Two Old Friends

“Evening.”

“Evening! Glad you could make it. But what took you so long?”

“Got lost on the way over. I haven’t been to your place in a while,” he said. “Funny. The world’s ending and I’m the only person you could think of to invite over?”

“Unfortunately, yes. You are the only person I know well enough to want to have here. Care for a drink?”

“You got anything good?”

“I have a bottle of water, a carton of milk, and a bottle of wine.”

“Won’t the milk curdle out in this heat?”

“Seriously? I don’t think it will have enough time to curdle.”

“Heh, guess you’re right. Pass it over.”

“Wait…”

“What are you waiting for?”

“Milk makes you sick, right? Aren’t you lactose intolerant?”

“Yeah, but like you just said, I don’t think it’ll matter. I won’t have enough time to get sick.”

“Enjoy your milk. Me, I’m drinking. I want a buzz. A real drink.”

“Nice radio you got there.”

It is 6:01pm EST, and for those still listening, the asteroid is set to arrive in the U.S. Officials urge everyone to remain calm.

“How much longer until the asteroid hits?”

“According to my watch, about 17 minutes.”

“Huh. You mean that old thing still works?”

“Of course! Unlike you, I take care of my stuff.”

“So, what have you been up to in the last few years? Besides taking care of old watches?”

“Not much.”

“Uhh… Nice wine you got there. Where’d you get it?”

“Canada, if you can believe it.”

“An Italian Amarone… from Canada?”

“Of course! While I was in Quebec-“

“Wait, you went to Quebec?”

“Yeah. A guy I worked with a few years ago, an artist, had invited me over to dinner. He was very kind, and he had a big family. He made a toast to our latest project and gave it to me as a gift.”

“Hmph. You’ve been to a lot of places, haven’t you?”

“I have.”

“Must be nice.”

“Well what about you? You’ve been out in D.C. for years, what was that like?”

“Expensive as hell. Friendly people though. I’ve been managing a clothing outlet for around four years now.”

“Oh, that’s nice.”

We’re here to bring you the latest info on the asteroid. It’s coming in at 70,000 miles per hour. Temperatures are expected to increase to several million degrees-

“We should catch up more often,” he said, cracking a smile.

“Ha ha, yeah. Umm, about that…”

“What?”

“I was just going to say I’m sorry. I guess it doesn’t matter much now, but I should have contacted you. This shouldn’t be the first time in years that we’ve talked.”

“Whatever. Don’t apologize. You were busy. You were travelling, and you had a wife and kids and everything. If anything, I should have called you more often. Speaking of, where is your family anyway?”

“Divorced a couple of years ago. She took the kids to Montana.”

“Oh. Uhh, sorry to hear that.”

“Mmm. Let’s talk about something else, please,” his voice croaked.

***

“I…I… I probably should have called you more often.”

“We had different paths, we grew apart,” Alex replied softly.

People are seeking shelter as best they can. The asteroid will arrive to the U.S. in 15 minutes, according to NASA.

“I… are you alright Robin?” he asked.

“I… ummm… Yes… Can you turn that damn radio off?”

“Yeah.”

“How the hell are you so calm? I’m freaking out.”

“Hmm.”

“Well?”

“I don’t know. Perhaps it hasn’t sunken in yet. I can see the lights in the sky. This feels normal. Like old times. You and I, having a drink on the roof, and looking at the sky. Nothing we can do about it anyway.”

“Well, I’m starting to freak out. Can’t you teach me how to be calm?” he huffed, finding it hard to breathe.

“No. I don’t know how.”

“Distract me, then.”

“What?”

“Distract me, then,” he demanded, much louder this time.

“Oh, sorry,” Alex said. “It’s hard to hear over the sirens. I’ll see what I can do. Umm… I saw our old teacher Mr. Randall at the store the other day. Remember him?”

“That mean old math teacher?”

“Yeah.”

“How was he?”

“Don’t know, I hid in the opposite aisle before he could see me.”

“Well, what kind of story is that?” snapped Robin, after a moment of silence.

“Sorry, it was a good story in my head,” Alex apologized.

“Hey, do you remember-”

“Oh!”

“What?”

“I just checked my watch. We have three minutes left.”

“Dammit Alex, that’s not distracting.”

“Sorry. How about a joke?”

“No, your jokes were always bad.”

“No? You don’t want to hear about the lady in the cornfield? Or the three boxers in a bar?”

“Shut up.”

“How about the turkey crossing the road?”

“I forgot how annoying you always were.”

“I am distracting you, am I not?”

“Ugh, you’re right.”

“I usually am.”

“You’re insufferable…and yet…,” Robin trailed off.

“Did you want to say something else?”

“You know,” said Robin, “Of all the people I could spend the end of the world with, I wouldn’t pick anyone else.”

“Me neither,” Alex said. “What do you think happens after death?”

“Wow, we’re getting deep now. I guess our consciousness goes back into the universe. We all become one, I suppose.”

“That sounds nice. I believe we get reincarnated, into a world that isn’t dying. Lightyears away from here.”

“That’s good too. Man, it’s getting hot out here,” Robin murmured.

“Look, I know you said to distract you, but I need to get this out. I like to think people change form, but continue to fall together. We’ll see each other again soon, in another life. And our progression from friends to acquaintances to… reconnected friends has been nice. But I hope that next time…” he trailed off for a moment, “we will meet again. And pick up where we left off.”

“I’d like that,” Robin said, gripping Alex’s hand tighter.

A glow emerged over the horizon.

“See you soon.”

“Yeah, see you soon.”