The agony of not knowing wrapped around her mind from the last goodbye, just barely a sentence, then nothing. Something's died quickly with a burst that left you wondering what happened. While other relationships lingered in the death throes for months, and when it finally ended, you were left with a sense of guilt over your relief.
This was a death of the first kind, even though he was out there somewhere. Could it count if their presence was just a ghost of remembrance now? She supposed she could hold onto the hope of their paths intertwining, but if the past had told her anything, hope would change to dread.
Coralee studied her gaunt face in the mirror as she cinched the navy dress tighter around her waist. Today she would meet with the council and speak on behalf of the coalition for the green initiative. She knew she would face anger and resistance; a deep breath reminded her of the words read long ago. 'What is good for some is not good for all.'
That would be the crux of human truth until their demise.
~~
Anger was palpable in the air as the crowd rode the waves of their emotions. Coralee took the stage with her notes pressed tightly to her stomach. Behind her, a screen rolled through statistics so tightly bound that one tugging one end of the string pulled five others. Today, a loser would be declared.
"Many of you doubt the logic of science," in closer circles, she would have jabbed in barbs about the reason why. "However, the majority believe this is a catastrophe that all mankind will feel." The following words physically hurt her to speak. It had been why he had left, irreconcilable differences that planted him on the other side.
"If we let the plant burn. It will set off a chain reaction that you can see behind me. To stop it would cost billions. The immediate area will feel this for decades, but we believe an explosion might not be that bad." It was a lie, but she knew things had to get unbearably bad for change to occur. For humans to find another way and true ideas to take root. So that saying came in: what was good for some wasn't good for all. The words an explosion might not be that bad would echo through time as a moment when the majority decided that a certain number of deaths was an acceptable trade.
This was a death of the first kind, even though he was out there somewhere. Could it count if their presence was just a ghost of remembrance now? She supposed she could hold onto the hope of their paths intertwining, but if the past had told her anything, hope would change to dread.
Coralee studied her gaunt face in the mirror as she cinched the navy dress tighter around her waist. Today she would meet with the council and speak on behalf of the coalition for the green initiative. She knew she would face anger and resistance; a deep breath reminded her of the words read long ago. 'What is good for some is not good for all.'
That would be the crux of human truth until their demise.
~~
Anger was palpable in the air as the crowd rode the waves of their emotions. Coralee took the stage with her notes pressed tightly to her stomach. Behind her, a screen rolled through statistics so tightly bound that one tugging one end of the string pulled five others. Today, a loser would be declared.
"Many of you doubt the logic of science," in closer circles, she would have jabbed in barbs about the reason why. "However, the majority believe this is a catastrophe that all mankind will feel." The following words physically hurt her to speak. It had been why he had left, irreconcilable differences that planted him on the other side.
"If we let the plant burn. It will set off a chain reaction that you can see behind me. To stop it would cost billions. The immediate area will feel this for decades, but we believe an explosion might not be that bad." It was a lie, but she knew things had to get unbearably bad for change to occur. For humans to find another way and true ideas to take root. So that saying came in: what was good for some wasn't good for all. The words an explosion might not be that bad would echo through time as a moment when the majority decided that a certain number of deaths was an acceptable trade.