Lifted Part Four
Darwin stepped outside of his apartment. It had gotten colder and he tugged his jacket closer to him as he walked down his stoop and onto the street. It was a short walk to the bar and his eagerness to see Ian quickened his pace even more. It had been a few months since he had seen his best friend, and Darwin thought that maybe this visit would remove any thoughts of the carbon dioxide.
Darwin had always confided in Ian, even back in grade school. With his stress level, Darwin was grateful for Ian and his way of calming him down. He smiled to himself as he thought of the many incidents where Ian would drag him away from his work or studying and miraculously manage to give him a social life. With that kind of power, Darwin almost thought for an instant that simply Ian's presence would make the whole disaster disappear entirely; that maybe by seeing him tonight, the air itself would become clearer.
He frowned. The prospect of death had been coming to Darwin's mind much more frequently lately, as much as he tried to avoid the thoughts. It was hard to grasp the fact that all of them might die. Darwin looked down the street. He saw one man, dark and brooding, standing on his balcony, a cigarette in his mouth and a guitar in hand. Two men were standing across the road from each other, yelling profanities above the noise of the car horns and sirens echoing in the air. A man and woman walked past Darwin on the sidewalk, hand in hand, as a drunken man staggered along behind them, grasping for the walls of the buildings beside him to avoid collapsing on the cold concrete. All of these people could be gone soon, Darwin thought to himself. For him, it was easier to imagine the world being destroyed until he set foot outside and understood every person that walked by him would soon become a victim. He thought back to Ian, who was waiting for him a few blocks away. Ian, too, could die, even he himself could, Darwin thought. He let out a short breath as he looked up at the stars, cut off by the neon signs coating the nearby buildings. Darwin wondered how long they would have, if the invisible disease even existed. He kept his eyes down to the ground until he saw the entrance to the bar and pulled the doorknob.
***
Jeff was walking around town when he saw Darwin enter the bar. He decided to go in and see if anyone else was in there. He walked through the door and said to Darwin "Hi, my name is Jeff Daniels, captain of the Titan. I have come here to see if all the commotion is the same up here as it was in Florida."
Darwin stared at the young man that approached him. He assumed he was talking about the poison and for an instant, felt his stomach sink with fear. He glanced around to find Ian, with no success, and was forced to answer the man's question. "Uh, yeah." He said, patting the back of his head. He could feel one of his migraines coming on and again, scanned the bar for anything to avoid talking about the disease. He sighed as he squinted his eyes from the oncoming pain in his head. "Yeah it is, I'm sorry, what was your name again?"
"Jeff Daniels, captain of the Titan." he said as he stood next to the bar counter.
Darwin stuck out his hand. "Darwin Hayes," he mumbled, "uh, student." He grasped down for a stool and sat. "You said you were from Florida? What brings you all the way up here?"
Jeff shook his hand and sat down. "I heard that it was calmer up here in New York than down in Florida where there's a major riot every single day." he said as he reached for a can of pop. He opened it and drank a little. As he bent down to tie his shoe, a brick came smashing through the window and it would have hit Jeff in the back of the head. "Clearly people around here don't like me very much." said Jeff as he picked up the brick and tossed it out the window.
Darwin followed the brick. "Well if you call that calm, then I guess Florida's in trouble." He snickered. Darwin had to make an effort not to laugh at the boy in front of him. He couldn't help but be a little amazed at how young he was.
Not even old enough to drink He thought as he watched Jeff drink from the pop can. He regained his composure and cleared his throat. "You should try and ignore that." he said, motioning toward the window, "It doesn't happen that often. You just occasionally get those guys..." He smiled as he trailed off. He couldn't help but think how pathetic it was to consider brick-flinging as part of the average day.
"Hey-yo. What's all this about?" Came a familiar voice from the door. Ian strolled into the bar, already in uniform with his waiter's apron slung over one shoulder. Skirting around the broken glass and fuss, he clapped Darwin on the shoulder as he let himself behind the bar, saying "Hey, Darwin, what's up man? How's school and all that been going?"
Darwin smiled at the gesture. "There's a stranger." He gleamed as he leaned across the bar toward Ian, momentarily leaving Jeff with his can of soda. Darwin was somewhat reluctant to continue the conversation with Jeff for fear of the topic wrecking the reunion with Ian.
"I don't suppose you know anyone that can help me fix a broken window on my vessel, do you?" asked Jeff as he finished his can of pop.
"Broken window?" Darwin replied. He looked behind Jeff at the broken bar window. "Man, these guys must like following you around, huh?"
"I guess." said Jeff. "Well, if you want to talk more, I'll be on my ship at pier 25." He said as he left the bar.
Darwin waved Jeff off as he turned back to the bar. "Do you know that guy?" He whispered to Ian.
"Not a clue." Ian answered, shrugging his shoulders as he scrubbed up for work. "Anyways, the usual for you?" He asked, picking up a shaker.
"Sure, man." Darwin muttered, still staring at the doorway where Jeff had just disappeared. He turned to Ian, leaning close to avoid any eavesdroppers. "That guy," he said, cocking his head toward the entrance, "he's from Florida. Sailor." He grabbed the drink from the table and took a swig before finishing. "Says the whole poison news is pretty big down there."
"Well..." Ian trailed off a bit, absently setting up garnishes before the night rush. "I'm not gonna say that things are or aren't going on, but from what I've heard the poison news is all over the place. It's growin fast. This one might be around for a while."
At that, Darwin reached in his bag and pulled out his camera, setting it gently on the table. "And that's what this is for." He muttered, studying the mechanism carefully.
"What, your old camera? What're you gonna do with that?" Ian asked, glancing over while he mixed up another group's orders.
Darwin sighed. "Dunno exactly." He muttered, fiddling with the lens cover. He found himself gazing at the camera, the random parts, anything to avoid making eye contact with Ian. "I guess I figured if this whole thing gets serious, someone had better document it. You know, just in case." Darwin immediately regretted telling Ian his idea. The whole thing sounded crazy, he knew that. He glanced up, waiting for Ian's reaction.
Ian, of course, had his usual grin pasted over his face. "You should go for it. Once this all blows over, we can all get together and have a good laugh. And who knows?" He asked, shrugging and turning to retrieve a few bottles. "If all this is really real, it'd be a great story. 'The Real Tale of Earth's Last Days', or something."
"Yeah, it would be something." Darwin attempted to chuckle as he placed the camera back in his bag. "It would be something..." He glanced up at Ian and cleared his throat. "Listen, I think I'm gonna head back to the apartment. I'll see ya around?" Without waiting for a response, Darwin stepped off the stool and walked out of the bar, slightly slamming the door behind him.
The whole idea was ridiculous, he knew that. If he started the film, he knew he would eventually begin to believe all this nonsense. He needed to get this Apocalypse junk out of his head before he started losing his mind just like the rest of the city. He would only use the film for historical purpose, he decided; something for all of them to look back and laugh on later. This will all blow over, he thought, once they all realize it is just a hoax. And then he would be the one to say "I told you so." He looked down at the bag, as if promising his thoughts to the camera. If there was one person that would never give in to this paranoia, it would be Darwin Hayes.
***
James Slayter. A busy man of course as the Senate was not a tree-hugger's walk in Central Park. He had much to do, but here he was gazing out his large office window in Washington D.C., pondering the rash and distracting criminal actions of New York City tree-hugging ruffians! Ah, it was all ridiculous, foolish, scaremongering and it needed to be stopped and quickly.
He turned away from the window, hands clasped behind his back, and paced over to his imported Brazilian wood desk. This would certainly not do. Violence in the largest city in the United States and in his home state to top it off! It would not sit well on his record when, well,
higher offices were drawing his attention. He lightly traced the intricate carved patterns on the desk with a wandering finger. Senator Slayter must be remembered for curtailing this environmental rubbish, not for allowing it to seeth, unanswered.
"Liz," he called into the adjoining room, "find a space on my schedule for me to take a trip home. And make sure it's soon!" Tree-hugger rubbish. He was sick of getting complaints thrown at him and his businesses. It was getting obnoxious. They would pay.
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