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CHAPTER 3
The Clean Up
The moon was hanging in the dark sky as if from a thread as my bike rolled down the main road. The
lights in the Caltex on the corner spilled softly onto street. I could almost hear the town asleep; the
collective sighs and muffled sounds of people turning over. My bike rolled silently past the old
buildings that lined the street and continued on until the houses had been reduced to two or three
per five hundred meters; slowing to a stop outside my house as if it knew it was home. I jumped off
and shackled my bike to the metal gate. The thought of the photo waiting to be developed propelled
me forward with energy that I didn’t realize I had left. I leapt up the steps, holding my backpack
tightly in my hand.
My hands trembled as I reached out and grasped the door handle, adrenaline coursing through me
as my mind whirled with my discovery. I tucked the picture inside my pocket, unable to mask the
huge smile that spread across my face, trudging into the dark house, my boots caked with dried dirt,
exhaustion settled into my bones, but the excitement of finding a star- the massive accretion was a
blessing- a blessing, because it was a reminder of her- Emerald- who was standing in his living room,
he tripped over the rug in surprise at the blonde beauty standing in his living room, her face tear
stained as she bit back a sob.
“Hey, are you ok? Em?” He asked as he crept towards her, his earlier suspicion banished as he
observed her shaking form.
“Nolan…,” she began, her lips quivering, I quickened my pace towards her, eager to banish the
sadness as fast as possible. “I’m so sorry.”
My brows furrowed as I gently grasped her shoulders, she was sorry, about what? I looked around,
noticing that my place seemed dishevelled, as if someone had scrambled to put it back together, had
she looked around? I turned to ask her, hands slipping off her slender shoulders. Before I could face
her, I staggered back, my axis tipping as I stumbled away. My vision darkened, as my muscles
weighed me down, I sagged against a wall I had smashed into. Lifting my heavy, pounding head I saw
through my lashes- Emerald standing above me, an expression of regret, and her hands glowing a
luminescent blue as she hushed me. It was like my body was being forced into sleep, I struggled
weakly, fighting to keep my eyes open as my body slipped further and further into a dream.
I was surrounded, surrounded by stars and galaxies and the wonders I had so meticulously studied.
Everything was spinning, faster and faster, a kaleidoscope of galaxies and colours and blurred lights
whizzing past me, my head pounding faster and faster, heartbeat picking up. Chaotic white streaks
blew past my eyes and explosions of red stars crossed my vision. I tried to move, to get out, to stop
the whirling, but the harder I moved, the faster they went. Around and around, endless, just like the
galaxy I sought to study. I felt a tug deep inside of me, and the aftermath left a searing pain in my
mind. I pressed my fingers to my temples, trying to relieve some of the pressure that was building up
with each whirl of the cosmos around me. I felt the tug again, as if my head was being pulled from
my body. I shrunk into myself, trying to get away from the pain, but I was rooted to the same spot. I
squeezed my eyes shut, desperate to get out and when the tug came again, I followed it, trying to
track it through the wisps of presence it left in my mind. I kept going, kept trying to find my way out