If you haven’t read February 24 yet, you can do so here.

If you stumbled onto this post by accident and haven’t read any of the other stories, head over to this post to find out more about this project.

Cleo awoke to the constant vibration of her phone on the nightstand. She rolled over and flipped it to see who was calling her. Her dad. Facetime. It was her birthday. There was no point ignoring him. 

“Happy birthday Pumpkin,” his voice echoed around her darkened room. 

“Daddy, it’s three in the morning.”

“Oh sorry Pumpkin, I thought it was later.”

“It’s okay. She forced herself upright to avoid falling back to sleep. 

“Are you having fun?”

She nodded, realizing he probably couldn’t see her. “Yeah, I met the owner of the company.”

“That’s great news. I’m glad you’re making connections.”

Cleo didn’t bother telling him that it wasn’t those kinds of connections she was making. She wasn’t sure if he was ready for that kind of honesty.

“I should tell you, your mother and I organized for a little surprise for you later today. I think you’ll enjoy it.”

“What kind of surprise?” Cleo’s eyes narrowed. Her father’s surprises had not thus far been beneficial to her. 

His eyes twinkled. “You’ll see. I better go. Your mother will call you a little later. She’s out at her book club right now. It’s still Monday evening here.”

“Okay Daddy, thanks for calling.”

“You go back to sleep darling. I’ll tell your mother to call tomorrow our time. I just wanted to be the first to wish you happy birthday.”

A moment later, her father’s face disappeared from her screen leaving her staring at the home screen. With a sigh, she rolled back over. It had certainly been a big year for her. Now, it felt a little like she was stagnating. There was not all that much to do on the ship. She had her novel at least. Even if it was trash. 

You can read February 26 here.

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