There's always tomorrow...

Posted on Mon Jan 6th, 2025 @ 1:39pm by Niyah Monroe

1,045 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: Towers of the Void (Series Premiere)
Location: Niyah's Home Office
Timeline: Wednesday, July 24th, 2024

The soft hum of Niyah’s computer was the only sound in the room as she sat hunched over her desk, eyes locked onto the glowing screen. The soft blue light illuminated the dark walls of her home office, casting sharp shadows around the cluttered space. Cables, half-drunk coffee cups, and scattered notebooks were piled in neat chaos, a visual representation of the scattered thoughts swirling in her mind. Whenever someone, especially Olivia, would comment on it she reminded them that if a cluttered desk was the sign of a cluttered mind, she didn’t care for an empty desk.

Her fingers flew across the mechanical keyboard, typing and retyping lines of code as she pushed further into the latest phase of her A.I. model. Every loud keystroke felt like a small victory, a step closer to a breakthrough.
It had been hours since she’d engaged the outside world, absorbed in work as always. The global tensions gnawing at the edges of her thoughts, reports of failing automations and weird behaviour of algorithms, they all faded when she was in this zone. In here, she could control something. She could create something that mattered.

Even a soft knock at the door didn’t break her concentration. After only a moment the door opened.
"Hey," came Olivia’s familiar voice, a touch of warmth and weariness wrapped in the simple greeting. "Dinner’s ready."
Niyah didn’t turn away from the screen. Firing off a reply that seemed rehearsed by how often she’d used it, "I’m fine. I’m almost—"

A small sigh, and Olivia’s footsteps grew louder as she stepped into the room, the soft clink of cutlery on a plate breaking the silence. "Yeah, I know. You’re almost done."

Niyah finally looked up at the faint smell of pasta and garlic. It left her momentarily disoriented her eyes focused away from the screen onto her wife of almost ten years now. Her mind was still lingering in the code she was working through.
Olivia stood there, holding a plate of food, the edges of the lasagna slightly browned from reheating in the microwave, looking for a place to put the plate on the messy desk.

For the briefest moment, Niyah’s stomach growled louder than her thoughts. She blinked, her broken focus creating an opportunity for the soreness in her back and neck to make themselves known. "I didn’t realize it was that late," Niyah muttered rubbing her neck with one hand as she leaned back in her chair. "Did you hear any updates around that computer failure in LAX?"

Olivia set the plate down on a corner of the desk, just out of reach, and stepped around behind Niyah, putting her hands on her neck and gently but firmly massaging against the knots. "It’s eight thirty. We're not flying to LA. And you’re getting dangerously close to looking like one of your hobby servers,” she nodded at a large computer case in the corner, “running on empty and surrounded by cables." Her voice was soft but teasing, a tone she had perfected over years of gently coaxing Niyah to slow down.

Niyah’s features relaxed into a smile but she didn’t move for fear of losing the soothing touch. The computer screen flickered slightly, as if sensing her distraction. Olivia noticed the flicker too, her eyes narrowing slightly.

"I take it this would be breakfast for you?" Olivia asked pulling her hands back and leaning in to plant a kiss on her cheek, “That can’t be healthy, you know.”

"I’m fine," Niyah replied, her voice carrying the usual defensiveness. "Just working on this update. Just a couple more lines, then I’ll take a break."

Olivia didn’t respond immediately. Instead, she placed a hand gently on Niyah’s shoulder, her fingers warm against the cool skin. "Niyah..." Her voice was softer now, coaxing, almost knowing. "Tomorrow, the world will still be here, your projects will still need you. But tonight... tonight, I think you need you more. I know I do."

Niyah’s shoulders slumped slightly at the words. She knew Olivia was right—had always been right about these things. But the pull of the work was always so strong, so all-consuming. Still, the exhaustion in her bones was undeniable, and now that she had stopped for a moment to allow that to sink in she realised just how tired she was. Tired in a way that no amount of caffeine could fix.

With a sigh, Niyah finally pushed herself away from the desk, taking care not to run into Olivia as she did so. She grabbed the plate as she stepped around the desk. "Fine. But only because it’s your lasagna, and I know you won’t let me hear the end of it if you’d have to reheat it again."

Olivia smiled, her eyes soft with understanding. "You’re welcome." She led the way out of the small home office and moved to the couch in the living room. Picking up the remote, and with a gentle flick of her wrist, she started the movie she had set up in anticipation of her small victory. It was a comfort pick, something they had watched countless times before.
Se7en flickered to life on the screen, the dark, atmospheric intro filling the room. She paused it immediately seeing Niyah scrolling through something on her phone. "You know the rules."

Niyah smiled, dismissed the notifications of news items surrounding AI and other tech keywords. Even the short glance at the headlines had given her an uneasy feeling. But rules were rules and she put her phone in the wooden box designated as their phone prison during dinner and movies. She sank into the couch beside Olivia, her legs stretched out with feet on the chaise longue, and the plate of food balanced on her lap. The weight of the long hours and unfinished work momentarily forgotten. Olivia’s presence, her quiet insistence on slowing down, was a comfort Niyah didn’t always know how to ask for, but always welcomed.

"Liv," Niyah said between bites, her voice quieter now.

“Yeah?”

“Thank you for making such amazing lasagna.”

 

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