Paving the Way

[Akura]

Zoey closed the door of her apartment slowly, twisting the locks and throwing her bag aside. She propped herself against one of the support beams and pulled off each boot in turn, organising them neatly by the door.

The apartment was as elegant as it was glamorous, paid for with years of profit from piracy. Outside the large floor to ceiling windows was a stunning view of Fukuoka, one of the largest cities on Planet Kyushu, the stars of the great system twinkling through the night sky.

Zoey poured herself a small glass of cherry flavoured water and sat down on one of the sofas facing the view. She read through the local news, looking for something interesting that caught her attention.

Her bag began beeping at her from across the room, and she waited for it to settle before getting up to go fetch it. Unzipping her bag she pulled out a small PDA, the source of the beeping.
She had one new message, and audio recording.

It was from Steve.

She dropped the bag and made her way to the sofa again, her face glowing with a pleasant smile as she pressed 'play'.

'Zoey... Zoey... Steve here, or maybe half-Steve, since I'm half-dead, Heh... I should have paid attention to the "Don't talk to strangers"... Heh... Maybe the my fate was to die here, in a hellhole in the middle of nowhere. Life sucks, isn't it? Now I remember all the time we spent together... I'll never regret meeting you, Zoey, because you're... a wonderful person, no matter what you fight for... I hope you also can find a good massagist soon... Yeah Zoey... I'm dead man...Now the only thing I regret... is the fact of not having spent more time with you... I guess it's pointless to say 'I love you' right now ... Sorry... Zoey '

Zoey's smile wore off when she heard Steve's strained voice. She held a blank stare over the cityscape of Fukuowa, until the message had finished. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she slid down onto the floor, leaning her back up against the sofa.

She pressed 'reply',

"I love you too"

Zoey pressed 'send' and pulled her knees up to her chest, burying her head in her arms, sobbing gently and whispering prayers for Steve...