Priorities
Lesley buttoned her cloak and followed Mo from the mess hall, leaving the cacophony of voices and clattering dishes behind. She slipped her arm around Mo and steered her toward the dormitories. “I’m glad we had supper together.”
“Me too,” Mo said, smiling up at her. “You’re—I mean, we’re so busy these days, we hardly ever sit down and talk. Not that the mess hall is the best place to talk, mind you.”
Lesley inwardly cringed. That was precisely why she’d asked Mo to meet there. Her plan had worked—the topic of sharing a room hadn’t come up—but would Mo broach the subject on the way back to their rooms? Usually Lesley enjoyed strolling with Mo on a clear, crisp evening, but not when she was worried about what Mo might say next.
“Oh, I forgot to tell you that I talked to Mama earlier today,” Mo said. “Newton’s retiring.”
Lesley relaxed slightly. “Really? None of the mandatory bulletins mentioned it.” Newton had been C3’s commander for as long as she could remember.
“They haven’t announced it yet. She found out through an indoctrinator whose Chosen works at B5 headquarters.”
“I wonder who’ll take his place.”
“A Commander Finney, apparently.”
Finney . . . The name sounded familiar, but Lesley couldn’t place it. “Apart from the name at the bottom of C3 bulletins, I doubt we’ll notice a difference. I think I saw Newton once, from a distance.” She held up her right index finger for emphasis, even though Mo couldn’t see it. “That’s it.”
“I don’t think I ever saw him,” Mo mumbled.
They lapsed into silence. Lesley felt relieved and disappointed when they reached her dormitory’s entrance. She lifted her arm from Mo’s shoulders and faced her.
“Can we go to your room for a few minutes?” Mo asked. “I want to talk to you about something.”
She nodded, despite knowing what was coming. With luck, Jackie would be in the room, though she’d more likely be at the library. “I don’t have much time,” she said over her shoulder as they climbed the stairs to the third floor. “It’s group tonight.”
“That’s at 20:00. It’s 19:15.”
“An advocate is speaking. I want to get there early so I can review my notes.” Not true. She’d already gone over them twice, determined not to slip up in front of an advocate who specialized in the Chosen Tradition.
“We can’t keep putting this off,” Mo said when they reached Lesley’s room.
Lesley opened the door. Unfortunately, no Jackie. “Putting what off?”
“You know what I’m talking about. The deadline for room requests is in two weeks.”
She crossed to the satchel lying on her dresser and made a show of buckling its straps. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Mo hovering, waiting for a response. “Well, I can’t talk about it now.”
Mo let out an exasperated sigh and slapped her thighs. “When, then? Tell me when. Every time I bring it up, you suddenly have to rush off. I thought we’d have time tonight.”
“We’ll be home in two days. We can talk about it then.” Lesley grasped the satchel’s handle and started to lift it from the dresser.
“Most of our time at home will be taken up with the festival and visiting.”
She stopped. Mo had a point. Maybe they should discuss it now. No, they couldn’t. She hadn’t made up her mind about what to do—Mo could talk her into something she’d quickly regret. And once they’d started, they’d probably want to talk for more than five minutes. She couldn’t risk missing group. Choosing to miss group so they could discuss sharing a room would be choosing Mo over the Way. Not acceptable. “We’ll make the time.”
“You promise?”
“Yes.” Lesley lifted her satchel and looked at Mo. “I really do have to go now.” She reached for Mo’s hand. Mo stared at her for a moment, then slipped her hand into Lesley’s.
Without a word, they left the room and headed down the stairs to the lobby. Lesley searched for something to say. “I’m sorry I don’t have more time.”
“Are you?” Mo pulled the dormitory’s main door open. “You better keep your promise.”
“I will.”
“We’ll see.”
They stepped outside and stared at each other, the air heavy between them. “What will you do for the rest of the night?” Lesley asked.
Mo shrugged. “Homework, I guess. And get in some practice for the concert.”
Oh no, another uncomfortable subject. Now would be a good time to leave. “I’ll see you tomorrow, then.” She lowered her head to kiss Mo.
Mo barely brushed Lesley’s lips. “Enjoy your meeting.” She turned and walked away, her shoulders stiff.
Lesley watched her for a few seconds, then forced herself to start moving toward the recreation centre. Now she had a deadline—no more avoiding the question of whether to share a room. But every time she tried to make up her mind, she felt torn in two. Normally decisions didn’t paralyze her, but this one involved the two most important things in her life: Mo and the Way.
She couldn’t come up with an answer that would satisfy both. Sharing a room would make Mo happy, but living together—because that was what they’d be doing—would put their relationship on a more serious footing. Not a good idea, since they both had Chosens, but Mo probably wouldn’t see it that way. Lesley dreaded the hurt she’d see in Mo’s eyes when she finally stopped avoiding the issue and told her what she should have told her weeks ago.