15. Questions

After a few minutes Jack sets his bowl down on the hearth of the fireplace. You stiffen slightly, aware, his gaze hasn’t left you this entire time. “You’re lucky to have been out here when the meteors hit.” his voice startles you and you turn to face him. “Oh, well not exactly” you stammer “I mean, I wasn’t here when they hit.”

Jack’s eyebrow raises and you notice a scar running down the middle of it. He doesn’t say anything but you feel compelled to continue and explain that you actually had been camping on the other side of the forest when they hit. “And you walked all the way here?” Jack asks sounding somewhat impressed. You do your best not to blush as you nod yes. You’re not sure what’s gotten into you. Something about Jacks intense gaze made you feel almost foggy and distracted.

You decide not to bring Dex up just yet and ask Jack how he was able to survive. He tells you that he was stationed on army base outside a town near the one you used to live in before all this happened. The majority of the base had been taken out by the massive shock waves from the meteor. Jack woke up and found himself buried under a pile of rubble. He was somehow able to pull himself out after a great deal of effort. One of his legs was wounded but he thankfully hadn’t sustained any major injuries.

He tried searching for other survivors but found he was the only one. After finding the surrounding towns destroyed he set out on foot to see if the towns on the other side of the forest had survived. He didn’t expect to run into someone so soon but he saw the light coming from your cabin and finally gained some hope. “I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw you” he finishes and he leans forward slightly in his seat. You draw back further into yours and look into his intense gaze.

After a moment he leans back and nods his heads over towards the boots in the corner. “The previous owners?” Now you can’t help but to blush as you fidget with the hem of your shirt. “No, they’re umm, the current owners…” you stare down at your fidgeting hands to avoid eye contact. “I see.” Jacks voice isn’t quite as deep as Dex’s but there’s a calming element to it. “He’s out hunting” you almost whisper. You’re not sure why you’re so hesitant to bring Dex up. Perhaps it’s because you still have no idea what you’re going to tell Dex when he returns. Let alone what you’re doing to do about being alone with a stranger for God knows how long.

The wind whistles loudly outside and you pull the blanket you’ve draped around your shoulders closer. You know it’s early February thanks to the calendar Dex has hanging the lobby. The winter was now at its harshest and you wish Dex hadn’t gone out hunting this week. He expected the temperature to drop again in the next few weeks and wanted to make one last trip before it gets really bad. Everything would be so much easier if he was here. But you can’t focus on that, you’re here now, and will have to deal with this situation by yourself.