081013 #dog *At the abandoned parking lot between the abandoned drive-in movie and the abandoned volcano. HIM and ME's bikes sit idly by; one wheel of ME's still spins lazily under a gathering bruise of thunderclouds.* HIM: [with a gesture of imminence] She's so.... She's so.... *Enter HER.* HER: So what? HIM: [taken aback; it was she he has been trying to describe to ME; he was not expecting to see her here.] Oh. Ah. Hello! HER: Hello yourself, you big dweeb. *HER embraces HIM warmly, and HIM gathers himself enough to reciprocate gratefully.* HIM: This is ME. ME: We've met. *HER smiles wickedly at ME. The smile lasts a spare moment too long for HIM's jealousy threshold and HIM begins to squirm.* HIM: It looks as though it's going to rain. ME: [pointedly not glowering at HIM] Yes. Rain is imminent. HIM: We were. We were ah. We've been having Martian conversations. Would you care to join? HER: [all but clapping her hands like a little girl] I'd love to! ME: [to HER, before HIM can even think to make the offer] You start. HER: Hmmm.... *To the east, the drive-in movie screen is vast, blank, teeming with invisible potential. To the west, the volcano is thinking about something. Under their feet, cracks in the asphalt answer an unanswerable question in code. HER's bike, having recently joined the other resting bikes, rebels in mauve insouciance against the unbearable machismo of gender reversal.*