April by Mackey Chandler Read Free Book Online

point you obsess about the boys - get the patch. It keeps your head clear when you have other more important stuff to worry about. I swear I don't know how teenagers used to get anything done, before they had these meds. My mom admits she pretty much drifted through high school and the first couple years of college, in a 'hormone haze'. Her grades sure show that. Why put up with biology interfering with your life if you don't have a real need? I mean - you're near fourteen now - you don't go natural and menstruate do you? I don't know anybody who puts up with the hassle of it, if they're not trying to have children."
    "Of course not," April agreed. "Wouldn't that be awkward? That's the last thing I need if I have to suit up."
    "Back then, they just didn't know the separate biochemical triggers, which make a person fixate on someone. My mom had no choice. And bonding really is separate from other feelings, a different mechanism entirely. It really validates the idea some Earthies have had all along, about separate schools for each gender. It makes sense if you can't control your thinking and are constantly distracted. They just didn't know the biochemical path to interfere with it then. It helps people not form inappropriate trust too. You aren't very likely to buy into a Ponzi scheme, or join a cult while on this med either. Taking my meds right now, boys still look fine and I'm interested, but not obsessed," she explained.
    "So you guys are more business partners for now, huh?"
    "Yeah, my mom says Jeff and I act more like a comfortable old married couple than teenagers. I do like him. But I know it's my head not just unthinking hots. Even if we don't get married someday, we will probably stay business partners," she predicted.
    "We have a lot of projects to pursue, but we both want to build up the capital to accomplish them. Neither one of us really wants to work for somebody else. Jeff's dad also has an investment in the Rock we hope will pay off and he's promised he'll share some it with Jeff."
    "My family, especially my gramps, has a share in the Rock also," April admitted. "I don't tell many people, because they seem to think right away we must be rich. But if you know about it from Mr. Singh, you must already know it will be awhile before they start cranking out product. Until then no bank is going to lend you money on the potential income when nobody has done this before."
    "Your gramps was one of the construction crew for M3, right?"
    "Yes," said April, pleased she remembered, "and he's one of the few who were able to stay and live here. If he hadn't taken a gamble then and put all his money in cubic, our family would never have had the money to buy into the Rock. So I guess we have a history as risk takers. Are the Singhs risk takers too?"
    Heather hesitated awhile and considered the question. "It's more complicated with them. If you come and meet Jeff, then I'm sure you'll get the whole story and you can judge for yourself. Circumstances were kind of forced on them, but then it's up to us to take advantage of whatever life tosses our way, isn't it?" She was cleaning up her tray to leave. April took her banana peel, she was making compost at home and looked to make sure Heather had her sack as they stood. They dumped their trash and stacked the trays and gave a silent little wave to each other as was their habit, before they turned opposite directions at the corridor.

Chapter 5
    On the way home there were few people in the corridors and none April counted acquaintances. Of two thousand people on M3 she only knew three hundred or so by name, but many still looked familiar, if only because she saw them pass by so often. The eighteen to six off-shift people were pretty much home by now and the fore-shift people who worked from the middle of Main to the middle of Off, noon to midnight, were not out and about yet. The reverse, back-shift were still at work also.
    This level was very much the high rent district. All full G