Headquarters
Atlanta, GA
United States of America
July 2017
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
Face to face in Aether’s office. The shorter girl tried to absorb and understand the look on Lysette’s face, which showed nothing but pure amazement and a slight hint of admiration. Aether couldn’t help but shift in her chair, finding herself unable to look straight back at the other female in her office at that moment.
“Because,” Lysette Cross began, “I haven’t seen you in such a long time, Aether. Aren’t I allowed to be happy because I finally saw my best friend for the first time in forever?” the other Englishwoman saw the dark-haired lady roll her eyes at that, but the smile on her face was all that had mattered. She couldn’t help but grin herself, “You’ve…changed.”
“Have I? It seems like you’re the one who changed. And in a better way,” Aether added as an afterthought. It was true, she confirmed to herself. Lysette had definitely improved since they had last seen each other. Instead of wearing a simple tee and shorts until two inches above her knees, her strawberry-blonde friend donned on something more professional. Lysette gave the collar of her button down a tug and shot another smile. “You look more serious, now.”
“Says the one who came into the building looking like she wanted to rip her hair out,” the other teased. “You changed too, Aether…you look older. Even though we’er nearly the same age.” Lysette’s eyes ran over the other’s features, the other’s clothes, how Aether held herself and studied the vibes she gave off. Lysette whistled, “I’m not surprised that you had someone there with flowers—”
“He has nothing to do with the interview,” Aether interrupted, flustered. Lysette grinned. “And speaking of…”
“Okay, that wasn’t a ruse. I really am here to interview you.” she dug into the bag she had brought and pulled out a rolled-up magazine, handing it to Aether. On the cover was an international figure who had recently became known. On top was the name; a single word typed in thick, sans-serif font. “It’s for Meta,” she admitted. “I came here to interview you for the magazine.”