by Lilah Boone
When the table was clear he turned to her with a playful smile. “We’ll leave the dishes for tomorrow.”
“What if there isn’t a tomorrow?”
His smile widened and he shrugged. “I’m counting on it.”
She returned his smile as he slowly raised a hand to press his palm to her cheek. He let his fingers slip along the soft skin behind her ear and under her hair. His eyes moved to her mouth while his thumb caressed her bottom lip. Her shuddering breath nearly sent him over the edge.
If he kissed her now, the way he wanted to, they wouldn’t make it out of the house to the next part of his plan. He wanted to do this right, wanted Abby Connelly to know what it was like to be wooed for once in her life. He turned around towards the door and offered up his hand. She slipped her fingers into his, fitting perfectly together while they walked out into the night.
Abby looked down at where their hands met as Kyle led her towards the front side of the barn. She could see her own skin glowing, not just his anymore. She lifted her other hand and saw that it was also shining in the dim light.
“Kyle.” She held her hand up in front of her, studied the white glow of it. “What’s happening?”
He looked down at his own hands and shook his head inquisitively. “I don’t know.” He turned a bright smile on her. “But it’s kind of cool.”
Abby let out a laugh. “I guess if we’re ever in a blackout we won’t need to light any candles. And leaving the lights on is pretty much standard from now on.”
Kyle laughed with her. “That might not be such a bad thing.” He said the last with a flirty undertone that made her smile widen. An urge that was quickly becoming familiar stirred inside of him, forcing him to take a deep, suppressing breath.
In front of the barn Kyle had laid out a big blanket with paper plates, plastic forks, a store bought cheesecake, a six pack of beer, and a battery powered mp3 radio.
Abby eyed the picnic before her. “What’s all this? Desert and drinks under the stars?”
“Exactly.” He pulled out both of their music filled phones and set them on the blanket. He had swiped Abby’s from the coffee table when she wasn’t looking. “First things first. We exchange phones and pick some favorite tunes for mood music.”
He watched her face, saw the light around her brighten.
They thumbed through each other’s phones, picking out songs and playfully teasing one another over their choice in music. After a few moments they settled on a playlist that had been labeled “chilled” on Abby’s phone and started on their freshly thawed, premade cheesecake.
Music swirled around as they swallowed their last bites and Kyle opened beers for them. “I wanted to get some wine, but the grocery store was cleaned out.”
“That’s okay. I’m one of those girls who actually likes beer.”
Of course Kyle already knew that, but he also knew wine was considered more romantic. His next surprise wouldn’t really add a touch of romance either, but he knew Abby would appreciate it.
“Oh, I almost forgot. I have one more gift for us.” Kyle pulled out a full pack of light cigarettes and waved them in front of Abby.
Abby let out a gasp that quickly turned into a laugh. “Where did you get those? They must be fifteen bucks a pack these days.”
“Well I didn’t exactly pay for them. I sort of found them when I was in town earlier. Thought you might enjoy the last smokes on Earth.” He packed the box against the back of his hand. “Besides, I’m a reformed smoker too and I guess you could say my will power is a little less than stellar since I started having visions about that which we are not speaking of tonight.”
Abby’s face was bright, almost astonished. Kyle soaked it in. He knew it was a silly thing for them to share, but civilization as they knew it was about to come crumbling down around them. If splitting a pack of cigarettes and a sixer of beer gave them some respite from the terror that was coming, it was more than worth it. Smoke ‘em if you got ‘em, Kyle thought, suddenly realizing these might be the last normal moments of his life.
“Oh my god. I had forgotten how good that was,” Abby said as she took her first puff. “I feel like a teenager doing something bad though. But I think that’s part of what I always liked about it.”
“Rebelling against something are you?” Kyle looked at her sideways and let smoke waft out slowly from his mouth.
“You should know. You already know everything about me and I’m just scratching the surface of you.”
“Well I don’t know everything. Just random things here and there pop into my head. And sometimes I can hear what you’re thinking. But I think that’s your fault.”
“My fault?”
“Yeah, I think you send your thoughts to me somehow.”
She flicked her cigarette. “Huh. I didn’t realize I was sending anything.”
“Regardless, I feel like I know you already even though the last time I remember being with you was a few thousand years ago. Does that makes sense?”
“It does. It’s like we’ve been… friends… for a very long time. And I’m glad you don’t know everything.” She sat up a little to face him. “First, because some things are just plain private. And second, because I wouldn’t want either of us to miss out on the getting to know you stage… again.”
Kyle only grinned and they both looked up to gaze into the night sky and enjoy their smokes. It was hard to believe the world would look so different tomorrow, that everything would change in the course of just twenty-four short hours. In the meantime the two of them would share an effortless evening together full of simple indulgences.
“I’d like to know more about you,” he said.
She smiled over the rim of her beer bottle, holding it in the same hand as her cigarette. With the other hand she absently tugged on her earlobe.
“Well I’m the one with the learning curve. I think you should tell me more about you so I can catch up.” A soft laugh escaped her lips. “You can find out more about me later. I’m sure I’ll be broadcasting transmissions throughout the evening.”
“Okay. What do you want to know then?” He took a drag of his cigarette, held the butt between his forefinger and his thumb.
“How long have you had those tattoos?”
Kyle felt his face grow warm, remembering the feeling of her eyes on him earlier in the day. “Ah… those are from my bad boy phase.”
He took a sip of beer and looked out into the night, glancing up to the moon as he swallowed. He could feel her eyes on him again, saw her staring at his profile in his peripheral vision. Suddenly he wished he could read her thoughts at will.
She waited patiently, smoking and sipping her beer.
He continued. “I had dropped out of college and was pissed off at just about everything. I stole cars, got into way too many fights.” He stole a glance in her direction. “I don’t recommend spending the night in lock up.”
Abby’s eyes registered mild surprise. “You were in jail?”
“Well I wasn’t in a real prison or anything. I spent a couple of nights in the county jail before I could make bail.” He took a long sip from his bottle. “Looking back I think maybe I was just searching for my purpose, trying to figure out who I was. Something I hate to admit because it sounds ridiculous even to me.” He paused briefly. “I was living on the road, reading too much angst. Smoking, drinking, using ah… recreational narcotics… going through different women that I barely knew and didn’t really like.”
Abby studied him. “Life had no real meaning.”
“Yeah it was a time of what you might call building character I guess.” His fingers made quotes in the air. “But it was so empty and I wasn’t a very nice guy.”
“What pulled you out of it?”
He laughed quietly. It sounded a little wounded, even to him. “The girl who bailed me out of jail, but not in a good way.”
Abby leaned in, waiting for more and smoking her cigarette like it was something she still did every day.
“She was more messed up than I was and I was sort of implicated by association.” He chuckled sarcastically. “To keep the story short I got my ass kicked one too many times and I wanted out. Joining your uncle on the farm was my way of starting over and cleaning up. The land had always called to me and I wanted to… ah commune I guess.”
He waited a second for her reaction, but her face never changed. “You think I’m a delinquent now.”
Abby shook her head, eyeing him with an expression he couldn’t read. “No. I think you’re just you.”
Kyle was glad she didn’t press him further. He flicked his cigarette into the grass. Smoke billowed up around his face as he exhaled the last drag, illuminated by the shining light of his skin. “After that vision the other night,” he began again. “I think maybe I got the tattoos because of some subconscious past life memory.”
Abby’s eyes widened just slightly in agreement. “I was thinking something like that also. They look too much like the ones you… um… used to have.”
“Do you have any tattoos?” She blushed from her chin to her forehead and he suddenly heard the answer in his head. If she had a tattoo, she wanted him to find out where it was on his own.
They were quiet for a second before Abby blurted out her next question. “What do you remember? About us, I mean. All that time ago?”
Kyle turned, his eyes sweeping over her body until they reached her face. He watched her cheeks flush again, could almost hear her blood quicken.
“I remember you on a summer night moving around an open fire. There was drumming and dancing and people coming together all around us.” His words were soft as he moved closer to her. “I remember how I felt, how strong it was.” His gaze fell to her lips.
“I remember that too. I was waiting for you, wanting you.” She was breathless, her voice a faint whisper. “And what about now? How do you feel now?”
Their hands brushed against each other on the downy blanket and Kyle grabbed a hold of her thumb to pull her towards him. He leaned in, never taking his eyes from her lips. He stayed there, hesitating, not yet ready to give in. He felt her breath on his mouth and dipped just a little closer. She shut her eyes, moved in. He backed just out of her reach as her lips grazed his with an electric charge.
He moved forward again, took her bottom lip between his teeth gently. She responded, sliding her arms around his neck and pulling him in.
Her breathing was heavy, matching his own rhythm. Their lips connected and Kyle pulling back once more. Never had a kiss held so much power over him. He glanced at her lips, feeling his control slip away. With one deft movement and far more urgency than he intended he pushed her to her back, settled himself over her, and crushed her open mouth under his.
She explored under his shirt to trail fingers over the skin of his back, rocked forward as he brought his mouth down to nuzzle the softness of her neck.
His breathing deepened further, his blood burning as his hands clasped onto her hips. He ran one hand down her thigh, gripped her leg under the knee, and pulled it up tight around his waist. She trembled, let out a soft gasp into his mouth as his body pressed into hers.
Through a haze he heard her say his name.
“Kyle.” Her voice was muffled under his lips. He was too preoccupied for the tone of her voice to register but looked up when she gave him a light shove to one shoulder. “Kyle, look. Down by the road.”
He halfheartedly pulled away from kissing her and followed her line of sight with squinted eyes to where a group of people walked down the street. It was a much less severe version of the scene he had witnessed the day before. This time there were no children and the people had a faint shine of light outlining their bodies. They were glowing, but it wasn’t the subtle white shimmer Abby and Kyle possessed. There were colors; blue, green, and a butter yellow surrounding them.
“Do you see that?” Abby was visibly shaken, struggling to catch her breath. “They’re glowing. Like us. Well sort of anyway. What do you think it means?”
“I have no idea.” Reluctantly he stood, straightened his shirt and smoothed out his hair. “But I guess we should catch up with them and see what we can find out.”
The two of them jogged down to the country road, slowing down to a brisk walk as they approached the group of travelers.
“Excuse me. We were just wondering…” Kyle stopped short when he noticed the look of shock on the faces of the five strangers in front of him. There were three men and two women, all emanating a faint colored light.
The tallest and presumably oldest of the three men stepped up in front, staring at Abby and Kyle like they were ghosts. “What are you?”
“Well, we can explain that in a minute,” Kyle answered. “The real question is what are the five of you?” When not one of them spoke up Kyle looked to Abby.
“Did you know you guys are all shiny and glowing?” Apparently she wasn’t going to be tactful. “Like you back there, girl with long dark hair. You’re a very pretty shade of green. And tough guy here...” She motioned to the tall man in front. “He’s like a light yellowish color. Do any of you know why? Have any of you been experiencing weird dreams lately? Visions of any kind?”
The other woman, a big eyed red head stepped out from behind the boys. Her light was pale blue. “Yeah, we all have. And we know about the colors. That’s how we found each other in the first place. We’re not sure what it means. We just knew that we needed to work together to survive.” She heaved a breath. “We think this is the Second Coming or at least something very close to it.”
“Yep, that’s pretty much right on the money,” Kyle said casually, nodding and gesturing to himself and Abby. “We’ve been through the same thing, had the same dreams. I think maybe you’re supposed to be here. With us.” Again none of them responded. “We can try to figure out some answers about why you’re all walking fireflies and we even have a bomb shelter that can hold up to ten people stocked with lots of food and water to share.”
“I think that’s a good idea David,” the dark haired girl called out without pause.
The tall guy held up his hand. “How do we know they’re not crazy people Evie? Or sex maniac cult leaders? The girl looks like she’s had his five-o-clock shadow rubbed all over her face and Farmer John here’s got some rosy lip gloss on his chin.”
“No, Evie’s right.” One of the other men, shorter and darker, spoke up. “It’s not coincidence we were walking down this road at this exact time. None of us even knew where we were going. Our van broke down in Topeka and we just came here where there’s nothing but corn and cows. That’s not weird to anyone else?”
“I think you’re out voted David.” The little red head set her mouth into a firm line. “We want to stay here, stay safe.”
“Yeah, I’m with them,” the third man chimed in. “Where else do we have to go? The odds of out running the apocalypse aren’t exactly in our favor.”
“These people are willing to help us figure out what’s happening to us and let us hide out in their shelter when the time comes.” Evie’s voice was sharp and determined. “I don’t care what they are or what they do. I just want to stay alive.”
David took a moment to scowl. “Fine. But when they start asking you to participate in their orgies and pray to comets, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
“Blondie can invite me to an orgy any day.” The third guy gave Abby a suggestive look over. “I’ll pray to anything she wants me to.”
Kyle felt a hot surge run up his spine. He shot the other man a look of warning and then leaned in towards his face. In an even tone he said, “That’s enough.”
The other man took a step back, held up his hands with a plea. “Okay dude. I get it. She’s your girl.”
Abby and Kyle exchanged curious and slightly amused looks before he put his arm around her waist and headed up to the driveway. The five newcomers followed on their heels.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Thursday, December 20th 2012,
12:45am
Abby sat on Kyle’s bed, waiting for him to get the new people settled in between his house and Jim’s. Anticipation trickled over her skin as she thought back to earlier in the night. Instead of just sitting there feeling antsy, she stood to examine his room.
She noticed colors first; steel grey walls, sheer white curtains, charcoal linens on the unmade bed. Clothes were strewn along the floor in small piles, mostly jeans and tee shirts. More of his black and white photos hung on the walls with a blown up print of the barn doors hanging over his headboard.
His dresser was clear of clutter. Only a plain blue bowl filled with silver and copper change sat in the center. His nightstand held only a lamp, an alarm clock, and another copy of Oscar Wilde. This one was much loved, dog eared and bookmarked to his favorite poems.
She turned to one of the marked pages and read the first line of Madonna Mia. “A lily girl, not made for this world’s pain…”
“That’s one of my favorites,” Kyle said, suddenly behind her.
She jumped, closed the book and set it back in its place. “I was reading your other copy earlier. I hadn’t gotten to that one yet.”
“I sort of have a thing for Wilde. There’s a third copy around here somewhere.”
“Everyone settled in alright?” she asked.
“Yeah, all set.” He moved to the dresser, slipped the watch off his wrist and set it in the blue bowl followed by the wallet he kept in his back pocket. “The brothers Sam and Jake pushed Alex to the couch in order to share the spare bed at Jimmy’s, Hanna and Evie are tucked in the room across the hall from us, and David is downstairs on the couch scowling.” His keys followed with a twang as they jangled against the ceramic.
“Well that worked out well then. What’s with that guy David, by the way? He makes crazy assumptions in the rudest possible ways.”
“I think he’s got some kind of god complex. He seems to get off on being judge and jury. A control freak.”