Chapter one, the Diner.
Kaleb slouched in his chair slightly, taking a long drink of Cola from his glass. She hated that it was always non-alcoholic for him, that no matter what he said, she couldn't brush it off as if he were drunk. His words were always his own… and she hated it.
"It's easy to see, really…" He began, his voice shaky, despite his obvious attempts to remain calm. "But I can't tell which it is." He set his glass down, glancing out the window of the small diner worriedly.
"No one followed us," She said, knowing full well that what worried him wasn't their less-than-friendly pursuers.
He cleared his throat, attempting to find his voice.
"It's clear to me that you either hate me very much, or need me very badly." He said with thinly veiled pain. "But I suppose I already know which it is, don't I?" He added, as if ashamed to have said it at all. "Because no one, on this planet, is stupid enough to put faith in me…" He explained, not so much to her, as to himself, "To need me." He said with finality.
She shifted her glance to the window, pretending to keep a watch for Them. She attempted to change the subject.
"So what will we call Them?" She asked, not needing to specify who she meant. He tried to knock away his past experiences for a moment, and take part in the present.
"Well…" He gazed off into the rain in thought. "They have that heavy air around them, and they wear those weird black hearts on their chest… Dark Hearts maybe?" He suggested. She nodded,
"Sure. It's better than 'Them'."
There was a crash in the kitchen. Kaleb reached for his belt, but eased up as he saw that it was only some pots falling.
"Jumpy much?" She asked playfully.
"Don't, Keera," He pleaded, "I'm not in the mood for you to tease me."
"Never bothered you before," She said flirtily. She sighed, realizing he was still thinking so negatively, "Look, I don't hate you, stop thinking that."
"Really? So why get me mixed up in all of this? What, you saw me that day and your heart stopped? You couldn't live without me, even through all… This?" He gestured around himself. "Don't kid with me, the only reason I'm here right now is because you thought that I should suffer". She hung her head, he was so dense sometimes.
"It's nothing like that," She said, attempting to make him see, "It's not like I looked for you specifically, I didn't have a grudge against you… I just needed an out, and when I saw you sitting at that beach, I took the opportunity."
He stared regretfully out into the rain, trying to forget the way he was so easily lured into her little trap. "Right…" He kicked himself for not realizing it when she flirted with him. Girls like her didn't flirt with him. Hell, no one did.
The waitress came around and picked up their plates, leaving the check behind.
"I got this one," Kaleb offered, "I need to think for a second. She nodded, standing up and walking towards the door. She fought the urge to look back at him. Let him think She told herself. He fished a few bills from his wallet and set them atop the check. He checked his watch, 6:27. "14 hours," he thought to himself, "At least I'm not dead… yet." He slid out of his seat and took a few steps toward the door, wondering how long he had left.
