“Sorry little guy,” he said, scooting his chair back towards his computer. Today his mind was completely locked. He was unable to focus on anything but Lana, who had finally come back to work. He found it hard to believe she sat less than one hundred feet away and no one knew about them.
A blank blue screen stared back at Spurious as his mind continued to replay the night he had shared with Lana a few days ago.
“Do you have that report?” a voice said, from the doorway of his cubicle. Spurious turned to see Varius standing at the edge of his workstation staring at him through his thick glasses.
“It’s just about done. I’m downloading some files that Mica in engineering sent me this morning,” he responded calmly.
Spurious stared at Varius, who simply nodded at his response. Never had Spurious once heard the man tell him or any other employee that they were doing their job well.
“I’ll check back in a few hours. The CRK wants this document as soon as possible. We’re counting on you,” Varius said.
Spurious groaned and looked back at his blank blue screen. The truth was he hadn’t even begun the project, and the only thing he knew about it was it was classified.
At least this might be interesting, he thought, reaching for the sealed document.
February 11, 2071
Attn: Varius Lupita
Sector of Governmental Service
Architectural and Engineering Affairs
The following project is classified and thus shall only be viewed by a supervisor or a designated employee who has access to drawings/blueprints and specifications of the underground tunnel system under Tisaia.
Project 1200 is being reversed and the Council is looking for any drawings/blueprints from the archives that would map the area outside Project 1200. SGS engineer Edil Leon had previously been in charge of this mission, but has recently been assigned to another role. We’re asking for all of his documents to be sent to the Council immediately.
We look to receive these documents in a timely manner.
“Holy shit,” Spurious said, aloud, dropping the letter onto his desk. He had known Edil personally, and had been told he passed away from cancer.
The lies run deeper and deeper every day.
It took Spurious a few moments to regain his focus before he was able to start searching for Edil’s files. Minutes later he had successfully uploaded all of the old files onto his blue screen. He thumbed through the blueprints of the tunnels from Project 1200 slowly, memorizing their twists and turns.
The sound of footsteps distracted him, and he instantly minimized the blue screen with the swipe of his index finger. He cocked his head to make sure no one was watching him before enlarging the blueprints again.
He combed through the drawings before he came across one titled, “Project 1200.” The images showed a subterranean web of tunnels buried deep beneath the surface of the city. There had to be hundreds of them.
Some of the tunnels appeared to have been created as storm drains; others were sewer pipes long abandoned, while others were facilities built to protect citizens from the sun years ago. The maze was confusing, even from his viewpoint; he could only imagine what the CRK was dealing with, combing each and every one of them for the TDU headquarters.
Spurious picked up the tiny disc, inserting it into his hard drive with a click. He downloaded the data and before Varius returned to check on him, he had resealed and inserted the package into a tube to be sent by carrier back to the CRK HQ.
The metallic click from a small clock reminded him he had almost worked through his lunch break. He was so immersed in the tunnel blueprints he had forgotten about his favorite time of day. Quickly he turned off his blue screen and headed for the cafeteria, hoping to avoid eye contact with Lana.
Simple things like this never really seemed to work properly for him. He could reassure himself he had the ability to control his behavior, but it never turned out that way. As her cubicle approached, he stole a quick glance inside, his eyes connecting with hers. It was no longer than a heartbeat, but more than adequate for Varius to get a scent of something astray. There was no denying the passion in Spurious’ eyes. It would have been apparent to anyone as watchful as Varius.
His heart pounded deep in his chest.
Why do I do that to myself?
It was no use. He failed and although he was quite sure no one noticed, his lack of self control bothered him. If there wasn’t so much on the line he wouldn’t have cared so much, but this was his life. He could end up in jail, or worse, dead, if the Knights ever found out about his past or Lana.
A growl from the pit of Spurious’ stomach reminded him what time it was. At the end of the hall he could see the colossal white-walled cafeteria. The smell of cabbage and porridge filled his nostrils as he entered the mostly vacant room. He headed for the counter, opting for a bowl of warm soup instead of the usual.
The scent of the broth made his stomach growl deeper as he made his way down an aisle full of round tables, avoiding eye contact with other employees.
In the corner of the room he saw Ing sitting by himself. Spurious approached his friend cautiously. He knew he couldn’t speak to him about Lana or the TDU again. It was a dreadful feeling, knowing he couldn’t completely trust his friend anymore. Times had changed and their friendship had drifted. Yet Spurious knew they would always be friends, no matter what difficulties got in their way.
“Hey, Ing. What ya got there?” Spurious asked, pulling up a chair next to him.
Ing looked over, his blue eyes scanning his friend’s face as if he was an imposter. His eyes glared with contempt, something Spurious had never seen in his friend before.
“What’s wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?”
Ing looked back down at his sandwich and tossed it aside. “You sure have a short memory. Do you not recall our conversation the other night?”
“Yes, I do, but I don’t think this is the proper time or place to relive it,” Spurious snapped back.
“Ing I confided in you, I hope you aren’t thinking what I think you’re thinking.”
“Don’t worry, Spurious, you have everything you want now; you don’t need to worry about me.”
“What do you mean? You’re still my best friend…” Spurious paused, “it’s just that things are complicated right now.”
“Where have you been the past few weekends? Every time I knock on your door, I get Anya’s artificial voice. She tells me you’re doing a special project at work.”
Spurious shrugged, realizing they were going to have this conversation whether he liked it or not.
“Well, that is partly true. I have been assigned to work on a classified project and it’s required some overtime,” he lied, keeping his eyes fixed on the smooth white surface of the table below.
Ing nodded. “Well, when you actually want to get together again, let me know. By the way, I have an appointment set up with the State to explore finding me a suitable wife,” Ing said, studying his friend’s face for a reaction.
Spurious couldn’t help but smile. “Well, good, maybe they will find someone you’re really compatible with.”
“You should think about doing the same thing,” Ing replied.
Spurious paused to take a sip of his steaming soup. “I’d rather not. I don’t want the State deciding who I end up with.”
“The program works, Spurious. Do you remember Anita and Furio from accounting? Their marriage was arranged by the State. Timea and Maria from fleet too.”