The air was still cool as Zane finished limbering up before his morning run. He took a deep breath, enjoying the smells of early autumn and put on his headphones, allowing the music to let his mind wander.
"And she was drifting through the backyard
And she was taking off her dress.
And she was moving very slowly
rising up above the earth.
Moving into the universe and she's drifting this way and that.
Not touching the ground at all…" *
Zane's mind wandered, as it so often did lately, to Jo. He couldn't think about her in the same way anymore, knowing what had happened. Knowing what she and the others had been through. Though he and Jo had never gotten along, they had formed a routine of sorts between them, that while not friendly, had become very natural. They had fallen into roles that they never deviated from. Until Founder's Day, when his whole universe had been shaken. And hers too.
Now things were very different and very complicated. She was like a complete stranger to him and he was fascinated. She had traveled through time. And she had come from a time where they had been…intimate. Visions of Jo in various states of undress sprung into his mind and it was all he could do to focus on putting one foot in front of the other.
"You may find yourself living in a shotgun shack
And you may find yourself in another part of the world
And you may find yourself behind the wheel of a large automobile
You may find yourself in a beautiful house, with a beautiful wife
You may ask yourself, "Well, how did I get here?" *
Now that he knew the truth about how Jo had gotten his grandmother's ring, and why he couldn't remember giving it to her, the only puzzle left was how they had gotten to the point of getting engaged in the first place. He had seen for himself how differently this Jo had treated him. She believed in him, in a way that no one else had, saving perhaps his own mother. She trusted him to be someone decent and good, without having any proof that he could, except through her previous experience with the other him. So how had he proved that to her before? How did they get to that point in their relationship? His thoughts were interrupted when he turned a corner and there she was. Beautiful Jo in front of her brand new house. He pulled up short and looked around. He never ran to this part of town. How did I get here? he thought, before shrugging it off as being too distracted. If he was going to understand how he and Jo could have ever fallen in love, he needed her to know that he was aware of her trip from the past.
Her face had moved from shock to realization to anger in the span of a heartbeat, and he had to smile. She had caught on quick. But trying to talk to her while she was angry was never a good idea. So he waved at her, threw his headphones back on, and continued on his way. He'd try to talk to her later. Zane felt a feeling of resolve come over him. He would figure out this puzzle. And maybe, he'd convince her to give them a chance to be what they used to be. But first, he had to get her attention…
"Watch out you might get what you're after.
Cool babies, strange but not a stranger.
I am an ordinary guy.
Burning down the house.
Hold tight wait till the party's over.
Hold tight we're in for nasty weather.
There has got to be a way.
Burning down the house."*
*Songs in order are "And She Was", "Once In a Lifetime", and "Burning Down the House". All belong to The Talking Heads.
And see…Zane's little obsession with her being naked wasn't his fault :)
