Epilogue
EPILOGUE
10,385 DAYS. 14 HOURS. 12 MINUTES.
Level fifteen was lit with oil lamps as far as the eye could see, a trail of mini-suns lining every street leading out from the university like a spider’s web. They said you could see hints of them even on zero, but I thought that was egotistical gloating. The banner at the front of the university’s stone steps, pinned from one giant column to the next, waved in a slight breeze as I went through the double wooden doors for the final time.
It had been a memorable two years, full of new friends, old textbooks, and getting the Tinker Hut finally off the ground. Green pulled through on his word to throw some customers my way, and word had spread of the floor-zero nobody dating the princess. That might have helped some. But really it was the confidence I had found in these very halls that finally screwed all of my bolts together and put my head on right. I’d spent years training with Dad, then a further span of time exploring what engineering meant to me with IoN, so I’d earned this day.
Happy Graduation Day was written on another banner inside the foyer, along with a detailed map of where everything was being held.
“Ella!” Tris called from the doorway to one of the assembly halls. “You made it.” She trotted over—a lady never runs—and wrapped me in a one-armed hug. “Have you seen the lineup for the presentation yet?” She waved a wayward piece of paper in my face, expecting me to somehow read it while it was moving.
“No. I tried to grab a copy this morning, but they were all gone by the time I got here. Busy morning in the garage.”
“Zimeon himself is giving the speech this year. Eek!” Her cheeks blushed bright red as she wiped her clammy hands on her gown. “I can’t believe it.”
“Maybe it’s because a certain someone’s royal girlfriend is going to be in attendance,” Flare whispered from behind me, making me jump. “You know, I still can’t believe you got your business off the ground, got a first-class degree, attended etiquette lessons, and kept your girlfriend.” She blew a strand of her curly blonde hair from her face. “Such an overachiever.”
“Oh yeah,” Tris added, “how’s the new garage on level twenty-one treating you?”
I hadn’t really wanted to move Dad’s garage all the way to the royal floor, but it was near-impossible for Meena and I to have a working relationship without one of us moving up or down; and since she couldn’t live on a lower level, it was up to me to make the decision. Eventually, our relationship mattered more to me than memories, so I moved. Though, because of the restrictions on who can actually enter the level, I also have an office on floor ten, with a small warehouse attached. Meena swore she’d one day make me my own elevator so I could simply bring things up and down the levels, but the paperwork has been a nightmare.
“It’s going great. I spend most of my time in the garage, but my assistant runs the office well. So far, I’ve had clients from all over using my services.” I even still did business on the lower levels for a cheaper rate, something Lazuli, my new assistant, had been helping me with since Lapis left for Prago City. I think she just needed something to do—a purpose—and an excuse to escape Phyllis’s clutches now that they were lined with gold. It seemed Meena followed through with her word and bought the contract for IoN originally held by Zime Industries. “I even employed a junior assistant recently, since work has been bombarding me.” Bobby loved helping out, and he was a natural with the tools. “I can’t wait for the Zime Industries Expo in the summer. Are you both working on something for it?”
Flare shook her head, her curls a bouncy jumble as she smiled secretively. “No, because guess who got an internship at Zime Industries?” Hand in the air, she squealed, “Me!”
“You got the only internship?” Tris asked, looking a little disappointed she didn’t get it herself, but it was a competitive field. “Wow. Congratulations.”
“Tris, any idea what you’re doing after graduation?” I asked, knowing full well she had been deliberating while trying to persuade her grandmother it was okay for her to move to Prago City.
“I got a job as an assistant to Everlake.” She didn’t look happy about it, which I was about to question when she explained, “I just need to break the news to Grandma.”
“She’ll be okay eventually. She just needs some time to adjust to your being an adult with choices ahead of you.” I placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, knowing how hard family can be.
“She still wishes I were married, so working is a little beyond her comprehension.”
“C’mon, let’s go find our seats.” Flare grabbed our hands and yanked us into the assembly hall, where we found our seats at the very front.
The hall quickly filled up with the university faculty, parents and friends of graduating students, and, this year, the royal box attendees. Meena’s security guards filed her into a makeshift seating area to the left of the stage, and she found my gaze immediately, her face warm and full of pride.
“Thank you all for coming today,” the president of the university, Dr. Shelway Copperbottom—we had all made endless fun of the name in the last two years—said. The lapels on his suit were bright orange today instead of the usual bright green, and the rest of the material was a deep maroon instead of the usual indigo. “We are here today to celebrate the graduating class of this year’s honor students from all of our eclectic courses of study. I hope, like many of you here do, that their futures are filled with as much brightness as their eager faces were on day one.”
He went through each course one by one, starting with the sciences and mathematics, then moving on to the more active courses, like ours and production design. As he called each student’s name, everyone clapped and cheered, and the student walked onto the stage with a nervous glint in their eye, shook the president’s hand, and walked back to their seat. It was a repetitive affair filled with more applause than even my weathered hands could keep up with.
When he finally called my name, one of the last of my class, I wasn’t nervous as I had expected to be. I was proud. I had done this. I might have gotten the fast track placement with Meena’s help, but that was payment for a job well done. I earned this. This was the start of my life.
The party afterward was humid, with the high summer heat suffocating the room, but it didn’t matter. Meena’s hand was in mine, and my friends were standing next to me while we chatted with the professors about our futures.
“So, Cinderella, I hear your business is going well. You even have an assistant working the office on floor ten?” Dr. Radsbury asked. He had taught our theory classes. “That is quite impressive for someone of your years.”
“Thank you, professor, and while I’m proud of the achievements, I had some help.” I squeezed Meena’s hand. “I couldn’t have done it had Dad not left me the garage or Meena not paid for my tuition.”
“Come on, now, El. We’ve talked about this,” she admonished from beside me. “You earned that tuition.”
“Also,” Dr. Radsbury beamed, “it helped start the royal funding scheme to assist those on lower levels with tuition and a living pay while studying.”
“Yeah, Ella,” Tris added, “you’ve earned this. You put in more work than any of us on this course.”
“Remember that time you stayed up all night to finish the essay on the history of steam combustion during our first year, all because you wanted to finish working on that job for a loyal customer? You managed to meet both deadlines and get an A.” Flare huffed an annoyed breath, always hating my work ethic, but she was a good person really. “And the time you nearly missed an exam to attend Queen Jemeena’s coronation day.” She curtseyed to the queen, who waved her formalities away.
“What about you two? An internship in Zime Industries and a job in Prago City.”
Dr. Radsbury turned his attention to the others at this news, a congratulations and a farewell all rolled into one speech about how they, too, deserved the rewards for their hard work.
Meena pulled me aside after that, made our excuses, and, with a suggestive smile, pulled me into a small courtyard with few people. “I’m so proud of you, El. You’re going to be leading our technology one day, and I’ll be right there to watch.” The lifeclock ticked in her wrist, reflecting the sun now that she left it uncovered, and I couldn’t help the glee that overtook me at the thought of living side-by-side with this woman for the rest of our time.
“You know, at some point we’ll have to tell people about the engagement.”
She frowned at the mere mention but grabbed my hands and lifted them to her lips. “I can’t wait for the world to know just how serious I am about you, but let’s not take the limelight off you today. I promise, we’ll announce it in the summer.”
“Just before we leave for Prago City, you mean, where your father can’t berate you unless he wants to make the trip out there to do it in person.”
“He’ll try sending some letters, but they only bother me when I open them.” She shrugged and wrapped me in a hug. “Besides, I can’t wait to go back. A whole month! Think your business will survive?”
I shrugged. “It only bothers me when I open the front doors.”
The End