"Wow, its horrid out there,"
Linna stepped back from the window. Beside her on the DOCOMO bideovown XT a crackly Nene nodded back.
"I could only make this call routing through the AD tower and boosting the signal. It might not last long."
Linna smiled. "You did good, Nene. Glad your ok."
"You too. No going to see Sylia tonight, then."
"Not a chance. No sane person would be out in that."
There was a knock on her door. Who?
"Hey, I've got to go, Nene. Stay safe."
"You too, Linna. Work's going to be busy tomorrow..."
The XT went blank. The door was banged harder this time.
"Coming,coming," Linna muttered, who could be it. Maybe a neighbour who needed some help. The wind outside was terrible. Could a window have broken? Could their electricity had gone out? She had seen a building a block away – about as far as she could see outside – lose its power. The people inside would be terrified.
Something that must have been a boot smashed her door.
"Hey! No need for that -" Linna swung her door open.
There stood a frazzled, black-eyed, drenched to the bone Priss.
Linna stood there, mouth agape.
"Can I come in?" Priss snarled.
"Oh, sure, shit. You were … outside?"
"Looks that way, dont it." Priss painfully stripped off her leather jacket, sporting new shreds and threw it on Linna's kitchen floor with a splat.
"Uh..."
Priss flopped onto Linna's couch and rubbed her temples. She looked, felt, sounded terrible. "Damn storm turned my trailer over, rain getting in everywhere. Had to leave my bike a few k's back in a shop. Hope I can get to it before the cops after the storm. God. Not even a boomer made me feel this wrecked before."
"Or one of your all nighters?" Linna offered weekly, still amazed that Priss had gone out in the typhoon, traveled exposed on a motorcycle and then on foot the dozen kilometers between their homes.
Priss eyed Linna flatly.
"Got beer?"