"So beautiful "

Initially we didn't discover anything extraordinary when we walked through the door. It looked like a regular desert. But then I studied the ground carefully. It was hard and filled with craters. The sky was clear. We could see every constellation, and a few asteroids in the distance. Olivia gasps in amazement. "It's beautiful. Isn't it?" I say. "It sure is." "I never thought I'd get to go to the moon." "We're not on the moon. Don't be silly." "Look down. The desert doesn't have craters like that." "But we can't be on the moon. There's no oxygen on the moon." I put my arm around Olivia. "I don't get it either, but we're here or at least somewhere very close to it." We admire the night sky for a moment.  "Can we stay for a while more?" Olivia asks. I nod."Good.  There is a star falling to us and I want to catch it." I see where Olivia is pointing. It's a bright, white star. It falls for a while, then it hovers above. We are both transfixed. I reach out my hand to it.  "So beautiful." She says. "So beautiful." I reply.

The Door's Allure

Pete sped off in a red hot rage that I'm sure was justified in his own mind. Olivia and I waited approximately one minute before turning to one another. Then in unison we both said "let's open the door." There wasn't anything spectacular about the door. It appeared to be just a regular, worn down, wooden door. Yet, it seemed to be calling our names, begging us to walk through. The allure was far too strong. We had to give in. We had to know what was on the other side. So I placed my hand on the doorknob. It was like ice. That's when I knew that something special, or at least interesting was waiting for us.

Just the Front Door

As if  a disappearing bar wasn't strange enough, things would soon get stranger. The bait shop had vanished as well, or at least the majority of it. The only thing that remained was the front door. There wasn't a sign or even any rubble to indicate anything else had ever been there. Pete jumped out of his car, screaming obscenities. "Are you sure we're at the right place?" I ask. "What the hell kind of smart ass comment is that?" "There's no sign. Maybe we took a wrong turn." "You think I got lost? I've lived here my whole life." "Just throwing out suggestions." "I told you not to answer that phone." He spits. "You're gonna blame this on us?" Olivia says. "Well, I was gonna just blame it on him, but now that you spoke up, yes, I'm gonna blame it on you as well." Olivia rolls her eyes. "Real mature." "It is. You know what else is mature? Me suing you." "You're gonna sue us?" I say. "You bet your ass I will." "But we don't have any money." Olivia snaps. "Even better. I'll bury you. I'll destroy you both." Pete walk-runs to his car. He opens the door and shouts to us one last time. "I will destroy you." He then takes off,  leaving us alone in the desert once more.

And then there were 3

"Well, that was my favorite bar." Pete says in disbelief. "Sorry, I don't know what happened." I say. "We don't either." Olivia replies. I look around. "Where is everybody else?" "You think they're dead?" Pete asks. "Maybe.  Maybe they never existed in the first place." Olivia suggests. "You mean like that movie with the sufer guy who wore a long, black trench coat?" Pete asks. I scratch my head. " The Matrix?" "Yeah, the Matrix." I shrug. "It could be like that." Pete takes a deep breath. "At any rate there is nothing left for us here. Might as well head back to the shop."

Shadow Man

I stood before the shadow creature. It's massive size dwarfed everybody in the room. I could see through it, and yet it felt solid. I don't know if I had ever seen this thing in real life with my own eyes, but it felt like it was always there. Taunting, mocking, making the room colder. The rage grew and grew. I clenched my fist. I readied myself to strike, and that's when it happened. It was no longer a shadow creature, but a darkness that went in and around me. It turned into a violent vortex. It whipped bits of the bar here and there. Not wanting to be impaled, I dropped. My face pressed against the disgusting floor. Eventually the nightmare ended. The vortex dissipated. I opened my eyes. The bar was gone. Not wrecked or demolished. It was physically gone. I was in the middle of desert as were Pete and and Olivia who were stunned beyond words.

Mikey Mantle

Pete took us to a bar that reeked of despair and vomit. I understand there has got to be only a handful of bars in the area, but somehow we ended up at the most depressing one. It was a room full of dour faces. The only one with cheery eyes was Pete. He talked on and on about baseball. Specifically Mickey Mantle, and how he changed the game. I wanted to talk about the prank call, but no matter how hard I tried the conversation always went back to baseball. I wanted to share in his joy and enthusiasm for America's favorite past time, but I couldn't. Perhaps it was because my brain was still trying to figure out who the mysterious prank caller was. Or maybe it was being in the bar too long, feeling the weight of a thousand worlds come crushing down. All I knew is my chest was in knots. I decided then to get some air. That's when I saw it. It was a monstrous shadow man. It had long, broad shoulders and was over twelve feet tall. It was busy playing pool, so it didn't notice me right away. But then when it turned it's faceless head to me an indescribable feeling of rage ran through me. I knew then that dispite not knowing who or what this thing was I had to fight it.

Waiting for Something Horrible

We stood guard outside the bait shop all day waiting for something horrible. The only thing remarkable that happened was the gradual setting of the sun. Pete exited the shop shortly after. He stared at us in stunned amazement. "I'll be. So this is where you went after I kicked you out of the shop." "Yes sir." I respond. "And you two have been here all day?" "Yes sir." He walks up to us. "Are you crazy?" "Quite possibly." Olivia says.  Pete walks past us. He ushers us to follow. He stops when he realizes we aren't behind him. "Ain't you gonna follow?" "Where to?" I ask. "You to stood guard for me the whole day. I owe you a drink." "Yeah, but no one showed up." Olivia says. "Then you musta done a good job."

In the Middle of the Desert

"What's the plan?" "The plan?" I repeat back knowing in my head that there could be only one plan. "Yeah, what are we gonna do now?" "There is only one thing we can do. We have to protect Pete." "You really think that that was more than just a prank call?" "I do." Olivia shakes her head. "Ok. What do we do? Do we force ourselves back into the bait shop?" "No." "Then what do we do?" "We stand guard. We stay vigilant." "Out here?" "Yes." "In the middle of the day?" "Yes." "In the middle of the desert?" "Yes." Olivia crosses her arms. "You're nuts, but you also could be right."

Bad News

Pete entered a darkened bait shop bemused, but not upset. "What's going on? You guys playing a game?" He asks with a grin. "Not exactly." I say. "Then what's going on?" "Someone threatened you." "Threatened me?" He says, still smiling. "Yeah, that's what it sounded like." "I don't understand. Did someone come by?" "Not exactly." "Then what happened?" He asks, his smile now fading. "Someone called." I say. Pete's smile is now gone and replaced with narrowed eyes. "Get out."  "We didn't mean any harm, but I think you should listen to us." Olivia says, trying to calm him down. "I'm listening alright. I'm listening to two people who could not obey one simple rule." "Okay, we broke a rule. But that's not what should be important right now." "Get out!"

Paranoid?

"What are you doing?" Olivia asks in a decibel I'm not comfortable with. "I'm hiding." I whisper back. "And keep your voice down." Olivia rolls her eyes and sits next to me. "Who're you hiding from?" "I don't know, and that's the scariest part." "Don't you think you are being a tad paranoid?" "Maybe. But maybe I'm not." Olivia takes a breath. "If that's how you feel then why are here?" "Because Pete could be back any minute." "We could take the tunnel to Jim's and call the bait shop from there." Olivia suggests. "No, we can't. It's a long tunnel and he'll probably be back before we reach the gas station." "So, then our only option is to hide in fear until Pete shows up?" "Yep." "Makes perfect sense to me."

Decoding the Message

"The jig is up." What could that possibly mean? Was Pete involved with unsavory characters? Was this call a threat? Would someone bust down the door demanding for Pete? Would this character break our fingers until we squealed? Olivia attempted to calm my restless mind. She said it was most likely a prank call and nothing more. Initially I went with that. But it didn't take long for my wheels to spin once more. I imagined the most extreme, macabre scenarios. In the end I turned off all the lights, I shut all the blinds, and I ducked down low. Real low.

The Ringing Phone

Pete took Rita to see a spy movie or a western. I understand they're not exactly the same genre, but they both sounded right for some reason. While he was away he had me and Olivia watch the store. He told us that he doesn't get too many customers so our duties consisted mainly of cleaning. Seeing as how we cleaned the whole shop top to bottom the other day we felt we earned T.V. time. We watched a talk show host give paternity test results on a small, grainy television. Just as the host is about to tell us who the father is, we are interrupted by a briiiiiiiing. Now, Pete gave us specific instructions that under no circumstances should we answer the phone.  I wanted to respected that. I really did, but it was a red rotary phone. It's a classic look. And the phone kept ringing, so I dove for it. I picked up the receiver. In my most professional voice I said "Hello. " There was a brief pause followed by a cold voice. "The jig is up." After that there was a click and nothing more.

Nerd to Chic

There is a late 90's movie called She's All That. In it our protagonist is transformed from an ugly duckling to someone who was merely pretending to be an ugly ducking the whole time. Basically they removed her glasses and Bam! She's a whole different person. I almost feel like that is us as we're giving Pete instructions on proper etiquette. But now that I said that out loud is sounds more like a Henry Higgins/ Eliza Doolittle situation. All I know is the guy was a nervous wreck. So, who better to help you with emotional support then two people you hardly know? In the end we convinced him to take Rita to a movie because he was that concerned with what to say. A movie could help with that situation as it is two hours of not talking. Again, now that I said it out loud it seems a little strange. I'm sure it will be fine though...hopefully.

Suckers?

Of course she said yes. Of course she agreed to a date. I don't think anyone reading is surprised by that. What's surprising is that Pete made plans for the following day. Not that night. I guess so he could prepare himself mentally and emotionally. He also asked me and Olivia to help prepare for the date all of the next day. We  agreed. I'm not sure if that means we are suckers or really nice. Perhaps it's a bit of both. All I know is that tomorrow he is closing his shop, specifically so we can help him. This should be interesting.

"Honey"

Normally I try to avoid coming into restaurants right before closing. Everybody in the kitchen tends to hate you for it, and I end up wondering if perhaps there might be some spit in my food. However, I was willing to put such things out of my mind in the name of love, or whatever this was. Pete ordered a short stack. Olivia and I didn't get anything on the account of the fear of spit. That and we weren't too hungry. "You coulda ordered somethin' . I woulda paid for it." Pete says, wolfing down  the last of his meal. "Na. We're not hungry. Besides we wanted to spend some time with you." I say. "Really?" He responds in disbelief. Rita walks by with the check. "Anything else I can get you, honey?" Pete stares into her pretty, green eyes. It appears as if they have a moment, but then he speaks. "No, that'll be all." Rita smiles and walks away. "What are you doing, man." I say. "Calm down. What's got you so upset?"  "She's got the hots for you." "What makes you say that?" "Well, she did call you honey." "I'm sure that's just how she talks." "She didn't say that to us." Pete raises an eyebrow. "You two been here before?" "Yes, just the other day." Olivia jumps in. Pete nods his head. "I'm not surprised she didn't say that to you." "No, honey is not a word you throw around." I say. "Plus, I mean look at you." Olivia adds. "Alright. I'll do it. I'll ask her out." Pete raises his hand. A second later Rita walks back to the table. "Yes, Pete." "Rita, there is just one more thing I wanted to ask you.."

Odd Jobs

Pete assigned us various odd jobs around the store. They consisted of (but were not limited to) washing the windows, sweeping the floors, changing the lightbulbs, cleaning the bathroom. Nothing terribly difficult, but it was a little annoying seeing Pete sleeping or watching T.V. I suppose when one owns their own business they can work (or not work) however they choose. At 6 P.M. Pete shut off they T.V. "That was some good work today." He says, putting up the closed sign and turning off the lights. "What now?" Olivia asks. "Now I go home. You two may do the same." "Are you going to get something to eat.?" Pete raises an eyebrow. "I may. What's it to you?" "Well, working around the store we noticed you didn't bring a lunch and I don't think you went out today." I say. "No, I didn't." "Then we should take you out. It's important to eat. Our treat." Olivia insists. "Your treat? You're gonna pay for dinner with the money you worked off today?" "Possibly." Pete half smiles. "Okay. But I pick the place." "That works for us." I say. Pete glances at his wristwatch. "I know a great place. It should still be open."

Pay Back

We glanced in the bait shop through a dirty, glass door. Pete was dozing with his feet on the desk. He didn't bother to put a closed sign up, but he lock the door.  Olivia and I banged furiously on the door, jostling him up. He walked slowly to the door. When he finally opened it, it was clear he wasn't in the best mood. "What do you want?" "That's a fine way to treat a customer." Olivia replies. He laughs to himself. "You don't know. We could buy something." "Like those canteens that mysteriously disappeared?" "We intended to pay you back." I jump in. "Oh yeah? How's about you pay me back now?" I rummage through my pockets. I pull out all the spare change I can find. I place the change in his palm. He appears disgusted. "A bit light, don't you think?" "We can work for you. To pay back the cost." He stares at Olivia. "You really want to do that?" "Yes." "It'll be a full day's work. " "That's fine." "Full day's work with me." "Even better." She says as confident as can be. Pete shrugs. "Suit yourselves. Come in."

Like A Rom Com

Outside the diner I could tell Olivia was cooking up a mad plan in her brain. "I wonder.." She said out loud finally. "About what?" I ask, suspiciously. "About Rita. She seemed fond of Pete. Don't you think?" "She seemed to fancy him." "I think she was smitten. We should do something about it." She says, excitedly. "No way." "But I said we would." "I thought that was a polite thing one says to somebody without intending to follow through." Olivia shakes her head. "I intend to fully honor my words. It'll be like a Rom Com." I sigh. "I don't have a choice in this matter, do I?" "Nope. None whatsoever." "Okay. Let's play matchmaker. "

Old Fashioned

Rita didn't say a word to us as we cashed out. She barely even made eye contact with us. Finally, as we are about to head out the door she says "I don't hate cha." Olivia and I simply respond "Ok." "Really, I don't." She says. "Ok." "Really, it's that Pete I have a problem with." I sigh. For whatever reason I decide to take the bait. "What did Pete do?" "It's more like what didn't he do." "What didn't he do?" Rita brightens up.  "Glad you asked. He's been coming in for months and not once did he ask for a night out on the town with me." I shoot a confused look. "You're upset because he never asked you out on a date?" "Don't be surprised. A girl likes to out every now and then with a decent fella." "Why don't you ask him out?" Olivia asks. "Call me old fashioned, but I don't believe that's my job." "Sorry, I don't know what to say." I tell her. We start to exit again. "Well, shoot. You know him. Maybe you can talk some sense into him." Olivia half smiles. "We'll see what we can do."

Friends of His?

We kept the charade going on for a while. Rita would pour us coffee, and we'd pretend we'd have no idea what she was talking about when she asked how she knew us. Around the fiftieth cup she told us to "cut the shit." Both Olivia and I pretended to be offended at such foul language in a family restaurant. "Can it. Who are you two?" "We're nobody." I reply. "Then why are two nobodies interested in me?" "I'm not really sure." Olivia says.  "Do you know a man named Pete?" I ask, quickly. Rita's expression slightly relaxes. "I know a few." "Do you know one that owns a bait shop?" Rita's eyes narrow. "I know the guy. You his friends?" "We barely know him." Olivia says.  "Good. Because I'd hate it if you were friends with that guy." Rita walks away. "She could have been a little bit more elaborate. I want to know what happened." I tell Olivia.  Olivia leans in. "I think we should go." "Yeah, I guess you're right. We been here long enough."