Chapter 12

Time: Sunday, December 23, 2018 9:21 AM

“So what’s it going to be, Emily; the yellow sweatshirt or the red one?” Mark was on the first floor of the Sport’s Authority store, rooting through racks of clothes and speaking on his phone. Jada was hunting on the floor above him for some other items.

“Oh, it’s so difficult to decide without seeing them,” Emily replied in a teasing tone of voice.

Mark thought he could hear her grinning over the phone. “Emily, you’re more difficult than my sister to shop for!”

Emily laughed. “You know what I look like, Mark. What do you think?”

“Seriously? I think you’d look great in either.”

“Really? Okay, that settles it. Bring both.”

“You got it.” Mark added the two items to his backpack. He was also carrying two large duffle bags that were almost full. “Everything still peaceful up there?”

“Yeah. More than peaceful actually. Gorgeous.” Emily had spent the last forty minutes around the great circular stairwell of their new home, idly walking the stairs and acting as a guard for the people sleeping upstairs and also as a bridge to the team below. She had walked outside to the cobblestones on the first floor exit and was staring at the huge swimming pool to the west. Her walkway was separated from the pool’s stone perimeter by only thirty meters of fine sand.

“You wouldn’t believe how nice it’s getting out here Mark. The sun is warm, the air is super nice to breath, and the temperature must be pushing 15C. If it gets any warmer, I going to be tempting to uncover the pool and dive in.”

Mark laughed. “Dress and all?”

“Actually, I’ve got my dress open on top now. I’m down to my bra.”

Mark couldn’t help but grin at the image. “Wow, aren’t you cold?”

“Nah. Before my parents died, I lived in Alaska. Mark, the sun feels really nice, maybe even better than before.”

“That’s an interesting comment. One second, I found my last item for Hannah ... Okay, what do you mean by better?”

“I get sunburn easily. I can feel it when I’ve had enough sun. I feel dry and tingly. But I’ve been out here now for a while and my skin is just loving this.”

Mark sighed. “I still can’t believe the sun stabilized so quickly after its encounter with The Intruder. I would have guessed a hundred thousand of years to settle down, given what we were seeing in London and Boston.”

“Wow, that long?”

“I think so. It really should take at least that long to reestablish the radial layers and their equilibrium with the radiative pressure.”

“So what do you think happened?”

“I’m baffled. There must be some major-league physics going on here that nobody knows anything about. From the color of the sun, I’m guessing it’s running at a lower temperature than before. I’m flabbergasted that the sun has gotten so large, and I’m absolutely astonished with its stability.”

“So we got lucky, huh?”

“Yeah, I guess.”

“Mark, there’s something by the pool.”

Mark’s heart froze for a second, and then he realized Emily was speaking in an easy, unconcerned voice. “Oh, you mean those boxy things?”

“Uh huh. I thought they might be barbeque grills from upstairs. But now that I’m this close, I don’t think that’s it. I’m tempted to go over and take a look.”

“Uh, wait till we get back, okay?” They had talked about this before Mark and Jada went back into Red Mall. They would relax their rules about staying together a bit, but do no new exploring without the full team present. They hadn’t even checked out the remainder of the first floor. Mark had that planned as an early afternoon activity, assuming the National Guard didn’t show up first.

Emily agreed to Mark’s request. “Yeah, okay. I’m telling you Mark, it’s gonna be a warm one today.”

“There are some bathing suits upstairs with Jada. Want her to pick one out for you?”

“Wow, seriously?!”

Mark had actually been joking, but he thought for a moment and answered, “Sure, why not?”

“Okay! Jada knows my tastes. Ask her to find me a bikini, nothing too risqué though.”

“Right. We’re nearly finished. See you soon.”

A half hour later...

Time: Sunday, December 23, 2018 9:54 AM

Jada locked the door to the mall and hiked up the stairwell with Mark. They met Emily by the first floor exit to the parks. Mark was momentarily struck with both disappointment and relief when he saw that Emily had her party dress back on. But then she started taking their bundles, and he didn’t have time to sort out the strange collisions in his emotions.

Emily gave them both a cheerful smile and said, “I’ll carry all this up the rest of the way. Why don’t you two step outside for a moment and see how nice it is?”

Jada nodded. “Okay, thanks. Most of your stuff is in the red duffle.” A moment later Emily gave a last wave from the second story and Mark and Jada stepped outside. They walked into the soft sand and just enjoyed the fresh air and the warm sunlight for a long moment.

Mark finally broke the silence. “Emily was right. It’s gorgeous out here.”

Jada gave a quick nod without looking at him. “I agree, I would guess almost 15C. Mark?”

He took another deep breath, enjoying the sweet air. “Hmmm?”

“Two days ago, I didn’t even know you.”

Mark turned and looked at Jada closely. “Yes, I know. And I think I know what you want to say...”

“I don’t want to diminish anything that’s between ... anything that’s happened. It’s just that it’s been such a roller-coaster. I’m feeling really strange emotionally. I was wondering...”

Mark gulped as his heart seemed to skip a beat. There as a long moment of silence that seemed to stretch on forever. He finally said, “Jada, it’s okay. We’re under no obligations to each other.”

“Oh, it’s not that, not exactly ... Well, maybe it is. Oh hell, am I making any sense?”

Mark grinned in spite of his fear. “I think I understand. Do you want to try ... just being friends for a while?” It hurt him to ask this, but he tried to say it in a neutral tone.

“Oh no, not unless you want to. I guess what I’m trying to say is, can we just try to slow things down a little?” She stared into Mark’s eyes.

And saw his eyes become filled with hope. “Sure. Can I still think of you as my girlfriend?”

“Of course, assuming ... My gosh Mark, do you really want me that much?”

He nodded with a big grin on his face.

Jada gave a timid smile back. “You don’t know the baggage I’m carrying.”

Mark gave a brief frown. “Well, maybe I don’t know the baggage you think you’re carrying. Jada, I’ve had the privilege to see into your soul. In all honestly, everything I saw was beautiful.” His happy grin was back.

And the grin was contagious. Jada finally laughed back. “Oh, I bet you tell that to all the girls you sleep with!”

“As a matter of fact, you’re right. But it’s also true you’re the first one.”

Jada took a deep breath, feeling unexpectedly pleased with this revelation. “I am. huh? Can I ask? Are you a virgin?”

He nodded. “I’ve have dated, and gotten a bit sexy with ... Well, nothing like our first night together.”

“Have you ever gotten serious with a girl? About marriage I mean.”

Mark paused for a moment and idly kicked some sand off the cobblestones with his foot. He decided to be completely honest. “There was one. We dated a lot in high school. I thought maybe we would marry one day. But...”

“Yeah?”

“It didn’t last. She went off to Boston University. We wrote letters for a while. I came to realize I was expecting a lot more things from her than she was from me.”

“Ah. Yeah, that happens. I was dating in high school too. I got rejected too, under some really bizarre circumstances. I know how much that can hurt. But now I have you as my boyfriend?” She tried to ask in a neutral voice, but her eyes betrayed her. Mark gave her a big grin and nod. She smiled back and offered her hand. “Good! Let’s just take it from there and see what happens.” Hand in hand, they turned around and headed back to the second level.

Time: 1:02 PM

Except for the lack of anybody showing up, Mark thought the day was progressing well. The rest of the team looked very refreshed from their large morning naps. Mark wanted to explore the first floor right after lunch, but he gave in to satisfying Emily’s curiosity first. Two minutes after 1 PM, the entire group was standing on the three-meter stone perimeter around the outside pool. Emily with Madison as an assistant was investigating one of the “boxy things.”

Mark stretched in the open air and commented to Jada. “Oh, this is so nice, 16C, maybe even 17C now.”

“Oh yeah, easily.” Jada stared at the pool and shook her head in disbelief. “It really is Olympic size. These Kappa Alpha boys must be the sons of billionaires.”

“Well, the place doesn’t have everything,” Mark replied with a knowing smile.

“You think so? What more could you possibly want out here, besides a place to park a car maybe?”

Mark raised his eyebrows playfully. “I’ll give you a hint. What’s Irish and should stay out here by the pool day and night, even in the rain?”