bent down and picked up some cans. “Mind if you join me for chowder?”
Daren managed a smile. “I thought you’d never ask.”
⊕ ⊕ ⊕
D AREN AND L ARA SAT AT a small table in the bedroom where he’d first awakened. He was having one of the best dinners he could ever remember. They basked in the lamp’s glow as they scooped delicious cold chowder from their open cans. He relished every piece of clam, enjoyed pressing the tiny potato cubes against the roof of his mouth until they turned into mush.
“By the way,” he spoke up, “you know the wheeled platform?”
“What about it?”
“I guess whenever you take it out of the cellar another one appears when you go back, right?”
“That’s right,” Lara replied. “One time I actually had ten of them.”
“Ten?” Daren sat up.
“But I figured it was too much so I got rid of them.”
“How’d you do that?” Daren asked. “What if someone finds them?”
“No one’s going to find them.” She spooned some chowder into her mouth.
“How can you be so sure?”
“Every time I close and lock the cellar door everything inside goes back to exactly how I found it.”
“So if you put anything inside it that wasn’t there before,” Daren said, “it disappears the next time you open the cellar.”
Lara said nothing but just smiled and tapped her nose.
“Just imagine the possibilities.” Daren looked up and scratched his chin. “You could poop, pee and throw garbage in there and it’ll all just disappear.”
“Ewwww!” Lara scrunched up her face. “I’m eating here!”
“You gotta admit it’s an awesome idea.” Daren tilted up his can to scrape the leftovers from the bottom. “I’m surprised you haven’t thought of it before.”
Lara kept quiet. She stirred her chowder slowly while trying to avoid his eyes. Daren watched her closely.
“Whoah!” Daren sat up. “Are you telling me—”
“It happened just one time, okay!” She slapped her palm on the table. “I really needed to go and it was a long way to the surface.” She sat back and folded her arms. “So there!”
Daren bit his lips and looked down until his chin touched his chest. He tried to keep control of his facial muscles, but he couldn’t stop the stifled laugh escaping out his nostrils.
“You think that’s funny?”
“No.” Daren’s voice betrayed a smile.
“Bastard.” Lara cracked a smile of her own.
“By the way,” he changed the subject, “I never thanked you for saving my life.”
“That’s right.” She spooned chowder into her mouth. “You never thanked me, you frickin’ ingrate.”
“Well, I’m thanking you now.” He reached across the table and touched her fingers. “Thank you for saving my life, Lara.”
Lara looked down at her hand. “It’s funny how you keep finding excuses to touch me.” She raised an eyebrow. “You never used to do that before.”
“You never invited me to dinner before.” He grinned at her.
She let out a nervous giggle and continued to eat. Daren had nothing to follow up his remark so he just kept quiet. The awkwardness was starting to build in the air, especially since his hand was still stretched out and touching hers. He slowly withdrew it and placed it under the table. There was a moment of silence interrupted by random slurps of chowder.
Daren finally broke the silence. “I dreamed about the cellar door, you know. It looked exactly like how I saw it in my dream. And when it opened, I saw a hooded figure inside waiting for me. It freaked me out at the time.” He chuckled aloud. “I had no idea it was actually you.”
“You want to know how I found this place?” She propped her elbow on the table, rested her chin on her palm, and met his gaze.
Daren leaned forward and read her expression. “You saw it in a dream, didn’t you?”
Lara raised her eyebrows and made a half smile.
“What did the dream show you?” he asked.
“I was standing in a dark forest,” Lara began.
Daren managed a smile. “I thought you’d never ask.”
⊕ ⊕ ⊕
D AREN AND L ARA SAT AT a small table in the bedroom where he’d first awakened. He was having one of the best dinners he could ever remember. They basked in the lamp’s glow as they scooped delicious cold chowder from their open cans. He relished every piece of clam, enjoyed pressing the tiny potato cubes against the roof of his mouth until they turned into mush.
“By the way,” he spoke up, “you know the wheeled platform?”
“What about it?”
“I guess whenever you take it out of the cellar another one appears when you go back, right?”
“That’s right,” Lara replied. “One time I actually had ten of them.”
“Ten?” Daren sat up.
“But I figured it was too much so I got rid of them.”
“How’d you do that?” Daren asked. “What if someone finds them?”
“No one’s going to find them.” She spooned some chowder into her mouth.
“How can you be so sure?”
“Every time I close and lock the cellar door everything inside goes back to exactly how I found it.”
“So if you put anything inside it that wasn’t there before,” Daren said, “it disappears the next time you open the cellar.”
Lara said nothing but just smiled and tapped her nose.
“Just imagine the possibilities.” Daren looked up and scratched his chin. “You could poop, pee and throw garbage in there and it’ll all just disappear.”
“Ewwww!” Lara scrunched up her face. “I’m eating here!”
“You gotta admit it’s an awesome idea.” Daren tilted up his can to scrape the leftovers from the bottom. “I’m surprised you haven’t thought of it before.”
Lara kept quiet. She stirred her chowder slowly while trying to avoid his eyes. Daren watched her closely.
“Whoah!” Daren sat up. “Are you telling me—”
“It happened just one time, okay!” She slapped her palm on the table. “I really needed to go and it was a long way to the surface.” She sat back and folded her arms. “So there!”
Daren bit his lips and looked down until his chin touched his chest. He tried to keep control of his facial muscles, but he couldn’t stop the stifled laugh escaping out his nostrils.
“You think that’s funny?”
“No.” Daren’s voice betrayed a smile.
“Bastard.” Lara cracked a smile of her own.
“By the way,” he changed the subject, “I never thanked you for saving my life.”
“That’s right.” She spooned chowder into her mouth. “You never thanked me, you frickin’ ingrate.”
“Well, I’m thanking you now.” He reached across the table and touched her fingers. “Thank you for saving my life, Lara.”
Lara looked down at her hand. “It’s funny how you keep finding excuses to touch me.” She raised an eyebrow. “You never used to do that before.”
“You never invited me to dinner before.” He grinned at her.
She let out a nervous giggle and continued to eat. Daren had nothing to follow up his remark so he just kept quiet. The awkwardness was starting to build in the air, especially since his hand was still stretched out and touching hers. He slowly withdrew it and placed it under the table. There was a moment of silence interrupted by random slurps of chowder.
Daren finally broke the silence. “I dreamed about the cellar door, you know. It looked exactly like how I saw it in my dream. And when it opened, I saw a hooded figure inside waiting for me. It freaked me out at the time.” He chuckled aloud. “I had no idea it was actually you.”
“You want to know how I found this place?” She propped her elbow on the table, rested her chin on her palm, and met his gaze.
Daren leaned forward and read her expression. “You saw it in a dream, didn’t you?”
Lara raised her eyebrows and made a half smile.
“What did the dream show you?” he asked.
“I was standing in a dark forest,” Lara began.
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