by M. D. Neu
Todd smirked.
“He’ll call in a few days,” Jerry said. “They were getting the kids settled, and your folks organized. Anyway, it sounded as if they had a busy afternoon.”
Todd imagined his dad trying to justify to Brad why bringing his guns would be a good idea, while Lori stood, her arms crossed, resolutely telling their father “no.” Assuming Lori won the argument, it couldn’t have been easy.
Hearing a familiar chirp, Jerry held up his cell to see a friend request from Brad. He tapped a few buttons on his smartphone.
“Pretty weird, right?” Todd said. “I hope this is gonna change our relationship with my family. Assuming everything’s all right.”
Resting his head on Todd’s shoulder, Jerry mumbled, “It’ll be all right. Everything’ll be okay. We’re going to be all right.”
TODD HURRIED ALONG the devastated street, his clothes torn and burned. Around him, a thick blanket of gray filled the air with a putrid smell of rot. He recognized the overturned cart and the woman’s hand grasping out at him.
What happened?
He was at the store.
There was panic. People grabbed and fought over everything in reach. People argued over cans of soup and packages of chips. Pure anarchy. There was so little left when he arrived.
It was every man for himself.
He remembered spotting the bodies of an old couple next to the now emptied-out produce area. They hadn’t stood a chance in the panic. All around him, hysteria, a frenzy that he’d taken part in. He didn’t recognize faces or know names. He remembered stepping over the body of a child. Holding what? Something purple. A woman dead next to him. Her purse’s spewed contents of cellphone, keys, wallet, and change around her. He tried to get what he needed before…before what? He couldn’t remember.
Rushing down the street, Todd no longer comprehended where he was. Finally, he found a familiar house through the endless sheets of gray. Everything burned: trees, cars, homes, and people. All gray, everything covered in an unholy layer of ash.
Slowly, he made his way home. As he walked, he glanced at what remained of a stroller with a burned body kneeling before it protecting a baby. He steadied himself and hurried over to the remains, reaching out his hand in terror.
God in heaven.
His stomach lurched as he fell back, tears streaking his face. It was Steve holding his infant daughter, failing to protect her. Failing to save her. They were dead, everyone dead, all dead. He was distraught as a haze fell over his mind.
He tried to cry out for help but found he had no voice. His throat scorched and voice obliterated. Gone. Was it the rancid smoke around him, or was it the reality of what had happened? Either way, no sounds slipped off his tongue. A deafening quiet surrounded him. A menacing emptiness mocked him with everything he had once held dear. There were no planes, no cars, no dogs, nothing. All gone. Whatever happened long since finished.
Running past the crumbling world and into the remains of his front entry, Todd gasped at the devastation. He didn’t know where else to go.
The burned remains of his once comfortable home taunted him. Home was supposed to be safe. He was supposed to walk through the door and feel happy. He called out Jerry’s name. His voice faltered. The harder he tried the more ear-piercing the silence became.
Todd rushed to what had once been their living room, he searched desperately for Jerry. How could he not be here? When he went to the store, Jerry was still there, but that had been—how long had it been? He couldn’t remember. When he ran to the den, he found it, too, was in ruins. The large window had blown out, and the heavy curtains were shredded, laying on the floor. Where had Jerry gone? Wrecked room after wrecked room, and there was no sign of Jerry. The house abandoned, except for the layer of gray.
Slowly, it sank in. The aliens hadn’t come in peace. They’d destroyed it all and killed everyone. There was nothing left. He was alone. Finally, he moved to the back door and looked through the shattered window.
A figure hovered over something small in the yard. The figure was covered in filth and torn clothing. Jerry. It had to be. If there was a God, the man there in the yard would be Jerry.
Todd could survive anything, even this, as long as he had Jerry.
He ran to Jerry and reached out to touch his shoulder. His husband turned and gave him a sickening, bloody smile. Todd stopped dead in his tracks, his soul ripped from his body.
Jerry chewed on something, something small, his mouth covered in bright-red blood and white fur. Todd recognized the first thing devoid of the color gray—Bianca’s white fur. Todd heard the words “Mmm, kitty stew.” Jerry’s features were splattered in white fur and blood.
Jolted awake, Todd struggled for breath as he stifled a scream.
Only a nightmare.
The bed, the dresser, the night tables, and the pictures on the wall were as they should be. Everything seemed in order. Nothing was in ruins. No layers of gray, no horrid smells. The house was fine, and they were safe in bed.
Todd took several deep breaths, but they didn’t calm his pounding heart. He got up, shuffled to the nightstand, and hit a button on his iPod. The room filled with sounds of soft rain and sounds of the ocean. It cleared his mind and relaxed his tightened muscles. He climbed back into bed, shivering from the chill in the air. Jerry turned over, exhaling softly. Todd pushed past the terrible images in his mind. After what seemed like hours, he drifted off to sleep.
As the morning crawled out from the darkness, the buzz of the phone snatched Todd from his sleep. Blinking several times he frowned and glared into his pillow; he had spent much of the night, after his nightmare, tossing and turning.
He reached blindly, fumbling for the buzzing phone.
Through a groggy haze, Jerry said, “If that’s your brother, I’m gonna kill him.” He rolled over and put a pillow over his head to block out the ringing.
Tapping his phone, which made the buzzing stop, he spoke. “Hello.”
“Hey! What’s up?” A friendly and loud, masculine voice said on the other end of the phone. At this moment, the voice needed to go away. Todd had fallen asleep a few hours ago, and he didn’t want to hear a gregarious voice.
“Morning, Dan. How’re you?” He sat up, jealous of Jerry, who refused to come out of the covers. “What time is it?” He rubbed his eyes trying to wake up.
“What the hell kind of greeting is that? Were you and Jerry up all night having nasty, hot sex? ’Cause, child, you sound like shit.”
Oh, joy, Snarky Dan is alive and well. Grr.
After a pause, Dan added, “It’s eleven. Barely morning at all, ho.”
Todd checked the clock—10:00 a.m. Ugh.
“I’ll be in San Jo’ around two p.m. your time. You better be done molesting each other by then so you can come get me. I’ll be on Delta flight 1742.” Dan paused. “Did you write that down? You better be writing this ’cause I don’t want you to lose me.”
“Yes, Dan,” Todd grumbled. “I got it.”
“Whatever, ho. Listen, get Jerry’s pecker out of your hand and write this down. Delta flight 1742 at two p.m.,” insisted Dan.
Todd growled, fumbling for a minute, still not fully awake. He grabbed a piece of paper and a pen. “Two p.m. San Jose Airport, 1742. Got it. See you then.”
“Talk to you in a while. Byeeee.” Dan’s tone was bouncier now. “Thanks for hosting me. Kisses.”
“See ya then. Bye.” Todd clicked the phone off and dropped it on the bedside table next to the note. He collapsed back onto the bed, throwing his arm over his face.
“What did Dan have to say?” Jerry asked sleepily as he rolled over to talk to Todd.
“Nothing. Gave us the flight info.” Todd closed his eyes for a few minutes, and almost fell back to sleep. After the nightmare, the idea of the warm water sounded good to him. “I’m gonna take a shower.”
“Have fun. I’ll be right here when you get done.” Jerry closed his eyes, drifting back to sleep.
Getting up, Todd pulled off his pajamas and hung them up in the walk-in closet. He padded his way to the bathroom. As he took a look in the mirror, he was greeted by the dark circles under his eyes, his messed-up hair, and scruffy face—not to mention the paunch he was starting to get around the middle.
Wonderful. He sneered as he jumped into the shower.
The shower’s warm water hit his body, erasing the memory of the nightmare. He felt life rush back into him. With each spit of water, the fear and stress washed away.
Still warm from the shower, he slowly pulled himself together. He saw Jerry lying in bed watching the ceiling. “I’m gonna make some breakfast?”
“Fine by me.” Jerry puckered his lips making kissing noises. Smiling, Todd crossed to his side of the bed and leaned in to kiss him.
He closed the bedroom door and made his way to the living room, Todd stopped as he saw the TV. He thought for a few moments and decided to tempt fate. He grabbed the remote from the coffee table and turned on the TV.
Please be normal. Please be normal.
To his relief, it was filled with regular news. There were no signs of invasion; everything seemed ordinary.
Should I warn my friends? I could text Kati and give her a heads-up; saves me from having to explain everything. No. She’ll call the cops and have me committed. He shook his head. Or she’d say I was full of shit and tell me to go fuck myself.
SAN JOSE INTERNATIONAL Airport was not what one would expect for the center of technology and innovation. It had two terminals, and it only handled smaller planes. None of the double-decker planes landed there.
As Jerry and Todd drove into the one-way, traffic-controlled roundabout, people rushed around, heading to one destination or another. Couples kissed each other goodbye and hello, pulled bags from cars, and put them onto curbs. One family had Mickey ears. Clearly on vacation. Porters stood ready to help if needed.
It’s what you would expect on a normal Sunday.
“You know, I’m not sure if I’m sold on the whole metal and glass bubble thing,” Jerry commented. “I mean, it’s nice that there are so many people here.” He glanced at the newer metal and glass section of the airport.
“Huh, what?” Todd snapped out of his daze, focusing on Jerry through his sunglasses.
“I said, ‘It’s nice to see so many people here.’ It’s good for the economy.” Jerry shook his head, annoyed.
“Yep. I suppose. Slow down. We don’t want to miss him,” Todd said as they approached the terminal.
“Oh, please! How can anyone miss Dan? He’s probably got on a florescent caftan and an oversized white sun hat.”
“He’s not that outrageous.” Todd shook his head at the image.
“If you say so.” Jerry pointed to the curb in front of the baggage claim area. “There he is.”
Standing with his suitcase, Dan was dressed in black jeans and a bright blue polo shirt. He towered over several of the people around him. There were still remnants of his time in the military with how he stood. The strong shoulders and the ridged stance reflected his once-perfect body. But since he left the Air Force, his focus changed from a regimented life to one of fun, food, booze, men, and maybe too many of his mother’s tamales.
As they pulled up, Todd thought Dan looked pleasant enough; his face was handsome, and he still had a solid shape to him. Jerry jumped out. “Hey you messy-ass-ho, how you?” he asked as they hugged.
“Oh, the flight. I’m a mess.” Dan opened the back door, tossed the suitcase in with ease, and threw himself onto the seat.
Jerry and Todd shared a glance.
“Child, there was nothing but a bunch of stupid-ass lesbians on the flight. They were a bunch of nasty bitches.”
“God. Dan. Really.” Jerry glared at him through the rear-view mirror.
“Whatever. If I could’ve gotten out and walked, I would have. What happened to all the menz? It was awful.” Dan huffed and puffed.
“So you’re still a lesbian-hating fag, I see.” Todd held back a chuckle. “You need to get over your hatred of women and maybe tone down the whole lesbian thing. Someday you’re going to get punched for it.”
“Or worse.” Jerry added.
“Ho, please. I don’t hate women. I love them. I adore them. They are wonderful for straight men and they are a big part of why we’re here. People need to get over this politically correct shit. We’ve gotten way too serious.” Dan rolled his eyes. “This one woman on the flight was just nasty to everyone, and she really pissed me off.” He huffed.
“There were no cute boys on the flight?” Jerry smirked as he glanced in the rearview mirror.
Dan fussed about, pulling lotion and ChapStick out of his pack. “No! What kind of nasty ass flight has no cute boy flight attendants? Oh, but girl, there were these hot FEMA and military boys at the airport.”
“What?” Todd peered over his shoulder.
“Oh, some drill shit. Denver was a mess. I swear, if I didn’t know any better, I’d say the military was up to something.” He tried to catch his reflection in the rearview mirror as he fixed his hair.
Jerry reached out and put a hand on Todd’s leg, giving it a squeeze.
“Oh, come on, Dan.” Todd’s grin hurt his cheeks. “There must have been a couple of cute guys for you to drool over.”
Dan pulled a brush, going to work right away on his hair. “Jerry, love, shift the mirror. I can’t see myself.” He continued to tilt his head so that he had a better view of himself.
“Driving here. More important than your face or hair,” he said.
“How rude.” Dan stopped preening and focused on Todd. “Well, there was one. Oh my God, he was fine!” He took a breath, fanning himself, and continued, “He wanted me. He said hello and asked me to move out of my seat. Then, he got in and sat right next to me! Can you imagine? He was in love with me.”
“Of course he was,” Todd said as they drove out of the airport and headed home.
Ten: The President’s Address
TODD AND JERRY cleaned up after dinner, while Dan leaned against the counter watching. Every few seconds Jerry checked the clock on the kitchen wall. He had been doing so since they sat to eat.
“The president should be on in a few minutes,” Jerry said. “Let’s get this finished and go watch.”
“Wow! Since when are you interested in political stuff? I thought after the debacle of the last election you swore off it.”
“I did but, you know, this could be important,” Jerry said.
“Doubtful. Unless there is something you know that you aren’t sharing?” Dan crossed his arms and his gaze narrowed.
Todd met Jerry’s stare as he bit at his lower lip catching bits of his goatee.
“Ah…I mean…well.”
Dan laughed and relaxed. “Oh you are too easy.” And he continued chuckling. “Seriously though, you never cared about these things before. Is there some hot menz you want to see? Don’t tell me you have a thing for that pendejo in the White House. Ick.”
Jerry dried his hands on the towel, hanging it back up on the oven door. He stood there a moment longer than what Todd would have expected.
“God! Is Todd finally rubbing off on you?” Dan took a sip of wine. “Bringing you over to the political dark side?”
Jerry kept quiet and headed into the living room.
“If it was something to do with a new tech gadget, I get it, but politics? Oh did you see the live stream from Apple? I think they are slipping. Ah well. So the news? Yuck!” Dan waved his hand as if he was swatting at flies.
Todd moved back as Dan rushed past him. Dan stood in front of Jerry and grabbed his head with both hands as he stared.
“Who are you? And what have you done with Jerry?” Dan’s gaze ran over Jerry’s face. Then he placed his free hand on Jerry’s forehead. “Do I have to make you turn and cough?”
“Not so fast, chica.” Todd finished off his water before putting the glass in the sink. “That hand had better not
move any lower than his shoulders, or I might cut it off.”
Dan turned, lifting his hands in the air as if at gunpoint.
Jerry pursed his lips and shrugged past Dan. “Anyway! I want to listen to what he has to say. And I pay attention to the news, buddy boy. Considering what they said about the troops in the press conference, I don’t want to miss it. It might be important. And I might be interested in that.”
“I guess.” Dan sat in one of the side chairs. “I was talking to this hot boy at the hotel yesterday, and we were joking that it might be some kind of scandal. You know how these political types act so innocent until you catch them doing an intern or find them on the internet half naked with their sad little dong out. Then they try to cover it up. Maybe, he got caught with his hand in an intern’s pants. Now that would be worth seeing.”
“And we would’ve known already.” Jerry shook his head. “Nah, it’s something else.”
“Okay, ladies,” Todd sat on the sofa and tried to get comfortable. “Let’s watch and see what the president has to say.” He tried not to show how worried he was; part of him wanted to listen to the address and the other part wanted to go back to his game world. It was either going to be the end of humankind or a new beginning for them all. His hands started to sweat, and his stomach lurched. He took a breath and reached up to scratch his goatee.
Jerry clicked on the TV. “Wasn’t this on the Food Network before dinner?”
The Food Network logo was on the bottom of the screen, but the TV was playing the news.
“Okay. That’s weird.” Dan’s eyes got large and his smile flattened.
Jerry flipped through the stations, and it was the same thing. All the channels were showing news, even the Disney Channel. He turned up the volume as the announcer began speaking. “President Zachary sure has everyone up in arms today. Members of both the Senate and the House of Representatives have been flying in to make it to the address. In under five minutes, the president will be addressing the nation. And for the first time since nine-eleven, it will be broadcast on every station.”
