by Kat Mayor
She had noticed, but she’d brushed it aside. She didn’t want to borrow trouble. “Yeah, well, I was just so happy; I was trying hard to ignore it.”
“Things will be changing in a few weeks for me. For us. My family and I are returning to Sentria for the Christmas break, and I don’t know what my parents’ work schedule is going to be like when we get back. Liliana, I can’t contact you while I’m gone.”
“You mean you’ll be gone the whole two weeks?” Lilly asked.
“I’m afraid so.”
“Oh,” Lilly said. For the past few months Lilly had seen Charlie every day, for several hours at a time. Being apart for two weeks seemed like forever.
“C’mon,” Charlie said.
“Where are we going?”
“To my house. This might be the only chance I have to show you my room.”
***
Charlie’s house looked like it came straight out of a Leave It to Beaver episode. The furniture, draperies, and the wall hangings, looked like they were from a different era. Mrs. Gray had a turquoise kitchen, complete with an old white Mixmaster on the counter. When Lilly walked through the Grays’ living room, she paused at a photograph. There was a black-and-white picture of a couple and a young boy. The boy was Charlie. The woman wore a short-sleeve cashmere sweater with a small pearl necklace. Her hair was in a bubble flip. The man wore a suit and tie, and Charlie was wearing a button-down plaid shirt. All three wore the same type of dated glasses Charlie used to wear. Lilly briefly wondered if Mrs. Gray wore her necklace and high heels when she vacuumed the house.
“These are your parents?”
“Yes, this was from my first trip to Earth. I was about twelve in that picture.”
“You all wear glasses,” Lilly noted.
“Sentrians are severely myopic.” When she paused at the foot of the stairs, Charlie grabbed her hand. “C’mon, I want to show you something.”
Lilly was in awe when she walked into Charlie’s room. There were so many electronic devices and other sophisticated pieces of equipment. He had at least three telescopes and two computers. There were so many gadgets. She didn’t even know what most of them were for.
Charlie picked up his PCD. “OK, ask me a question. Anything.”
Lilly thought for a second. “What is the capital of Texas?”
Charlie punched a few buttons on the device then turned the screen to face her. Austin appeared on the screen along with a summary of facts about the Lone Star State.
Lilly grabbed the PCD out of his hand. “How did you do that? That is so cool.” Charlie let Lilly play with it for a while. She read a biography on Charlotte Bronte, searched fashion trends of the fifties, and even played a game of Ms. Pacman.
“Liliana, come here,” Charlie called to her. He was at a large desk powering up what looked to her like a supercomputer. Reluctantly, she put the PCD down and joined him.
He pushed a few buttons. Then “You Send Me” began to play.
“Let me try,” Lilly said after the song ended. She told him what she wanted and he typed it in. “Shell Shock” by New Order began to play.
“You want to know how I learned to dance so well?” Charlie asked. Lilly nodded. He punched some more buttons, and a screen with Arthur Murray dance lessons appeared. Dina, the friendly holographic dancer, appeared.
“So, who is the better dance partner, her or me?” Lilly asked.
“Definitely you,” Charlie answered. The sun had disappeared below the horizon by then, and the stars were twinkling in the sky. Charlie walked her onto the balcony. A very unusual-looking telescope was pointed into the sky.
Charlie looked into the eyepiece, made a few adjustments, and then motioned for Lilly to take a look.
“You see that little star next to the bright star?” he asked.
“Yes,” Lilly said.
“That’s my galaxy. Sentria’s too small to see, but at least you get an idea where it is.”
“Tell me about Sentria,” Lilly said.
“What do you want to know?”
“Everything. What’s it like? What do you do when you’re there?”
“Sentria is a small planet, much smaller than Earth. There are three moons that orbit Sentria, and the atmosphere gives a violet cast to the sky instead of blue. The gravitational pull on Sentria is stronger than here on Earth. There is much more resistance to everything we do: walking, lifting things, pushing, pulling. That’s why we are so strong. We have to be. It’s also warmer. A summer day could be 115 degrees. We have internal thermal controls instead of external like you do. That’s why we don’t sweat. What do I do there? Well, I just graduated with my dual degrees, as I told you. If I were there now I would start working for the government. On Sentria everyone works for the government, and they assign you a job based on your skill set.”
“Really?” Lilly asked. She thought that was interesting. “Where do you live? What are your homes like?”
“I live in a town named Isacar. It’s near the capital, New Cairo. We were assigned to live there because of my father’s job. Our house there is smaller than our house here on Earth. It’s kind of plain, square shaped, and gray. On Sentria, the size of the house you get is based on the number of children you have and your value to the state. Those with important government positions have nicer homes and other privileges.”
“Does the government decide how many kids you have, too?” Lilly asked sarcastically. She was stunned when he told her yes.
“When you get engaged, you go to the marriage and procreation office and draw a card,” Charlie explained. “It’s kind of like a lottery. The cards have the numbers zero, one, two, or three on them, indicating the number of children you’re allotted. If you draw the zero card, you’re sterilized on the spot.”
“Whoa. Your government sounds pretty controlling.”
“In certain ways, I guess, but it’s for our own good. They do it all to maintain order and peace. I guess that’s why I find books like Atlas Shrugged and 1984 so fascinating. Rebelling against the government is such a foreign concept to us.”
Lilly couldn’t understand how he could take it all in stride. “Call me paranoid, but I could never be so trusting of the government. And I am deeply suspicious of any government that claims to be doing things for my own good. Doesn’t that ever bother you, the control thing?”
“You make it sound like we don’t have any freedoms.”
“It doesn’t sound like you do. Name one,” Lilly challenged.
“The government cannot dictate who our One is,” Charlie said.
Lilly shook her head. “That doesn’t count. God chooses your One. Try again.”
Charlie thought. “We are afforded some privacy in our own homes. We can say anything we want in our own homes without worrying about the government leaders or political police listening in.”
“Political police? You actually have a political police? How magnanimous of them—letting you speak freely in your own homes,” Lilly said sarcastically.
“Look, they don’t want our speech to incite a rebellion or something. Earthans have a long history of war, but Sentrians have lived in peace for a thousand years. Our goal in life is to find our One and be happy. We don’t live as long as Earthans, so we don’t have the luxury of time to fight for rights we don’t deem as important.”
“So none of this Big Brother stuff bothers you?” Lilly asked.
“Sometimes.” Charlie shrugged. “But Sentrians are more interested in their electronic gadgets. As long as a Sentrian has his PCD, he couldn’t care less about his so-called freedoms. When the exiles first arrived, Sentria was a type of theocracy. God appointed a king and limited our free will. It was a time of repentance for my people. Over time, certain Sentrians wanted absolute power and control. They became an elite class and infiltrated the government. That’s when they started trying to control most aspects of our lives. But our religious law is sacred, and they cannot interfere with it. Besides, as long as you follow the
rules, they leave you alone.”
“You don’t seem to be following the rules. What would happen if they found out about us?” Lilly asked.
“They’re not going to find out about us.” It came out a little harsher than Charlie intended. “I’ve given them no reason to be suspicious, and the little spy they have here with me couldn’t care less what I do.”
“Little spy? What are you talking about?” Lilly asked.
“His name is Henry. Henry Conner. He’s the magistrate’s son, a sophomore. There are six other Sentrian families here. Each family is put in proximity to another family to keep tabs on one another. My father was worried because the magistrate lives in our neighborhood, and his son is in our school. But the whole semester, he hasn’t said one word to me. I hardly even see him.
“I don’t think I know him,” Lilly said.
“I’m not surprised. He pretty much keeps to himself.”
“And you’re not worried he’ll find out about us? I mean, it’s not exactly a secret that we’re going out.”
“You’d have to know Henry. He’s completely oblivious to everything around him. He’s sort of weird. He’s very asocial and doesn’t really fit in with his peer group. His father may be the magistrate, but he’s just here like the rest of us, biding his time until it’s time to return home.”
If Charlie thought Henry was weird, he must be strange indeed. “Who’s this magistrate person?” she asked.
“Head elder of the Sentrians. He’s the man in charge while we’re on our mission here, and when we return to Sentria, he’ll go back to his high position in the government.” Charlie looked at his watch. It was getting late; best not to take chances. “I think I’d better get you home before my parents come back.”
***
“Can you stay for a little while?” Lilly asked when they got to her house. “I’m starving, and you must be, too. I could make us some crappy pizzas.”
“Crappy pizzas? Sounds appetizing,” Charlie said.
“It’s a name my mom and I came up with for cheap frozen pizzas. OK, so they aren’t the best, but they will fill your stomach.”
“I am pretty hungry. The cardboard box would taste pretty good right now,” Charlie said. Lilly prepared the pizzas, and Charlie brewed the coffee.
Charlie didn’t want to leave. He had been very worried this morning, but this day had turned out so much better than he could have hoped for. “I am so happy, you know. It’s such a relief,” he told her as he spread peanut butter on his pizza.
“This clears up a lot of things for me, too. Now I understand why you do the things you do,” she told him, looking down at his plate.
“And this doesn’t change the way you feel about me?” he asked.
“I’ll admit I was freaked out at first, but I’ve gotten used to having you around. I think I’ll keep you,” Lilly told him.
Chapter 8
Christmas Break
Michelle had Sunday off, so she joined Lilly and Charlie for Mass. Afterward, Michelle took them all out to lunch.
“Thank you for inviting me,” Charlie told Michelle.
“You’re welcome. Be sure and eat up. You’re going to need your strength to help us with all the Christmas decorations.” Michelle really liked having Charlie around. Lilly noticed that she kind of treated him as if he was the man of the house. She even had honey-dos for him. Charlie didn’t mind. It made him feel like he belonged.
Over the years Michelle had amassed quite a collection of Christmas decorations from her mom and Abuela. Lilly was relieved to have such a strong guy to help with all the heavy lifting. She sent Charlie into the attic to bring down the boxes. Charlie was small enough to fit easily through the attic door but coordinated enough to carry multiple boxes down at a time.
With his aptitude for electronics, Charlie was the perfect person to put the strings of lights in working order. He replaced the broken bulbs, and Lilly was impressed at how evenly and symmetrically he hung the lights on the tree.
“How does it look?” Charlie asked.
“Like someone with advanced degrees in math and science decorated it.”
“Is that bad?” Charlie asked.
“No. Just very precise. And I happen to like precision. Can you help me with the beads now?” Lilly asked. Charlie stood on a step stool, and Lilly tossed him a string of beads.
“You know,” Charlie said, “I’ve noticed that every Christmas tree is different. Why all the variation in Christmas tree decoration? It would seem, if you are all celebrating the same holiday, you would decorate in the same fashion.”
“Well, a lot of it is about tradition. For example,” Lilly said, picking up an ornament, “we treasure this ornament because Abuela made it herself. In our family, either white or multicolored lights are fine, but no blinky lights—too Las Vegas. And tinsel is so messy. We prefer beads. It is also our tradition to have a star as a tree topper instead of an angel.” Lilly thought about it for a second. “Charlie, don’t your people celebrate Christmas?”
“Yes, we celebrate the coming of the Savior. The star that went supernova and led the wise men to the Christ child was closer to my solar system than yours. But we have a feast day, not a Christmas tree, and we celebrate it at a different time of year. When I return to Sentria, we will celebrate a different holiday.”
“What holiday is that?”
“It’s called the Holy Day of Reconciliation. It is to commemorate God bringing us to Sentria and making peace with us again.”
Lilly wanted to ask more about it but Charlie grew quiet, and a moment later Lilly realized her mom was coming down the hall. Michelle had been hanging the stockings and putting out her snowman collection in the den. She came into the living room to help with the tree. The three of them put the finishing touches on it then sat on the couch to admire their work.
“You guys did a great job. The tree looks fantastic,” Michelle said.
“You say that every year, Mom.”
“Well, I mean it every year. Hey, Charlie, if you aren’t doing anything for Christmas Eve, we always have tamales and go to Midnight Mass. You should come over.”
“Mom, Charlie’s going out of town for Christmas break.”
“Are you visiting family?” Michelle asked.
“Yes,” Charlie said simply.
“I wish you could be here, but I know it’ll be nice for you to see them at Christmas. You have a safe trip. And don’t worry, I’ll try to keep Lilly entertained while you’re gone.” Michelle yawned. “I think I’ll go watch TV, if I can stay awake.”
“Can I make you some coffee?” Charlie asked.
“That would be great,” Michelle said.
Charlie went into the kitchen to make the coffee, leaving Lilly to her thoughts. She normally loved this time of year, but this year she felt kind of empty inside. A few minutes later Charlie returned with two mugs of steaming coffee in his hands.
“Here. I thought this might keep you warm,” he said, handing her a mug.
“Thanks,” Lilly said.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“It’s nothing; I’m just being selfish.”
“How do you mean?” Charlie asked.
“I wish you weren’t leaving. I don’t want you to go.”
“I know,” Charlie said. “Me neither.” Even though Sentria was his home, and it would be good to see some of his friends, he really didn’t want to leave Lilly. “Let’s just enjoy tonight. We still have two weeks until I leave.”
Lilly rested her head on Charlie’s shoulder, and they gazed at the Christmas tree. A few minutes later, they heard Michelle snoring in the recliner.
***
Finals were scheduled the week before Christmas break, and Charlie came over every afternoon to study with Lilly. She worked very hard and made all As. Charlie aced his finals without much effort.
There was only one day left of school before Christmas break. Charlie planned a special evening for their last night togethe
r. He drove Lilly around to look at Christmas lights, and then he took her to the diner for dinner. The Christmas lights were pretty, and Lilly appreciated the effort, but her mind kept drifting back to the fact that Charlie would be leaving soon.
They returned to Lilly’s house to exchange gifts. “Here, open mine first,” Charlie said.
She opened the package and saw that it was full of CDs. “I created them from my computer files. All of our favorite music.” Charlie had been introducing Lilly to music from the fifties and sixties, and Lilly had turned him on to Depeche Mode and New Order.
Lilly hugged him. “This is perfect. I can listen to these, and it will remind me of you.” She pulled out a large gift bag. “My turn.”
He opened the bag and peered inside. “New clothes?”
“You are in desperate need of a fashion update. It’s from Michelle, too.” He pulled out a polo shirt, new jeans, and a pair of dark blue tennis shoes.
“Thanks. I feel so eighties.” He leaned over and kissed her cheek.
“There’s more,” she said. “Check the bottom of the bag.”
He pulled out a framed picture. It was one of the homecoming pictures Michelle had taken of the two of them. Charlie smiled. That was such a happy time for them. This was the first and only picture he had of Lilly. “The clothes are great, but this is the best.”
***
Charlie got home a little before nine. He took the homecoming picture out of its frame and carefully packed it in his duffel bag. There was no way he was leaving that picture behind. The next day Charlie barely saw Lilly. They sat together at lunch and talked about what they would do when Charlie returned. Of course, that all depended on his parents’ work schedule. After last period he gave Lilly a hug good-bye, and that was the last time they saw each other. Lilly’s stomach was in a knot, but it wasn’t just because she would miss Charlie. She wasn’t as perceptive as Beth, but she had a bad feeling about Charlie leaving.
***
It was very late that night when the Grays traveled to the vacant field. They needed the cloak of darkness in order to make the trip without drawing attention to themselves. As soon as they arrived, Louis punched in a pass code that opened the gate. They waited with the other families until it was time to leave. They were all wearing their travel uniforms.