The Terminal Run_A Post-Apocalyptic EMP Survival Thriller by Ryan Schow

Author:Ryan Schow [Schow, Ryan]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: River City Publishing
Published: 2018-08-20T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eighteen

Ben had to admit, dinner was delicious and he was about as relaxed as he’d ever been. And thankfully, Gisele seemed to be treating him just like she was treating everyone else. So maybe she wasn’t interested in him the way he thought. Perhaps it was just a reaction to not having been around people socially for a couple of months now.

Either way, they closed out the evening on the patio with a small fire in a fire pit overlooking a city that was so black it seemed only the sky had survived. Gisele asked if he knew the night sky and he said he was a junior astronomer in his youth.

“What was that, about a hundred years ago?” she asked, nudging him with her shoulder. He hadn’t realized how close she’d gotten to him, but they were looking into the sky together, talking constellations and planets and satellites.

“Just south of a hundred,” he said, half-heartedly.

“How old are you really?” she asked.

“Oh, the ageism crack was you asking me my age?” he said.

“Of course it was ding-a-ling.”

“Too old for you,” he said, never taking his eyes off the sky.

The remark seemed to still her for a moment, but then she said, “You don’t…I mean, I don’t want to be rude, but you didn’t think I…liked you like that, do you?”

Uh, yeah. He did. “Of course I did,” he said.

“Well then maybe I’m throwing off the wrong signals.”

“At least that’s cleared up,” he said. Then, pointing, he said, “If you can name that constellation right up there, I’ll tell you my age.”

Looking at him, serious with that look, she said, “I already know your age.”

“It’s Scorpio,” he said, ignoring the statement and the look. “My sun sign.”

After awhile, he said, “I think I’m going to call it a night. And if I’m lucky, I’ll find my way to my room in the pitch black without falling down the stairs, or ending up lost.”

“I can help with that,” she said, walking him inside. She handed him a candlestick and a lighter and said, “Just get this back to me in the morning.”

“You won’t need it?” he asked.

“It’s for when you have to go to the bathroom. Some guys have buckets they keep in at night, but I think that’s gross, so I just go downstairs and out back when I have to.”

“That’s like nine stories, though,” he said.

“Keeps these legs of mine looking good,” she said, giving her thigh a pat.

He glanced down, then back up into her eyes. “Am I really getting the wrong impression about you, or are you just playing with me?”

“What’s the impression you’re getting?” she asked.

He studied her face as best as he could in the candlelight, then he said, “I’m not emotionally available, if that’s what you’re thinking.”

“None of us are until we are,” she said. “Don’t be a square.”

He nodded his head, still holding her eye, and then she cracked the smallest smile and he felt it fracture his iron veneer ever so slightly.

“Good night,” he said.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.