Chapter Three

Gaylen and Esteban went back to the lean-to and Gaylen waited outside while his guest changed clothes. It seemed to be taking forever but right before he went in to check on the man, Esteban stepped out with a questioning look on his face. He’d put on the jeans and t-shirt, feeling like it was too hot for the rest.

“Yeah, you look great,” Gaylen said.

Esteban let out a breath and gave him a weak smile. “What about the jumpsuit? What’ll happen to it?”

“Everything has a use around here. The synthetic fibers in that suit can be used for all kinds of engineering projects and patch work.”

Esteban nodded. “So, that’s why there aren’t any at the clothing bank.”

Gaylen nodded back. “It holds up better than other cloth so it gets used for more important things than putting on someone’s body. At least, until the clothing starts running out. I think we’ll be all right for a while though.”

The statement made Esteban nervous, but it didn’t seem to bother the other man at all. He was amazed that the people he’d met had spent their entire lives not knowing if they’d have enough food or supplies to survive, yet they seemed to be happy and content with what they had.

“So, what happens now?” he asked.

“You learn how to live a new life.”

The two of them spent the day talking over just how things in The City worked. For the most part, the community lived within walking distance of the square. They figured there were more people scattered here and there, but it had been years since they’d seen anyone else and didn’t go looking for them. No one went out on their own. There were plenty of dangers in The City, not least of which was getting lost.

“You said you’ve been beyond The City,” Esteban stated, glancing in the direction of the mountain, though he couldn’t see it from there.

Gaylen nodded, digging through a large box behind his lean-to. “We’ve gone into the foothills at the edge of The City,” he said and then pulled out some of the synthetic cloth they’d been talking about.

“What’s that?” Esteban asked.

Gaylen’s eyes twinkled, and once again, he gave his new friend that smile that seemed to light up the world. “Well, I figured, if you weren’t ready to find your own place, and I don’t really have room for two, you could sleep in this.”

“A piece of cloth?” Esteban choked in disbelief.

“No! There’s more it to it.” He then pulled out some tangled poles. “It’s a tent. We can put it up right here, next to me.”

Esteban’s mouth fell open. To him, it looked like he might as well be sleeping on the ground, exposed to all the elements. Still, he knew he should be grateful, so he ran a hand through his dark hair, and shrugged.

“Um, yeah, okay...I guess,” he said.

Gaylen chuckled. “You’ll be fine. Nothing much happens this deep in The City. Even the wind is blocked by all the buildings.”

It was evening by the time the two of them figured out how to put the tent up. Luckily, Esteban was used to the kind of team work and brainstorming involved in trying to work out that kind of problem. He’d been a scientist and engineer. Vaguely, he wondered if any of that would ever mean anything again. When they were finished, Gaylen cooked them something again. It turned out to be a bowl of plain rice but Esteban took it greedily, his stomach used to three meals a day.

Before he could take a bite though, he looked down at his bowl with a frown. “Can you afford to keep sharing your food with me?” he asked.

Gaylen shrugged and blew on his spoonful. “Most of the time we share meals in the community hall. I’ll take you over there tomorrow. These are just reserves for when I’m too busy to get over there.”

Once again, Esteban had never seen a night so dark. Even at night, there was always low level lighting in the Sanctuary. Primordial fear mixed with awe in his mind as he stepped outside Gaylen’s lean-to when it was time to get some sleep. He could make out a few lights here and there, campfires or candles in people’s windows, but mostly there was only darkness. Yet, something seemed to be giving off a glow. He glanced up, spotting a small sliver of moon in the sky, and right in the middle of the night sky was the most amazing thing he’d ever seen.

“The people who built this city called it the Milky Way,” Gaylen said, stepping next to him and looking up at the sky.

“I know,” Esteban said. “I’ve just...never seen it. Or the moon either, for that matter.”

Gaylen shook his head like it was the saddest thing he’d ever heard. Then he put a hand on his new friend’s shoulder and said, “Well, you’re here now. You can see it every night if you want.” Then after a moment’s thought, and a small smile, he added, “I hope the magic of it never wears off.”

Though it took a few hours to get comfortable and relax, sleep finally came to Esteban. He hadn’t realized how physically and emotionally exhausted he was. He slept soundly, but after a few more hours, he was startled awake by a loud boom. He sat up with a yell, having completely forgotten where he was. For a moment, there was nothing but silence as the memory of his exile slowly came back to him. Then there was a flash of light and another boom before something began to loudly pelt the sides of his tent. Esteban heard himself screaming before he realized he was doing it.

A moment later, the flap of the tent unzipped as another flash of light streaked through the sky. Esteban could make out Gaylen’s face, soaking wet, and filled with worry.

“Sorry,” Gaylen yelled over the boom that followed. “It doesn’t rain very often. I should have known it was coming.” He reached out, offering Esteban a hand. “Come on, we can squeeze into my place together.”

Esteban stared at the man’s hand as another flash of light illuminated it. He shook his head violently, having no desire to go outside in the storm.

“Come on. You’ll only get a little wet.” He reached in further, taking his new friend’s hand and giving it a tug. When Esteban finally got to his feet, he pulled him out and the two of them hurried over to the lean-to. It was only a few moments, but was enough to plaster Esteban’s hair to his head.

Gaylen shut the door behind them, lit a small oil lamp, and then burst into laughter. “Wow, that’s an amazing storm. I guess the gods have blessed you.”

“The gods?” Esteban repeated, hating the feeling of being wet and cold.

Gaylen shrugged and tossed him his dry sweater. “Yeah, well, whoever.” Then he tossed Esteban his dry sweater and added, “You probably should have been wearing this anyway. It gets cold out here at night.”

“Yes, I noticed.” He quickly stripped off the wet shirt and pulled on the warm, bulky sweater with a sigh of satisfaction. It was then he noticed Gaylen watching him. “What?” he said, hoping his dark skin would hide his blush.

“I’m sorry,” Gaylen said, “but I don’t think my pants would fit you. I have a spare, but...”

“Um, no, that’s okay. You need them anyway.”

The two of them spent an awkward, damp night, cramped into Gaylen’s small lean-to. It turned out their jeans had only gotten a little wet so neither of them changed. Esteban had watched in the flickering lamp light, engrossed, as his host changed his shirt. Unlike him, whose chest was full of dark hair, Gaylen’s was completely smooth. His muscles were long, and lean, and his skin the same golden tan of his face and arms. After that, they fought over who should take the bed for a while, before they both sat down on it and ended up spending most of the night talking.

 

Over the next couple of weeks, Esteban immersed himself in learning about life in The City. At first, he felt completely out of place, like a burden to the community. He was surprised to see that very few people thought of him that way, though. Gaylen continued to be his guide, and showed him how everything worked and what would be expected of him.

On his first day, he learned some rudimentary cooking skills, something he’d never needed in the Sanctuary. He also learned to sew and wash clothes, which was rewarded by a much needed second pair of pants, and had his first meal at the community house. He’d gone over at dinner time, standing in the doorway as his heart thumped wildly. To his relief, he finally spotted Gaylen, who’d left him at the clothing bank to do some work of his own.

Gaylen waved him over to the table where he sat with his sister Kat. Then he went to the kitchen to bring the man a plate of food.

“Hi, Kat,” Esteban said quietly as he sat down.

“Hi!” she enthused, and he couldn’t figure out why she’d be so excited to see him. “You’re not bad with a needle and thread,” she complimented.

He smiled, genuinely grateful for the praise. “I’ve never worked much with my hands,” he admitted.

“You’ll have to do a lot of that now,” she said, sounding wise beyond her years. “What did you do before?”

“Is she grilling you?” Gaylen said as he sat down with Esteban’s plate. “She does that.”

As Kat glared at her brother, Esteban chuckled and said, “No, it’s fine.” He looked down at the plate full of canned veggies and mystery meat. He took a bite, not even bothering to ask. “I worked in engineering, air recyclers, that kind of thing.”

Kat stared at him wide-eyed. “You had to recycle air?”

“It’s underground, silly,” Gaylen said with a laugh.

“Couldn’t you just...open a hatch or something?” she asked.

Esteban shook his head. “We didn’t trust the air up here.” He glanced around the room, suddenly realizing everything he’d been wrong about all his life. The thought that he’d been deliberately lied to wormed its way into his brain. Why would the Sanctuary leaders do something like that? The community house looked like a large, yet intimate, ruggedly decorated dining room. There were doors leading to other rooms in the back, but he hadn’t seen those yet. When he turned back, he realized that Kat and Gaylen were staring at him expectantly.

“Oh, um, mostly I just dealt with the math, not the actual physical stuff. I worked in an office.”

Kat wrinkled her nose. “I couldn’t imagine just sitting around all day.”

Gaylen laughed so hard he almost choked on his dinner. “Well, I think it sounds like a pretty important job.”

Esteban smiled warmly and thanked him, but then his face fell. “I’m not sure it’ll do much good around here.”

“You’d be surprised,” his friend said, the familiar twinkle back in his eyes.

Over the next few days, Esteban was treated to more work, and a bit of exploration. He met more of the children, and quickly learned that he had zero aptitude for taking care of them, found out that he was a horrible hunter as well, but was actually very good at gathering. After his first day out, he managed to find a shop that still had a few canned goods, and a basement shelter that someone had stocked up for the war. It was starting to look like he might have found his job, and the search party took him out the next time they went too. However, though it felt nice to have something to contribute after all, it also felt like something was missing. More and more, he found himself wanting to spend his time with Gaylen. He felt a longing when he wasn’t with the man, a longing he’d never really felt before.

Gaylen had been somewhat secretive about what he really did. The rest of the community seemed to leave him to his own devices because he was such a help with whatever they needed from him. Esteban found he had a growing desire to know what the man was up to, simply so he could help him with whatever it was. When he and the rest of the hunters and gatherers came back from his second time out, he dropped off what he’d found, and made his way back to the lean-to. He hadn’t seen Gaylen all day, as he’d crawled out of the tent at the crack of dawn. His stomach rumbled but he ignored it. He was tired from a long day of walking but he ignored that too. Instead, he knocked on the door of the lean-to and waited.

A moment later, Gaylen emerged, his hands covered in dark soil like the first time they’d met. He’d mentioned working all day himself, so Esteban knew what he’d find.

“Hey,” Gaylen said with a jovial smile. “Have any luck?”

“Not as good as last time,” Esteban admitted. “We weren’t empty handed, though.”

“Well, good,” his friend said and patted him on the shoulder. “Oops, sorry,” he then said, brushing dirt off of Esteban. “See, I told you you’d have something to offer.”

“That’s just it,” Esteban said, dropping his gaze to the ground. He glanced over at his little tent. He’d gotten used to sleeping in it, and had yet to even try to find his own place. “I’m glad I can help, and I’m not saying I won’t, it’s just...” He let the words fall away. They’d sounded selfish to his ear.

“What?” Gaylen prompted, a look of concern clouding his normally optimistic features.

“I still want to work with you, help you with whatever it is you’re working on. You know I’m good with science stuff and calculations. I don’t know what it is your up to but I can guess from what you’ve told me about the soil. I know it’s complicated and important and I want to help.” He bit his lip before he could blurt out, And I just want to spend my time with you.

Gaylen smiled and waved his friend in. Esteban smiled back and followed him. He glanced at the box of soil and noticed that it had been disturbed. In fact, it looked like quite a bit of it was missing. While he was looking at the box, to his surprise, his friend disappeared.

“Gaylen?” he said, a bit of panic in his voice.

His friend popped his head back into the room, a mischievous grin on his face. “Come on,” he said with a wave.

“You have a back door?” Esteban said in disbelief. “How did you hide a back door in this tiny place?”

“No one thinks to look.”

Esteban followed him into what turned out to be a room in the building behind the lean-to. Like many of the rooms around the square, it had either survived intact or been rebuilt. The floor above it was gone though, either by design or from the bombings, and the same plastic Gaylen had used for his hovel had covered what once would have been a ceiling. Filtered light streamed in, causing a bit of a glow. There was humidity too, something Esteban realized with a start. Below the makeshift plastic ceiling, he spotted a rain catchment system, something he was familiar with. It was crude but efficient, and probably how Gaylen was keeping the place humidified.

It took a moment for Esteban to process what he was seeing. When his gaze finally made its way down, he noticed low tables full of pots. He stepped closer and saw that the pots were full of dark soil.

“A greenhouse,” he said to no one in particular.

Gaylen’s grin widened again. “Exactly.” He looked over the pots of soil proudly and then nodded for his friend to follow him. He took on a mysterious air, as if something nefarious was going on, and led Esteban to the far corner of the room. Here, he opened the door to what looked like an old cabinet.

Esteban could barely see around him, through the crack in the door. Like the room, the top had been taken off so sunlight could stream in. He watched as Gaylen reached in for something, and looked down into the man’s hands when he turned. It was another pot, but unlike the rest he’d seen, this one had an actual plant growing in it.