"2012" - Draft 2

“Believe me,” a voice behind her said, “You don’t want to get that one.”

Kate turned her head, looking at the stranger sitting next to her. He didn’t look like anyone Kate could remember meeting before, for all that he was leaning nonchalantly on the bar next to her and smiling casually as if they were old acquaintances. She looked him up and down once and cocked her eyebrow. “Oh really? And why would that be?”

The man slid onto the stool next to hers. “Bigger commercial breweries will add organic compounds and minerals to their beer, claiming that they function as antioxidants or that they are all filtered out of the final product, but many of them don’t make good on their promises. Better to stick to the smaller home brews.” He signaled the bartender, and ordered two pints of a beer Kate had never heard of, “one for me and one for the lady.”

Organic compounds or no, it didn’t taste significantly different to Kate, though it had been a while since she had been bought a drink by a young, presumably available, man. He was, she decided, rather nice looking, and was of course very friendly and willing to talk to her. “So, where exactly did you hear about this?”

“A lot of companies like to make claims about their products, but really, even rudimentary chemical analysis can show you what things actually contain. For instance, did you know that a lot of nondairy creamers and milk-free cheese will actually have more than a trace amount of milk and milk proteins in them?” His eyes lit up behind his glasses as he went on, further describing the chemistry in food science.

Kate laughed at his enthusiasm. “Let me guess – you’re a chemist. Or a nutritionist, right?”

“No, but I studied it some in school… Oh, look at me go. I’ve completely forgotten my manners.” With that, he stuck out his hand. “You’ll have to excuse me, I get a little carried away sometimes. I’m Darren.”

“Kate.” She shook his hand, still laughing a little to herself.

Later, as she walked to the subway station, Kate felt that, as far as evenings went, there were
worse ways to spend an early spring night than talking with friendly stranger and walk away with a dinner date the following weekend.



The knock on the door sent Kate running. “Hi, come in, I’m running a bit late, give me a few minutes,” she said in a rush as she opened the door.

Darren stepped in and shut the door behind him. “Don’t worry about it. I’m a few minutes early. Please don’t rush on my account.”

Kate looked around her cluttered hallway briefly before leading Darren into the kitchen. “Let me find my keys and I’ll be ready to go. Make yourself comfortable.” The kitchen was not significantly cleaner than the hallway, but Darren was able to find a chair to sit on without disturbing any of the piles of papers. He felt something warm brush against his ankle, and started. “Oh! Hello, cat.” A small orange kitten was headbutting him.

Kate popped her head out from the room next door. “Yeah, my sister is out of town for a few weeks, so I said I could take care of Rupert while she’s gone. Don’t tell my super, though. I’m pretty sure we’re not supposed to have cats, no matter how small. You’re not allergic, are you?”

“Not at all. I’m quite fond of cats.” Darren bent down, his large hand dwarfing the small kitten as he stroked the soft orange fur.

“Oh, good.” Kate came back into the kitchen, keys in one hand and long black hair tied back. “I think he likes you.”

“A cat’s favor is a good thing to have.” Darren untangled his fingers from the cat twining himself around them and stood up. “The ancient Egyptians thought them to be gods, treating and worshiping them as such. I frankly think that cats are some of the smartest creatures on this Earth. Possibly even smarter than humans. It’s said that cats are able to form psychic connections, and that’s why witches kept them as their familiars.” He looked down at the small kitten now playing with his shoelace and then back up at Kate, before smiling at her.

Kate laughed. “If you say so. I just wish that this guy would learn to stop making such a huge mess of his food when he ate. Maybe then he might be able to earn some worship around here.”

“Aaaah, but who can really look into the mind of a higher being? Perhaps he is trying to leave you a sign or an omen.” Darren was smiling even broader now, his green eyes laughing.

“With half eaten kitten chow? I’m afraid he’ll need a better prophet than me if he really wants his message spread.”

“That he might.” With that, Darren made a huge, elaborate bow in the direction of the kitten.
“And now, Master Rupert, I must beg leave, to escort your fine mistress to dine with me.” He turned back to Kate and made another, even more ridiculous bow before holding out his arm. “To dinner, my lady?”



Their relationship progressed smoothly. It had been quite some time since Kate had really dated anyone she liked, and if they started seeing each other more and more, she merely shrugged it off as good compatibility.



It was a beautiful end of summer day, and Kate and Darren were enjoying the warm midday sun at a café near Kate’s apartment. Kate loved basking in the sun, so she was fully taking advantage of the bright sunlight, all while teasing her boyfriend about how pink he already was from sunburn.

“Really, Darr, why don’t you ever wear a hat if you burn so badly? Think of your poor skin!”

Darren, however, was staring at the table, tracing patterns slowly with the tip of his finger and the slightest of frowns wrinkling his forehead. “Darren? What’s wrong?” Kate put her hand on top of his, stilling the movement of his finger across the table.

Darren looked up at Kate, with eyes that seemed to be from a million miles away. “I’m sorry, it’s
just…” He rubbed his brow with his free hand and sighed. “I’m just thinking about the future, is all.”

Kate placed her other hand around his, cupping it slightly. “What’s up?”

“I’m,” he closed his eyes tightly, “I’m just worried about what’s coming next.”

“Darr…” Kate’s voice was soft with worry and attempted reassurance, “if you think we are moving too fast…”

He opened his eyes and shook his head slowly, blond hair flopping across his brow as he did. “No, it’s not that. I guess I’m just worried about what is going to happen, in general.” He looked at Kate now, more focused than he had been before. “How much have you heard about the Mayan end of an era prophecy?”

Kate didn’t quite see where this had come from. “I’ve heard about it. The ancient Mayan calendar was said to end on December 20th, 2012, yes? And people think that that will bring about the apocalypse.”

“Of a sort. People think that there will be an end of an era. Whether that means the world will end, or some kind of new world order will replace the current one, I don’t know. But if you stop and think about it, all the signs point to something changing, something big. The way the economy has been fluctuating, the uprisings in Europe… I can’t help but feel like the Mayans were on to something.”

Kate lifted her hand to touch Darren’s face, smoothing the lines that had been forming as he spoke. “So this is what you are worried about? That some huge catastrophe is just right around the corner?”

He looked at her silently before taking her hands in his. “If you put it that way, then yes.” The silence between them grew heavy and thick, Darren just looking at her, and Kate sitting there, growing more and more uneasy. Just as Kate was resolving to say something, anything, to clear the air between them, Darren spoke again. “Will you marry me?”

A wave of coldness washed over Kate, and she sat back in her chair, dropping both hands dully onto the table. Whatever she was about to say had completely fled her mind, and all she could feel was confusion. “Wh-what?”

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box. In it was a simple diamond ring. It sparked in the afternoon sun. Darren said softy, “I’m sorry, I always meant to do this in a more traditional manner. I hope you don’t mind.”

He was serious, that much was clear, Kate thought to herself as she tried to clear her mind. She lifted her head up to stare into his eyes. They were so green and so steady, just looking at her without saying a word. “Darren… I don’t know what to say.”

“Well, I would hope that ‘yes’ would be an obvious choice.” When she didn’t say anything, Darren scooped her hands again, and squeezed them gently. “Kate, just think about it. We’ve been happy together, haven’t we? Is it so much for me to ask to spend the rest of my time with you?”

She shook her head, more of an effort to bring in some sense than to disagree with what he said. “No, it’s not that. It’s… it’s just so sudden, so soon. We’ve been together for what? A few months? Half a year at the most? How do you know we won’t be making each other miserable in another half a year?”

“Kate. Will you think about it, please? For me?”

All the wind went out of her sails when she saw how earnestly he was looking at her. “Alright, I will.”



The next days and weeks passed in a blur for Kate. While she never wore the ring Darren gave her, she kept it with her, occasionally taking it out and looking at it for several moments before putting it away again. An unspoken tension had formed between the two of them. Kate tried to act as if life was moving on as normal, but Darren had lost his carefree and happy attitude, instead having taken to sitting silently, lost in his own thoughts. They were stuck in a rut, neither willing to clear their demons, but both wanting to move forward.



Almost a month had passed before Kate finally had enough.

“Darren.” At the sound of her voice, Darren looked up to see Kate standing in the door frame. “We need to talk.” She was holding the small jeweler’s box, unconsciously flipping it over and over in her hands. When she say that she had his attention, she crossed the room and sat next to him on the couch

“I know that you would have liked an answer long before this, but I needed time to think.” With that, she broke off and looked down. It was several moments before she could speak again. “And… and I’m sorry, Darren, but I can’t. I can’t marry you right now.” Without looking at him, she slowly put the small box in his hands.

“I see.” He gripped the box tightly. “I guess this is the end, then.”

At that, Kate looked up at him. “That doesn’t mean I don’t care for you, though. I know you believe that something is going to happen soon, but I just can’t risk what could be years of happiness. Not now. Maybe in a while, but marriage is just too much right now.” Her voice cracked.

“Shhh…” Darren lifted a hand and ran it over Kate’s black hair. “It’s okay. I’m just sorry this is the end.”

“Darren, it doesn’t have to be. I just can’t get married right now.”

At that, he sighed and stood up, beginning to pace in front of the couch. Kate watched him silently, unsure as to what was going to happen next. “I know you don’t feel like I do, Kate, but I know that something big is going to happen, in only a few months. Is it so wrong for me to have some happiness before then? That’s all that most people want from life. But if you don’t feel like you can get married now…” He paused and shrugged. “I guess I will just have to look for my one chance at happiness elsewhere.”

Out of everything that she was expecting, this certainly was not it. Kate blinked several times, before starting to speak, lips heavy and numb. “Are you seriously breaking up with me because I won’t marry you? Because I don’t think that the world is going to end in December?”

He wouldn’t look at her. “That’s a rather harsh way of putting it.”

“I can’t believe it.” She felt frozen to the couch, unable to look anywhere but him. It was like watching a car crash – everything moved in slow motion, and she couldn’t help but stare at the horror that was unfolding before her. “Darren, did you ever care for me? Or was I just an convenient means to your end? A last ditch effort?”

He slowly put the box in his pocket, and turned away from her. “Obviously, this is something that we will not be able to reconcile. I wish you the best of luck in the time you have, Kate.” Without looking back at her, he strode quickly out of the room, and left.



She sat at the kitchen table, cupping a mug of tea in her hands, alone. Despite her best efforts, her eyes kept flicking to the slowly moving clock. It was late – very late, in fact, almost midnight. The cold and dark winter night was quiet and still. She sipped her tea and put it back down almost immediately, making a face and wondering if she should be drinking something stronger. There were bills and paperwork in front of her, and she had brought her favorite book out into the kitchen with her, but she somehow could not find the motivation to do anything but sit there. Idly, thoughts drifted through her mind – did she really make the right choice? What was he doing, at the moment? – but they never stayed long, quickly replaced by the sense of cold numbness that seemed to have filled her.

As the clock ticked onwards, she sat there, staring into her cup and occasionally shivering at the midwinter cold – not from the sense of foreboding that kept threatening to permeate her entire body, no. She did nothing but wait.

Only time would tell what would happen, anyway.

In a long while

It has been a few years since I last touched the box. It is full of things I don't want, but are too important to throw away. Little things, mostly, and most of them ugly. Some were beautiful, and may be again, but only after time has had a go at remaking them.

But most of them are ugly.

I don't like to open the box, but there are some things I need to put in it. Some new things. They are cracked and blacked, and nip at my hands as I hold them far from me. Into the box they must go. I may pull them out again, someday.

We'll see.