Page 151 of Every Almost

As Charlie watched Tavi enjoy the last few choruses of the song, she suddenly noticed she and Maren were just... waiting. Waiting for Tavi to finish his turn, which would then turn to them waiting for Charlie to rewind the tape, and then waiting again while Maren listened to the song. She wished she had a stereo.

Charlie stood still. She may not have a stereo, but she had aspaceship. A spaceship with advanced technology. And, right now, the two best engineers on the ship standing right in front of her.

"Challenge time, friends. How do we get the ability to play music on the ship?" She asked, holding up her Walkman, pulling the headphones directly out of Tavi's ears with a 'pop'. "Not just through headphones, where we have to wait one by one to listen, but instead, play it in the whole bay?" Tavi's eyes grew, matching Charlie's, and Maren smiled as the idea formed in her brain. "In fact, there's got to be a way to bring it to the whole ship. Or at least parts of the whole ship when someone wants to listen."

Tavi's whole body tilted toward her like she'd just offered him a gift. "You want to—" Tavi stopped. "Wait. Like integrating music into the ship's systems?"

"Can we?"

Tavi was already moving, his hands rummaging through the boxes of parts and old pieces of machinery to get his brain pumping for answers. Maren and Charlie watched him as he chucked parts all over the workbench.

"The ship's datapad system already supports audio output," Tavi said, hunched over his console. Charlie moved beside him and Maren leaned against the doorframe next to him, watching his display. "We can easily link all datapads to audio output systems in every room, quarters, even a bathroom stall if we wanted to." Then Tavi stopped and swiveled his chair to look up at Charlie.

"But?" Charlie asked, reading his face.

"But, the problem is getting the musicintothe ship's systems. The format and capturing the music, making it workable for the ship's processing. Your cassettes are analog. Everything on the Emberkind is digital."

"So we need a bridge," said Maren.

"So we need a bridge," repeated Tavi, pointing at Maren with the screwdriver in his hand, then turned back to Charlie.

Charlie looked down at the Walkman, then held it up. "How about the magnetic tape? Can you read the magnetic tape directly? Use it to bridge to the systems?"

Tavi's eyes widened slowly. Charlie could almost see his brain working through it, until finally he clapped his hands together, the screwdriver falling to the floor. "Thatta girl!"

Charlie raised a fist and held it at level for Tavi. "Pound it, Tavi!" Charlie exclaimed excitedly. Tavi looked at her like she needed therapy.

"Why the hell would I do that? I thought you were gay?"

Charlie's expression changed to confusion. "What?" Then she realized her words. Without context, well, Tavi's reaction would make sense.

"No, well, yes, I am but, okay... hold on, let me explain."

"Please do," Tavi remarked, his expression not changed.

"It's actually an act of congratulating one another, in celebration, or success, or triumph, or, well, just awesomeness."

"Okay, that's making it better."

"You just, hold up your fist like this, how I'm doing," Charlie moved her hand back to where it was. "And now, you make a fist as well."

"Do I have to?"

"Just humor me, please." Tavi shrugged, then made a fist and raised it to Charlie's hand's height.

"And now..." And then Charlie hit her fist against Tavi's, her fingers extending to their full length as she pulled her hand away while making the sound of a crowd cheering in "ahhs."

"What... was that?" Tavi asked, his fist still held in the same spot.

"The explosion of joy after celebrating with your friend over their success."

Slowly, Tavi's expression changed from confusion, all the way to excitement.

"Ohh... okay. Actually, thatisawesome. Quick!" Tavi shouted out to the whole Engineering Bay. "Someone succeed at their task so we can 'pound it!'" Some members of the bay gave Tavi looks, but he didn't seem fazed.

"I just finished my sandwich?" A crew member to the left of their stations said out.

"Yes!" Tavi jumped off his stool, ran to the crew member, and taught him the move, to which they exclaimed "Pound it!", both making the explosion move after. Charlie smiled, then looked over at Maren, who looked like she was trying to dismiss the silliness of the room, but Charlie could see the real want behind her eyes.