Yang lowered her gaze to the floor.

“I’m just...taking things one day at a time.”

“That’s really all you can do.”

Even though Yang sighed, she knew Lyla was right.  That’s the same advice everyone gave her in some way, shape, or form.  But it was hard to take things one day at a time when she wanted to skip to the resolution, when everything was fixed and she could find her happily-ever-after.

“I wish there was a faster way through this,” she admitted while the two of them walked into the lobby.  “Fast forward to the end, you know?”

Pausing for a second, Lyla looked at the space surrounding them - various officers coming and going while civilians waited and criminals-to-be were led through.  Her eyes lingered on Casey - watching him speak to Red at his desk. He must have felt the observation because he looked their way and, as soon as he met Yang’s gaze, smiled and waved.  Yang waved back before turning towards Lyla, who smiled at the interaction.

“She would want you to be happy.”

The statement was so heartfelt and simple, Yang felt another wave of tears threaten to spill over.  Thankfully, Lyla shifted her cane in her hand before shuffling towards the front door.

“It was nice seeing you again, Yang.  I’m glad you’re doing well - at least, as well as you can be.”

“You too, Lyla.  Take care of yourself, ok?”

With a nod and parting smile, Lyla walked through the lobby doors and headed back to Dreamscape Industries.

For what felt like the longest time after Lyla’s departure, Yang stared out the doors and tried to make sense of her emotions.  It felt like the universe was trying to tell her something today, but it wasn’t something she wanted to hear.

Move on?  Move on without Blake in her life?  That was impossible because Blake was still in her life.

Lyla was right though - Blake would want her to be happy.  The biggest question then became...was she happy?

Hearing a set of snickers from the officers sitting at the desks nearby, she finally turned away from the door and found their attention directed elsewhere.

“What’s going on?” she asked, searching for the source of their entertainment.  She didn’t see anything especially funny - she only saw a distraught-looking woman speaking to one of the other detectives at the far side of the lobby.

“This lady’s back again,” one of the officers explained.  “Lost her son a few months ago - poor kid passed away in his sleep - but she keeps going on about conspiracy theories and murder and such.”

“Has anyone looked into it?”

“Nothing to look into.  We took her statement, but the coronary report was clean - heart attack in his sleep.”

“Know what she needs,” the other cop said, elbowing his buddy before smirking at Yang.  “She needs a bleeding heart. Wonder where you can find one of those nowadays?”

When they chuckled, Yang rolled her eyes and walked across the lobby.  ‘Bleeding heart’ made it sound like she went out of her way for everyone who crossed her path.  She wouldn’t say that was true, but she was willing to spare a few minutes of her time for a grieving mother.

“You don’t understand,” the woman was saying when Yang joined the conversation.  “I have something to add - I found something important.”

Unfortunately, the detective was clearly only interested in getting her to leave as soon as possible.  Yang couldn’t exactly blame him. They heard dozens of cases like this every month - mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers - all convinced that their loved ones were taken from them by conspiracy rather than a random act of nature.  

Over time, Yang had learned that this was a typical, human response.  They’d rather believe in a conspiracy because random acts couldn’t be controlled, mitigated, or hidden from.  From her own experience with loss, she knew what it was like to have no one believe those feelings. She didn’t even know if she needed someone to believe - she just needed someone to listen.  To listen to her crazy thoughts and not call her crazy.

“Robby.”  Tapping the detective’s shoulder, Yang gestured with her head for him to leave.  “I’ll take it from here.”

A look of relief crossed his face before he excused himself from the conversation and disappeared from the lobby.

“Good afternoon,” Yang said, smiling at the woman.  “I’m Detective Xiao Long - would you like to sit with me for a second?  We can talk about your son.”

From a simple sentence, an immeasurable look of relief crossed the woman’s face.

“Yes,” she replied with a nod.  “Yes, of course. I found something that I need to show you - I think it could help.”

“Sure, we’ll take a look at it.  Follow me.” Leading the way towards the security doors, Yang rolled her eyes at the grins the other officers sent her way.  

She didn’t care if they thought she was wasting her time.  Their job was to keep the peace, but she also considered helping others to be part of their responsibility.  If she could help this woman feel even slightly better about the loss of her child, wouldn’t that be a job well done?

“Sorry if I need you to explain everything for me again,” Yang said while holding open the door to her office and motioning the woman towards a chair.  “I don’t have your case in front of me at the moment.”

“That’s ok, really.”

Before Yang sat down, she cleared the box of mementos off her desk to make room.  She then sat down and pulled over a pen and pad of paper like she was going to take notes.

“From what I’ve heard, you have concerns about your son?”

“Yes,” the woman replied, nodding once and sitting straighter in her seat.  “Greyson.”

“Greyson,” Yang repeated, writing the name at the top of the paper.  “And I’m sorry, but what’s your name?”

“Ellie.  Ellie Sawyer.”

“Ok, Mrs. Sawyer.  Please start from the beginning.  What happened to Greyson? Give me as many details as possible.”

Again, a wave of visible relief crossed the woman’s face.  Because all she wanted was to tell her side of the story. She might sound crazy, but she needed to be heard.  She needed to say the words out loud.

“Greyson was incredibly smart,” she began with a proud smile.  “Top of his class through school and university. He spent his free time on the computer learning the ins and outs of dreams.  He’d tell me - ‘my dream is to work with dreams.’”

Smiling at the adage, Yang nodded for Mrs. Sawyer to continue.

“When he graduated, he was selected for an internship at Dreamscape Industries.”  The company name instantly perked Yang’s attention, and she sat a little straighter while listening to the rest of the story.  “An internship is one of the only ways to get a job at the company, and they’re very competitive. I remember how thrilled he was when he was accepted…”

For a moment, Mrs. Sawyer paused and smiled, reflecting on the memory with a bit of happiness.

“When did he start?” Yang asked, pressing her pen to the paper in preparation of writing down the answer.

“About a year ago.  It was a yearlong internship - he was supposed to find out if he’d be offered a full-time position soon, but…”

When the woman’s eyes filled with tears, Yang tried to steer the conversation in a different, less painful direction.

“How did the internship go?  Did he like it?”

“He loved it,” Mrs. Sawyer replied.  For a split second, her expression filled with joy, but then her smile disappeared and her brow furrowed.  “At least, at first. He loved the challenging work, but the hours were long and he grew more and more exhausted as time went on.  I remember his eyes were always so dark...I asked him if he was getting enough sleep, but he always said he had too much work to do.”

“I’ve heard that the interns can be really cutthroat,” Yang added as a means of reassurance.  “They’ll push each other too hard if left unchecked.”

Blake had told her some outrageous stories about the interns.  When there weren’t enough full-time positions to go around, some of the more...dedicated...resorted to extreme measures in hopes of nabbing the top prize.  Backstabbing was common. Working themselves to exhaustion was even more so.

“He was a fighter though.  He wanted to work there as much as anyone else.  But one day, out of the blue, he asked me to meet him for breakfast - said he needed to tell me something in person.  I thought he was finally going to quit - the way they work them over there isn’t healthy - but when I got to his apartment…”

Words trailing off, Mrs. Sawyer bit her bottom lip when it quivered with emotion.

“He gave me a key,” she explained, her voice heavy with tears.  “When he didn’t answer, I let myself in. And that’s when...when I found him...in his bed...looking like he was asleep...”

The first tear fell then, and Yang offered Mrs. Sawyer the box of tissues that always sat on the desk.  While the woman pulled one out and dabbed at her eyes with shaking hands, Yang waited for the emotions to settle before posing her next question.

“The doctors said it was a heart attack,” she said gently.  “If he was under so much stress, wouldn’t that be a possible explanation?”

“Yes,” Mrs. Sawyer replied, surprisingly reasonable in accepting that possibility.  “I know that could have happened, but he was healthy. His doctor was surprised that this happened, even with the amount of stress at work.”

Yang wrote the word ‘healthy’ on her pad of paper and underlined it twice before looking up.

“Let me ask you something,” she began, shifting in her chair.  “What do you think happened?”

The question was an open invitation to spill all the conspiracies the woman could muster, and Yang was prepared to listen to them all.  It was the least she could do. Didn’t Weiss and Ruby offer her the same relief?  

“I think...he got involved in something,” Mrs. Sawyer began.  “I think he got involved in something that he shouldn’t have, and he paid for it.”

“Like a gang or shadow group?” Yang asked, but the woman shook her head.

“I’m not sure who or what, but it was something bigger than he could get himself out of - even with his brilliant mind...”

“And why do you think that?” Yang pressed.  “Besides the fact that he was healthy and suddenly passed away - do you have any evidence that makes you suspect foul play?”

Asking for evidence was usually the death knell to conspiracy theorists, who had only newspaper clippings and their imagination to string everything together.  When Mrs. Sawyer reached into her bag, Yang expected much of the same - maybe an entire scrapbook of articles related to Dreamscape Industries. Instead, Mrs. Sawyer pulled out a small device and set it on top of the desk - a small device that looked much like a cufflink: small, round, and shining silver.  

“A holomask?” Yang asked, picking up the device and looking it over with mounting curiosity.

“I finally got around to cleaning his apartment,” Mrs. Sawyer explained.  “I...I couldn’t right away.” Pausing for a second, she dabbed at her eyes again before regaining her composure.  “I found that stuck underneath one of the drawers.”

“Almost everyone has a holomask these days,” Yang pointed out while spinning it around in her fingers and thinking through the situation.  “So why hide it under a drawer?”

“That’s what I asked myself,” Mrs. Sawyer replied.  “And before you ask, Greyson was a good man. He’d never get involved in anything illegal.  At least, not voluntarily.”

The response was expected.  Everyone believed that their children were angels while everyone else’s were to blame for the stories on the news.  If Yang had a dollar for every parent who was surprised by the antics their children got into, she’d be living in a penthouse in the Gold Quarter instead of an apartment downtown.  

In this case, however, she was almost inclined to believe Mrs. Sawyer.  Call it a gut feeling or just...a hunch.

“Maybe a costume?” she suggested.

“Maybe.  But he wasn’t the type to dress up or take part in frivolity.  He hardly left his computer.”

He sounded a lot like Ruby, or a combination of Ruby and Blake.  Neither of them saw the allure in using a holomask as a part of day-to-day life, but both understood the uses and importance in having one around.  In a world where identity was fleeting, the option of taking on a different one - even for a short period of time - was invaluable.

Starting up the device and holding it to her ear, Yang took a quick scan of the last mask used.  It was a man, mid-thirties, dark hair, dark eyes - rather nondescript.

“Ever seen him before?” 

“Never.”

Turning off the screen and tapping her fingers on the desk, Yang thought about what she wanted to do next.  While holomasks were once notoriously used by criminals, that wasn’t the case anymore. Everyone had one these days - even she carried one with her all the times in case she needed it.  Greyson probably felt the same - his mother just didn’t believe it.  

But it wouldn’t hurt to run some scans and see what he was up to, just in case.  With the technology they had these days - and with Ruby at her disposal - it wouldn’t take much time and could go a long way in convincing Mrs. Sawyer that sometimes a perfectly-healthy heart gave out for no reason.  It wasn’t fair, but life wasn’t fair.

“I’d like to get this to analysis,” Yang said, looking across the desk for permission to hold onto the device.  “If we can match it to something, maybe we can figure out what he got into.”

“Thank you.”  Her eyes filling with tears, Mrs. Sawyer stood up and extended her hand to shake Yang’s.  “I really appreciate your time and...everything you do.”

“Don’t mention it.”  After setting the holomask on the desk and shaking the woman’s hand, Yang smiled and motioned to the door.  “Let me walk you out?”

When Mrs. Sawyer nodded, Yang led the way back to the front of the station.  The early-afternoon crowds had disappeared by now, but there were still a few civilians waiting in the main lobby.

“It could take a few days to get through everything,” she said as the two of them approached the exit.  “But I’ll let you know if we find anything. Even if we don’t, I’ll get back to you.”

“Thank you, Detective.”  With a relieved smile and quick nod, Mrs. Sawyer left the station behind, leaving Yang to sigh as the front doors slid shut.

With her personal tragedy consuming so much of her life, she sometimes forgot that she wasn’t the only one suffering.  Hardship was everywhere, and her job brought some of the most downtrodden souls into her office - a reminder that even though her life was difficult, she still had something to be grateful for.

In this case, at least Blake was still alive - somewhere.  At least Yang still had the chance of bringing her home.  

“Hey Yang.”

Finding Casey pulling on a jacket while walking towards her, Yang smiled.

“Hey Casey.  You heading out?”

“Yeah - meeting up with some people to watch the game tonight.  You wanna come?” As soon as Yang opened her mouth, Casey rushed forward.  “Just as friends, hanging out,” he added with a reassuring smile.  

“Thanks, but I’ve got some work to catch up on.”  When she gestured towards her office, he nodded and backed towards the door.

“Just thought I’d offer.  See you tomorrow.”

“See you.”  She returned his wave as he left the station then hurried towards the sanctuary of her office.

In another universe - one where Blake never existed - maybe Yang would feel differently.  An attractive, sweet, funny guy who didn’t try to force a relationship? Those weren’t exactly a dime a dozen these days.

In this universe, however, she couldn’t even consider it.

As soon as she walked into her office, her gaze went to the box on the floor by her desk - part of the reason why she’d never consider anyone else.

She’d known it was coming. They told her it would eventually show up, but then they got busy, and time passed, and she forgot.

She didn’t know why the personal effects in Blake’s office were quarantined like they might contain top secret information, but given Blake’s position in the company...well, Yang could understand.  Realistically, maybe it was better to get everything now. Or maybe it would’ve been better to get everything when she was still crying herself to sleep at night. It would’ve been just one more thing to cry over.

Pulling the lid off the box, she looked inside and felt her heart thump painfully in her chest.

The first picture, laying right on top and looking up at her, was of her and Blake on their two-year anniversary.  She’d planned the whole night out, from dinner to dessert to dancing. Someone had snapped the picture while the two of them were dancing, leaning close to one another while wearing goofy, love-struck smiles.

Lifting the frame out of the box, she sighed when she saw the photograph beneath it - this one from when the two of them went on a boat ride in the harbor.  It had been really windy that day so their hair was blowing all over the place, but somehow Yang managed to snap a good picture while they leaned against the railing.

The trip down memory lane was too much for her heart to bear right now, so she put the pictures back in the box and replaced the lid.  Sitting down with a sigh, she put her head in her hands and tried to shove those happy memories back where they belonged - in the box she’d created for them in her mind.

She’d take the box home and go through it later - or she’d take it home and let it sit somewhere, to be opened in the distant future.

Glancing at the clock on her computer and finding it was time to call it a day, she grabbed the holomask that Mrs. Sawyer had left behind and stored it in the locked box in her desk.  She shut down her computer next and then opened the drawer where she stored her personal belongings.

Again, this was the worst part of the day.  Leaving work meant she was in for another quiet night alone in her apartment - another quiet night thinking and worrying about Blake.

“Hey Yang!”

Turning towards the sound of her name, she threw on a smile while Ruby stopped in the doorway.

“Hey Ruby - what’s up?”

“Wanna get dinner with me tonight?  This new fusion place that just opened and, apparently, they make everything with an old-school blowtorch.”

The request made Yang laugh.

“Sure, that sounds...fun.”

“And maybe we can watch a movie after?” Ruby added.  “You don’t get to pick though - not after the last one.”

“I thought it’d be interesting!” Yang protested, earning an eyeroll from her sister.  “But yes - count me in.”

When Yang smiled at the unexpected but pleasant change to her evening plans, Ruby grinned and tapped the doorway.

“Awesome!  Give me a second to get ready.  Meet you out front?”

Without an answer, Ruby rushed back to her lab to gather her belongings.  In her sister’s absence, Yang leaned back and sighed - this time in relief.  Her evening of brooding alone had been delayed by a few hours, and that was just fine with her.  After her day, she needed a distraction.

And what better distraction than watching someone cook her dinner with a blowtorch?