Lost Before Bloom (Open Novella 2020)

Desire...

Adrian

I didn't even realize that I had fallen asleep until something was pressing into my thigh. I woke up to find a bare foot pushing into the side of my leg. My sleepy eyes found Troy on the other side of the couch. This time he had one of my blankets pulled over him as he stretched out across the cushions. Sleepy, non-thinking me, reached down and cupped the top of his bare foot. He didn't pull his foot away, though. Instead, he curled his toes into my thigh.

It took me a little bit to somewhat wake up and realize that the tv was on. Only the bluish light flickered at us with no sound. Glancing back in Troy's direction, I noticed that his gaze was glued to the screen. The tv was muted with CNN covering today's news on the screen. That was when I realized that he must have been just as confused as I was.

"You could have woke me up. I wouldn't have minded."

His gaze remained locked on the screen as his head slowly twisted from side-to-side. His lack of speech was something that started to concern me. It was odd that such a public figure and musician as he was before wouldn't be able to answer simple questions. And even odder yet that he wasn't asking any questions about his current state. Like, what was he doing at my house? Perhaps the what's and why's of this whole situation were the least of his troubles right now.

"Do you remember anything at all from the past ten years?"

His toes pushed into my thigh once again as his body went rigid. I had a feeling that the answer was either a 'no' or something horrific. Silence filled the room as Troy laid motionless the couch. Not even an inkling of any motion from his bobble answering head. Maybe he just needed some time to cope or adapt. If that was the case, I had no problem giving him some space.

"I think I'm gonna go take care of a few things."

I just started to stand up from the couch when Troy's hand latched onto my wrist. My eyes shot to him, finding Troy sitting straight upward. His eyes gazed into mine with something resembling fear.

"Please... stay." The words were so quiet that I could barely hear them. There was no denying the pleading undertone in his voice. That sweet voice I knew I couldn't refuse.

After sitting back down on the couch, Troy released the hold on my wrist and leaned back into the armrest. His eyes stayed locked onto mine, not once glancing back toward the tv. The same pleading look remained as he crossed his arms in front of his stomach. The pad of his foot gently pressed back into the side of my thigh. My confusion only deepened by his actions.

In a low whisper, he asked, "It's 2030?"

"Yup, June 15th, 2030, to be precise."

Again, Troy whispered, "No, I don't remember."

"Well, you didn't miss a whole lot."

He glanced back to the tv once again. My hand instinctively went back to the top of his arch. As my thumb caressed the side of his foot, I could have sworn that I heard a low moan. That may just have been my imagination playing tricks on me or wishful thinking, though. However, feeling his slender toes curl into the side of my leg again was definitely happening. His other foot soon joined the side of my leg, gently pressing into it. Not that I really had someone to comfort me over the past ten years, so I could kind of relate. The subtle touch was apparently what he needed.

Troy whispered, "Like what?"

"Huh," I asked dumbfounded?

He replied in the same hushed tone, "You said I didn't miss much."

I took a deep breath before starting, "Well... let's see. The country has gone through three presidents. One of which was a bisexual woman, that was a fun time. There was another war in the Middle East, and gas prices still haven't recovered. Temperatures around the world have been steadily climbing, yet nobody wants to do anything about global warming. The last hurricane that hit Florida nearly wiped the state off the map. Last year, an international effort established a research camp on Mars. And two years ago, a major earthquake reduced Los Angelas to a pile of rubble. I think that sums up all of the major events."