John van Dijk - THE ZOO

Mink walked over and took one look at Happy’s face. "Heh, get this man a beer," he yelled as he pushed Happy down into the closest chair at hand.

While someone scurried into the kitchen the rest of the men gathered closely around Happy.

"What the hell’s the matter with you?" asked Mink. "Christ, you look like you’ve seen a ghost or something."

"Something," mumbled Happy as he gratefully took a long swig of the ice cold beer.

Carefully, Fed disengaged Happy’s hand from it’s tight grasp on the Winchester.

He cocked the breach open and sniffed. From the acidic smell of it he knew the gun had been discharged recently ..... very recently. Shit, I guess I’ve got to go to work, thought Fed as he pushed his hat back on his head.

By the time the Budweiser was half gone, Happy’s breathing had almost returned to normal. Spike, on the other hand, still sounded pretty winded as he lay on the floor panting by Happy’s feet.

Putting the gun safely aside, Fed lowered his bulky frame down onto his haunches in front of Happy.

"Want to tell me what’s going on, Hap?" he asked steadily. "It’s too damn early for deer."

Happy shifted uncomfortably on the hard wooden chair. Here goes nothing, he thought to himself. "I shot me an alien." he said bluntly. His remark was met by stone silence. God knows it wasn’t funny, but he couldn’t refrain from laughing at the expressions on the men’s faces turned towards him. "Yeh, I know you boys don’t believe a word of it, but just hear me out anyway."

Pausing only once or twice to take a swallow of the fresh beer someone handed him, Happy recounted all of the events within the last few weeks that had led up to what he’d done earlier that night. When he was finished you really could have heard a pin drop ...... no one said a word.

It was Fed Larson who finally broke the silence. "That’s quite a tale, Hap. You really expect us to believe all that?" When there was no reply, Fed continued talking as he helped Happy to his feet. "What do you say I give you and that old dog of yours a lift home? Sounds to me like what you need is to sleep this one off. Sure everything will look a whole lot different by the light of day."

Feigning obedience, Happy shuffled out to Fed’s truck. The hell with them, he thought angrily ....... the hell with them all.

Miserable, Sam wasn’t sure if she wanted to cry or scream. It didn’t really make any difference because she realized she didn’t have the energy for either. She propped her elbows up on the table and put her face in her hands. She sighed tiredly.

"Want a brandy?" Per asked.

"Jesus, yes."

They both sat silently at the table. Sam slumped in her chair and Per leaned forward in his. He stared at her as she stared into her half - finished glass of Hennesy.

"Heh," she said, craning her neck to look up at Per, "know when you’re a little kid and everything seems really confusing to you? And you keep waiting and waiting until the day you grow up so you can understand everything?"

Per just shrugged.

"Oh yeah, I forgot ....." Sam mumbled, clearing her throat. "Anyway, what I was going to say was that I guess I’m still waiting to grow up because I don’t understand a damn thing."

Per fixed her with those eyes of his, which could be so warm they made her knees weak or so cold they made her turn to ice inside. Sam tried unsuccessfully to break his gaze. Giving up, she shoved her empty glass into his face, "How about a refill?"

"Later." His chair squeeked loudly as he shoved it back, holding out his strong hand to her expectantly.

Without any hesitation, Sam took his hand firmly into hers and wordlessly followed him upstairs. When they reached her room Per turned toward her. His first kiss was gentle and many times more intoxicating than the brandy she had been drinking only moments before.

"Guess it’s too late to play hard to get?" was the last thing she said just before her mouth dissolved under his for good.

The whole room seemed to be awash in silvery light. To Sam the moon seemed brighter than usual. Turning to Per she asked curiously, "Do you have a moon on your planet?"

"Actually, we have two moons. One is a bit smaller than the other and they are different colors." he replied.

Jesus, this is insane, Sam thought. She couldn’t have stopped herself if she had wanted to, she started to first giggle and then laugh hysterically.

"What’s so funny?" inquired Per propping himself up onto his elbow.

"Sorry ..... " Sam gasped for breath. "I was just thinking of something my mother used to say to me when I started dating."

"What was that?"

"She used to say, ‘Honey, you sure can pick ‘em.’ Too bad she isn’t here to meet you." Once again, Sam doubled over with laughter, clutching her side.

Finally, she sobered. Brushing her thick hair back out of her face, Sam leaned over Per and gently ran her fingertips down one side of his face and across his lips.

"I was very happy just now." She said softly then shook her head bewilderedly. "Doesn’t make any sense does it?"

"Why do you feel there must always be logic in all things?" Per asked as he pulled her close to him. "Feelings are never logical, that much I have learned."

They lay intertwined, each with their own thoughts, until the pale walls of the bedroom began to turn a faint lavender hue from the rising sun.

Sam stirred, whimpering incoherently in her sleep. Per gently stroked her hair, trying to soothe her. Startled out of her sleep, Sam sat up clutching the blanket to herself in fright.

"My God, Per," she exclaimed, "I’ve had the most horrible dream ...... I dreamed the world is coming to an end!"

Slowly, Sam’s eyes cleared and focused as she finally awoke fully. With complete consciousness came the realization that it had not, after all, been a dream.

Suddenly, time mattered a great deal to Sam.

Clutching Per’s arm, she cried, "Is this it? Will it be today? Please, tell me!" she begged desperately.

Seagulls streaked across the cloudless sky, which gleamed a deep azure in the midmorning light. Perched on a rocky outcropping overhanging the Atlantic, Sam stared up at them. They seemed so far away. She raised her left arm high .....

stretching her fingers as far as she could ..... but she didn’t even come close to touching them.

They flew so far that they almost completely vanished into the distant horizon, but then abruptly changed course and came back her way. For a time, Sam concentrated entirely on the birds and their ostensibly random flight patterns.

She emptied her mind of everything else.

Per had remained behind in the house while Sam took a walk out to Burnt Coat Harbor. He knew that more than anything right now, she was in need of some time alone. Standing at the kitchen counter making coffee, Per closed his eyes for a moment and clearly saw what Sam saw. He wanted to go to her, but knew he could not. She could only come to terms with what was about to happen by herself.

There was nothing more he could do for her right now.

Eventually, Sam tired of watching the gulls. They seemed to compose images of peacefulness and serenity. All false, of course. Nothing in this world would ever be peaceful or serene again. There would be no more chances. Per had been clearly emphatic about that.

Reluctantly, Sam turned her thoughts inward, replaying in her mind Per’s harsh words of judgment from the day before. The thing was, as desperately as she would have liked to, Sam could not find a strong basis to dispute his opinion of mankind. If anything, if she were to be absolutely objective about it, she would have to agree with his assessment. Over all, mankind sucked. Period. Oh sure, every once in a while a Buddha, Jesus Christ or Mother Tereasa would pop up and do a great deal to revive your opinion of humanity for a time. But soon enough it would be back to the usual dictators and despots, interested only in squeezing the proverbial lifeblood out of their own people simply in order to get theirs.