As he talks, I notice a screen on a shelf light up, and my breath catches in my throat when I see what it is … it’s a digital photo frame, with pictures of us from our years together, and a sob catches in my throat.
Instantly, he’s turning me over, concern written all over his face as he wipes the tears away. “You were never a crier, Ginger. What’s wrong?”
I point, “How?”
“Lord, you really are giving me gray hairs with all these emotions. ANDI put that together for me as a gift. Many nights, I turned it off because I couldn’t stand remembering. Then there were nights I couldn’t make it without them because the only way I could fall asleep was by seeing your face. Do you remember that beach trip?”
“I do, it was cold and rainy the entire time, but we still ran around on the beach like kids. Where did he find these?”
“I don’t have all the details, but he was able to save a huge amount of Earth’s information before it all went to hell. He said he had to do some hunting as we didn’t have a social media account, but he was able to find several at the place where we got pictures developed. He loaded everything he could find on there. I cried like a baby when I watched them for the first time.”
We lay there watching our lives slide by a few seconds at a time. The trip to the mountains, fishing on the lake, the many campingtrips, and me with a huge smile, riding bikes on some random trail.
My belly growling has Ricky slipping out of bed, and the next thing I know, he’s throwing one of his t-shirts on the bed, “Cover that luscious ass of yours up, or we’re gonna look like two husks who screwed themselves to death when they come looking for us because we haven’t emerged for days.”
Giggling, I slide it over my head, enjoying the feeling of his scent wrapped around me, before rolling out of bed. I can hear him humming in the other room, so I take a moment to look into the other doorway in the bedroom. When the door slides open, I see a huge closet that makes us look like we’re homeless, with only a few pieces of clothing hanging inside. Turning, I head back to the bathroom, thankful to find a toothbrush in one of the drawers. Brushing my teeth, I am once again amazed by the little things, since I haven’t had this luxury for months.
Following the sound of his random tunes, I find Ricky setting food on an oddly shaped table. He smiles when I walk in, and I watch as his eyes look me up and down.
“You are undressing me with your eyes.”
“Yes, I am. We have a lot of time to make up for. Come on and eat, it’s not Denny’s but it’s edible. I hope that before long, we will have some fresh vegetables and perhaps some eggs for breakfast. But now that this storm has hit, I’m sure things will have to be replanted.”
“Honey, my picky days are over, but is that coffee I’m smelling?”
“Yeah, why?”
“You have coffee? Have had it all along?”
“Yeah, I mean it’s not exact, but with some sugar in it I can’t tell the difference.”
“You’re a brat, and the universe just proved it. I haven’t had coffee since the day I left Earth. Do you know how hard it was to get up and motivated without the miracle juice? The withdrawals were horrible, but I don’t care, I’m a junky. I want the whole pot, give it to me!”
I can tell he’s trying not to laugh as he hands me a cup. “I’m kinda glad I wasn’t there to experience that, I can’t imagine the growly face you had each morning.”
I reach for the cup, and he holds it up out of my reach with a huge grin on his face. “Keep it up, and I’ll show you more than a growly face.”
The moment the dark liquid hits my tongue, I moan out in bliss, and Ricky laughs before motioning for me to sit down. Sitting across from him at the table, we both eat in comfortable silence. Each bite makes me thankful for the food I didn’t have to help skin or farm myself, simply enjoying the meal of oatmeal and fresh bread that tastes like heaven. I’m just getting up to put my dish in the cleaning station like Ricky did, when I hear a buzzer go off.
“What’s that?”
“Someone is at the bottom entrance.” He walks over to a panel and it lights up, showing who’s there. “It’s DaR and Kira, you might want to go put some pants on.”
Rushing to the bedroom, I walk into the closet and pull out the only outfit I have with me. Yanking the jumper on, I run my fingers through my hair and I’m just walking out of the bedroom when they come up the elevator, which I didn’t know we had.
I actually step back when DaR comes through the opening. He’s much larger in person than on that holo screen. Then, who I assume is Kira, walks in behind him, carrying a dish. A small, robot-like thing follows behind them pulling a large sled laden with a few crates.
“Oh, look at you two! Ricky dear, I believe this is the first time I’ve seen that light in your eyes, and it does my heart good to see the happiness so plainly in both of you.” She reaches for my hands. “Forgive me, doll. Where are my manners? This big hunk beside me is DaR, none of that Commander crap when we’re all together, and I’m Kira. I can’t tell you how happy I was when Destiny reported back that they had found you. DaR had to practically sit on me to keep me from telling Ricky the moment we landed.”
“You knew?”
“Only a few minutes longer than you did, that’s why DaR wouldn’t let me tell you. I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many happy tears from everyone as I did when you two finally saw each other. Have you two eaten? I brought some snacks and some extra clothes for Ginger. ANDI told me you only had a small bag full of stuff, and lord knows I have an abundance.”
“Please, guys, come in and make yourselves comfortable. Can I get you something to drink?” When both of them shake their heads no, I walk over to the crate the little robot has opened. “Thank you, I appreciate anything you can spare clothing-wise. I have this outfit and one other, but I’ve had so little for so long, it’s amazing what you learn to live with and without.”
“Well, there’s no need for that now. Ricky has more credits than he can spend in a lifetime, and when things calm down for youtwo, I’ll take you back to the shuttle, and we’ll do some shopping. SAGE will just love you. I can’t wait for you to meet her.”
Ricky shrugs his shoulders when I look at him, like he has no idea what she’s talking about. Then I watch Kira set the dish on the counter before following DaR to a large chair on the opposite side of the couch. I can’t hold back my smile when he sits down, pulling Kira down onto his lap. She rolls her eyes, and I smile at her, immediately knowing we’re going to be great friends.
