Miles To Go
"... before I sleep." - Robert Frost
When she turned around, he was standing right in front of her. His eyes flicked over the battered-looking payphone. "Who'd you call?" he asked, his tone emotionless.
She didn't want to lie to him. "Bobby," she said. "I called Bobby. I wanted him to know that we were both okay."
He nodded. "We should get going." He went back to the car. He fumbled for the map in the glove compartment then spread it out on the hood. "I got directions from the guy at the store." His fingers traced the route he wanted them to take. "He says this is the quickest way."
"All right," she agreed. They set off again, the silence in the car broken occasionally when he coughed. He stared out the window at the endless rows of trees they passed. She wondered what he was thinking.
It's a virus.
Legacy...
Affects only mutants.
Don't know how he got it.
We're all at risk!
We're not sure -
This nightmare just keeps getting worse!
I don't -
Make it stop!
They slept in the car, in the backseat. Or she did anyway. He sat on the floor, his body twisted uncomfortably in the small space, counting every breath he took throughout the night. She woke up one morning to find him watching her.
"You really need to rest," she told him worriedly.
"I'll do that eventually. But not now." He shook his head. "I don't want to."
He refused to take his pills anymore. When she tried to force him, he snatched the bottle from her hands and threw it away.
I feel sorry for him.
He's dying.
He doesn't deserve - !
Go away!
Don't touch me!
Why do you - ?
I want to help you.
Take me away from here. I don't wanna die here.
She barely knew him. She had been too young to hang out with him when he had still been in school. But, every day they spent together now, she would find out something new.
They would talk. He said things sometimes that made her blush, or gasp, or laugh. Their conversations rambled. She realized that she could like him very much.
You're such a - !
I didn't really mean that.
Favorite book?
That's a good one.
He didn't!
Would he?
This is so -
Stop smirking!
He kept getting worse. There were days when he shook so badly that she could only try to hold on to him. She prayed that he would be spared the pain at least.
He didn't pray. He got angry when she tried to comfort him.
"There will be nothing!" he sneered, looking at her like he almost hated her. "I will be nothing! It will be cold and dark and nothing!"
Then he told her that he was scared.
I was gonna be a rockstar.
What do you wanna be when you grow up?
No way!
I think I did -
There is no -
Would you please - ?
Huh?
Always thought I would.
They finally made it. He had been here once before. It was a quiet place. She could understand why he wanted to go back.
There was a rainshower when they arrived and, as soon as it passed and the sun shone again, they got out of the car. She sat on the wet grass and he rested his head on her lap.
Kitty?
Yes, John?
I've been thinking.
About what?
Something you said, once. I think – I understand now. And, - I really hope that there is a life after death. Because I'd really want to see you again.
You will. I promise, you will.
The End
(I know this is a bit different from my usual stuff. But I wanted to try something really spare, yet moody. Tell me if I've gone completely insane.)