She was younger than me, but not by much. She had fitted herself into a white silk, form-fitting dress cut a little too short, and a bit see-through. In this low light though it was hard to make out much detail. Teasing me with her smile and those blond curls, she bit the lower half of her lip. She squeezed in low enough and rested her elbows on the table, not worrying about the sticky surface. The lantern that still burned in the middle of the table circled something devilish in those eyes.
“O honey, it’s been a hell of a night,” she said, flipping a curl away from her lips as she looked over at the bar. The others weren’t paying attention, passing out cold for the night. She turned her smile back to me. “You here for a drink or what?”
She halfcocked a smile and winked. Her shape was perfection. Her hips twisted as if hearing music, and those legs…
I swallowed hard, thinking of what to say. “And what’s your name, love?” I tried to ask seductively, but my voice cracked.
“Eve,” she said, smiling at the lame attempt. She wasn’t anyone I remembered, but that was becoming a theme for the night. I couldn’t say if she actually worked for Sierra, but I didn’t mind if she did or not. She was, after all, with her smooth skin and full lips, making advances and I wasn’t too keen to question her position. I had a powerful need for comfort, and this Eve was accomplishing some form of that.
“Something strong, Eve,” I finally answered. A drink would help, I supposed. Definitely relieve this stress. Maybe kill the nerves and possibly help me find sleep at some point.
“Sure thing, honey. Top notch for the gentleman.” Eve gave another wink before departing. She made sure to shake her hips as she walked away, and even dared a look back to make sure I was watching. She strolled behind the bar, ignoring the drunkards hanging off the bar stools. She grabbed a bottle from underneath the counter and waved the glass in the air as she smiled. “You like vodka?”
I shrugged, the one shoulder still aching from my earlier fall, but it was enough for her. She grabbed two glasses and sauntered back, taking the seat opposite me. It was hard not to stare, but I tried to keep my hooded face down, keeping my appearance hidden. She didn’t seem to mind, though I didn’t exactly know why. She placed a glass in front of me and poured the cruel liquor. We held our glasses up, cheered, and downed the fire. The first splash of vodka hurt and I coughed at how harsh it was. Eve laughed as she tossed back hers, and poured another.
“Where have you been all night, darling?” she said with a smile. In a city of a few hundred, she treated me like a stranger, which I was after all. I was too afraid to show my face, even though there was no activity around us. She didn’t try to yank my hood down, or shuffle around to try and get a glimpse. She was okay with not knowing, or played off the idea that I was some stranger who came from outside the city.
“Well…” I wanted to tell her something, anything. Tell her the truth that no one else really knew. About this city, about what I saw just a little while back. “Can I tell you something?”
She smiled and nodded.
“I… I…,” I stumbled. “I don’t really have that much… longer, you know. It’s strange, now that it’s closer, really, it feels like it could happen tomorrow. I know it won’t, but… that’s beside the point. I’m feeling so… so… divided, like not whole. I just want to stay right here. Stay with the people I know.”
Truthfully, I thought about it all the time, and even though I had a few friends and my little girl Olivia, every day I felt more alone. I turned my head, looking through the bar’s front window. The area glowed red outside, but no other soul was awake to hear my story.
Eve nodded, frowning a bit, but her eyes remained fixed on mine. “Sad boy,” she said and twirled in her seat, inching the chair closer to mine. “Tell me more.”
“Uhhh, well…,” she caught me off guard. I took another shot, ignoring the taste. She neglected to refill the glass. Instead she sipped from the bottle and slid it across the table.
“Here’s to not knowing I suppose,” I said and tipped the bottle back, draining a little more. “What do you think happens?”
Eve shook her head. She traced an outline on the table and flicked a curl away from her eyes, managing to keep that halfcocked smile.
“Not that it really matters, I guess.” I sighed. “It would seem that we lose ourselves, or, become something different, what am I trying to say?” I giggled, the liquor was taking over and I started feeling lucid. Numbness traveled to my legs and they finally relaxed. Putting a hand inside the sweatshirt pocket, I gently caressed the sphere, believing that I was making some sense.
“I need to understand it. If I just, was given more time, and could survive this… this… turning, I just know I could figure it out. Maybe even change things, divert our paths.” I unexpectedly pondered if the sphere had a lifespan. Maybe if it was cut off from the other side it would eventually not recover, like some life form too far removed from its environment.
“Why?” Eve asked.
“Why what?” I replied.
“Why worry so much about it? The turning, it can’t be stopped, never does stop. Everyone goes away.” Eve smiled, patting the top of my hand, but leaving it there after she was done.
“Why does it have to be changed? Why do you have to be the one who changes it?” she asked. She began stroking my hand, turning it upside down, tracing a line about my palm, touching each fingertip as she went.
“Can’t tell you that, I suppose. Always felt that way, like, somehow it’s my fault,” I said, opening up. I hadn’t done this in so long, but it felt right. Even if Eve was a complete stranger, she was what I needed her to be in this precise moment. As if she could heal the wound that rifled through me, stitching together the past as if it would suddenly come rip-roaring back. Though, all she would ever be was a pretty face listening to me ramble.
She laughed innocently. “Your fault?” she asked. “It’s no one’s fault. Not yours, not mine, not even Jackson’s, wherever that poor boy is now. Suppose you saw all that earlier?” She must have been meaning when they chased me into the tower.
“Not even he has anything to do with this. Don’t tell anyone I told you that though,” she laughed. “Don’t need those cowards coming after me too. Anyway, if we’re meant to walk into the shadows, then we do just that. If you’re meant to stop it, then try you must. But don’t ever blame yourself, honey. Fate is a tricky mistress, and she is damn good at what she does.”
Eve leaned over the table, coming just inches away. “More,” she whispered.
“Hmmmm?” I couldn’t even form words.
“Tell me more.” She pulled her chair to my side, now resting a hand on my thigh.
“Well, can I tell you a secret?” I asked. I waited for her to nod before continuing. “I’ve been having memories.”
“That’s not really a secret, darling. We all have ‘em.” Eve smiled.
“Not just from the last two years. From, before The Forgetting.”
“Again.” Eve waved her hand around as if dismissing the comment.
“Not just snippets or flashes. Whole memories. Like, okay, there’s this one, it happened just a couple days ago. I was sitting on my couch and it hit me like, like thunder. I was within the memory, reliving it, and could remember it clear as day. It was back when I was just a kid. When I was really young, I had gotten our first puppy, and it was Christmas. There were lights, music, television, family, cookies, eggnog, snowmen, turkey, ham, stuffing, cranberries, mashed potatoes, uh and the gravy. I see faces, but can’t remember the names. This lasted for hours, until I fell asleep that night still within that dream, waiting for Santa.”