Drown #7.2: first date at the end of the world

March 2085. Stephanie Day is 25, Justin Kim is 24.


Stephanie always knew that she wouldn't wear her wedding ring on her one real date with Justin before the end of the world. But she'd actually taken it off a few days ago and never put it back on. Justin hadn’t noticed yet. She didn’t know if she should make a big deal about it, if it warranted that kind of grand declaration or if she should just let it be.

She kind of wanted to see how long it would take before he noticed. She had this really great line planned. He would say, "Steph, you took off your wedding ring." And she’d say, "I had to, because it came from the wrong guy."

She giggled at the idea of it.

Then she finished dressing for her date. She tried to put on some makeup. She curled her hair as much as it would curl and she wove it into a loose braid. She wore girly shoes, even if they were flats. She sprayed some perfume onto her wrists and it somehow found her nose instead and made her sneeze.


She came downstairs carefully, trying not to trip out of her slingback flats. She'd already made Justin tell her exactly what he planned to wear, so that she wouldn't be under or over dressed, so that they would match.

"Wow, Steph. You look so beautiful."

She grinned, feeling shy and awkward, not used to being so much the center of attention. "Are you going to stare at me like that all night?"


"Not the whole night," he said. "Give me another minute, though."

"That's a good idea," she said. "Because if you keep that up, you might crash the car or something."

"You two have fun," her mother called from the living room. They kissed their girls good night, since they didn't plan to be back before bedtime.



They went to the arcade first and it brought back memories of being awkward preteens who only cared about video games and having fun.

They sat on a park bench before dinner and made some new memories, too.

They had dinner on the deck at sunset and watched the clouds turn shades of purple and gold. "This is such a great moment," he said.

"You're doing it again," she said.

"What?"

"Looking at me weird."

"Sorry, I'll stop," he said. But he didn't stop.


If he was this gobsmacked over some lipstick and curls, she wondered how sloppy she usually looked. "I don't look that different, do I? Is it the lipstick? I can wear lipstick more if you want."

"It's not about your lipstick," he said. "It's because I keep wanting to ask you something, but I can’t."

"You can ask me anything," she said.

"Not anything, Steph. But it’s okay. Maybe I’ll get to ask it some day."



"Well, whatever it is, just imagine that you'll ask it when the time is perfect and the answer will be exactly what you hoped for."

"How did I ever find you?"

"Was that the question?"

He laughed. "No, that wasn't it."


"But I can answer that question because I do remember," she said. "You found me on the swing set during recess at Shadow Woods Elementary School."


They went down to dance while they club was still empty.

Their hearts were light and they were both having the best night ever.


They kept dancing until the club began to fill up, but Stephanie was having too much fun to feel shy or embarrassed in the center of the crowd.


They drank fruity cocktails when they got thirsty from all of their dancing.


They got tipsy from the cocktails and sang along with a song that reminded them of high school.


"This is the best date I've ever had," she said.

"Best date ever, on my first try?"

"You're an overachiever."

He grinned at her.


"Are you thinking about that thing you wanted to ask me again?"

"Not this time," he said. "Right now I just want to get you home and give you the best orgasm you ever had."


"Oh, my," Stephanie said, taking a quick breath and blushing intensely, doubled over with giggles.


She didn't want to go home, not quite yet. She did want to let him kiss her—the best kiss she'd ever had, he promised—but not in the middle of all these people. So they went down to the beach which was quiet and empty because it was off season. They lit a bonfire to soften the sharp wind coming up from the lake. But his hands were warm and his lips were warm and Stephanie didn't feel chilly at all.


"Can I take you home now?"

"Soon," she said. "Not yet. I never want this to end."

"It won't end, Steph. I’ll take you on a lot more dates."

"How many more?"


He thought about this, like he was doing the math in his head. "Four hundred eighty-three," he finally decided.

"Wow," she said. "You really are an overachiever."


"It’s not that ambitious," he said. "I figure nine or ten good dates a year. That’s less than one a month, and we’ll probably live another fifty years."

She had a couple of strong theories about what he couldn't ask her. She wanted that, too. All of it, exactly the way he imagined.


They talked for a while longer by the bonfire. In the silence between their conversations, between their laughter, between the crackle and pops of the bonfire, between the waves and the wind, she could hear something.

"Do you hear something?"

"Maybe," he said. "But I just thought it was the waves."

They looked around, but they didn't see anything.


But then they did. A streak of light.

"A shooting star?"

"I don't know," he said.

It didn't look like a shooting star. It was too slow, too steady, but it burnt into the atmosphere like a star and then disappeared. Not gone, but not visible against the night sky. Even though they couldn't see it, they could still hear it. It was a soft but constant sound, something you might mistake for the wind or the waves. It sounded like voices weeping.

Then there was another streak. And another.


Stephanie slipped her trembling fingers into his hand. "They're not stars," she said.

Then both of their phones sounded at once with an emergency alert. In the distance they heard other phones sounding from the town center, all of the phones in the world at once.

Residents of all states are asked to return home and stay indoors until further notice. Occupation of all airspace in any capacity is prohibited. Flights are now grounded. Do not launch fireworks or flares. Do not fly kites, balloons, drones, or remote flight toys. Do not flash lights, lasers, or beams. Do not provoke them. Authorities are investigating the phenomenon and the public will be alerted when more information is available. Stay inside your homes. Stay tuned to your local news networks.

"We need to go home." Justin's voice was soft as a whisper.


He said they should go home, but he was just as stunned as she was and they couldn’t move. They couldn't stop staring at the sky. The streaks lit and then faded, but the sound never stopped. It was the sad and melodious anthem of how everything was about to change.

Then he felt it between their fingers, the ring on her left hand was gone. He looked down from the broken sky. "Steph, where’s your wedding ring?"

She forgot how her lines were supposed to go. She could only feel their pulse beating between their tangled fingers. She could only see his face full of hope now that the world was ending. The lines weren't important anymore, only words. Three of them. "I love you."


He kissed her cheek. "I love you, too," he said. "Come on, let’s go home now."

—