“Sounds like he had great taste,” said Dave, who then had to duck behind Pete’s shelves to hide his laughter. AJ focused on a nearby bench to keep from corpsing.
“Your grandfather must have been important,” she supplied at last, taking a seat.
“Yes,” said Noah, joining her. With Dave in the mix, they weren’t fully submerged; as their eyes connected, AJ had the strange sense that they were peering out at each other from behind their characters.“They’re all important. It’s kind of in the family.” This was Noah speaking. AJ could tell because at these words, that endless black sadness inside him began to activate.
“That’s a lot of pressure,” said AJ.
“It is,” he said, mulling over his next line. “I’ve been given an incredible gift.” Heat was emanating from that black mass now; it had begun to smoke.
“And a terrible curse.” Ana’s words popped out before AJ could stop them.
Noah’s eyes widened.
AJ swallowed. “That’s why you can’t get close to anyone.”
Noah was gazing at her with debilitating intensity, as if she truly had read his thoughts. AJ would have had to look away, but Ana wasn’t embarrassed by it. “So lonely,” she murmured.
Noah’s eyes were all need. AJ was close enough to see the hazel ring in his irises.
“What about you?” he demanded softly. “No one here knows who you really are.”
AJ’s breath caught. “I—”
Her voice trailed off as she looked down at his hand, resting on his leg. Noah stilled as she took in the long tendons, the wide nail beds. Before she could stop herself, AJ reached for him.
Slowly, so slowly, their fingers met.
And as they touched, a crack of light cleaved that endless darkness, a thin bright ribbon of hope.
Then a tinny sound erupted behind the bookshelf. AJ quickly withdrew her hand as Dave emerged, playing Run-DMC on the iPhone and bouncing in place.
“It sings!” he cried gleefully. He flipped the device to show them the video. “And dances!”
“Let me see that,” said Noah, his leg brushing AJ’s as he stood and crossed to Dave. AJ’s robe was mussed where she had been inadvertently clutching it; she smoothed her skirts.
“Does it sing anything else?” she asked.
An all-too-familiar cowbell rang out from the iPhone. AJ’s eyes flew to Noah’s—it was “(You Drive Me) Crazy,” track two onNOW 4.
Noah frowned, glancing back at the iPhone. “I bet we could learn this.”
Dave almost choked, and AJ grinned. Maybe she was in a time loop.
But maybe Noah was in it, too.
Todd’s Coverage, Episode 10:“Wholesale”
In desperate need of funds, Gilamede’s crew stops at a trading outpost to sell some of their wormhole plunder. Zora and Navi buy each other gifts. The Doctor and Captain debate his prejudice toward fire weavers. Ana discovers Bill and Rho plotting their escape.
That night, Toni reappearedat the firepit as if nothing had happened.
Perhaps she was feeling magnanimous after today’s shoot at the Glendale mall, where she and Anjalee had kissed, firmly cementing their characters as love interests. AJ didn’t care—when Toni flopped into the Adirondack beside hers, all she felt was relief.
“Not climbing Ian tonight?” Drunk Dave purred. Somehow, he had downed three beers in the time the rest of them had imbibed one.
“He and Em had to go downtown for a meeting with the dev team,” said Toni. “Besides, I miss you guys.”
Her eyes slid to AJ’s as she said this, and AJ beamed. It seemed things were looking up. She had barely seen Ian and Em today, but if Toni wasn’t mad anymore, chances were they weren’t either.
