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The sun sets on a farmhouse. Inside, Joshua, not yet the Joshua we know today, sits peeling potatoes as Elijah cans them. It’s quiet, and cows graze outside. It’s fall— the leaves are dying, and the work around the farm has dried up. Save for the beets and potatoes grown year-round in the kitchen. Soon it’ll be time for the goats and cows to give birth, and those are good memories too, sitting with Elijah in the barn at two in the morning next to a space heater, imagining a million worlds, a million scenarios, a billion lives.
But right now, it’s time to preserve and can potatoes, then the carrots tomorrow. Dinner was leftover cow tail and liver stew from last night. Things were fine, and the farm was not exactly the most prosperous but it was a good life. Even when some of the more beloved, named, animals died. Those were more upsetting times— last year, George, a large, muscular stallion they had bought for a mere $50, passed away. He was an old horse when they got him, so it’s no surprise he only lasted two years, but Joshua loved to brush his coat and talk to George’s two heads. He was quite unique in the way he looked and walked with an extra set of legs. He might not have been good to ride on or at pulling the plows, but he was a gentle horse who always looked for Joshua and Elijah, loving pets and treats of sugar cubes and apples.
Elijah puts down a freshly sealed can, and stands to stretch. Joshua smiles at him.
“Did I finally outlast you?” He asks.
“We’ve been at it since before dark, dear. I think it’s time for a long break,” Elijah says.
Joshua puts the peeler down, standing and stretching.
“Yeah, sure. Anything good on the radio?” Joshua asks.
“I don’t know, dear,” Elijah says, flicking on the radio.
Tip Toe Thru The Tulips With Me , by Nick Lucas, begins to play. Joshua smiles at Elijah.
“I think you were right— it’s time for a break,” he says.
Elijah offers a hand, and Joshua takes it as the sun sets through the kitchen window, inviting a lilac sky. Slowly, Elijah begins a slow dance, Joshua clinging to his shoulders as Elijah holds Joshua’s waist. They smile, and eventually Joshua and Elijah just sway, one of Elijah’s hands in Joshua’s hair and Joshua listening to the slow beating of Elijah’s heart.
“I didn’t think we’d make it this far— I thought one of us would be drafted,” Joshua says.
“I always knew we would make it. We find a way, dear— you find a way,” Elijah says.
Joshua closes his eyes with a sigh, suppressing a yawn.
“Promise we’ll have nights like this forever?” Joshua asks.
“Forever is a long time, dear— I don’t think it’s possible,” Elijah says.
“Then promise me we’ll try?”
Elijah pauses, but rests his chin on top of Joshua’s head with a hum.
“Then I promise it’s us. For now, and for always.”
Joshua awakens to his phone alarm going off. It has been a long time since Joshua lived that life. He hopes it won’t be the last time.
But there’s something he must do first. He goes about his day, overseeing activities and bantering with Yvonne half-heartedly, most of his attention focused on the Administrative Building. He paces around it, noting backdoors— most of which are locked, but one window is open on the first floor. And there’s a step stool in the now-abandoned Cabin Dung Beetle.
So, he misses dinner, sneaking into Cabin Dung Beetle and picking up the step stool. It’s light— but it seems sturdy enough. Joshua carries it to the Administrative Building. He positions it under the open window and hoists himself up and in with some effort, cursing his skinny arms for not gaining more muscle at the gym. It wasn’t like he was inconsistent about that. When he gets inside, he presses his ears to the doors trying to discern which one Elijah is in. Soon, he hears shuffling behind a broom closet door. It’s locked, but Lucille bought cheap locks. There’s more than one reason he brings bobby pins everywhere— just inserting one into a keyhole for a door is good enough to unlock some of them.
“Elijah?” He calls softly, just enough to be heard through the door.
There’s shuffling, then, between the crack in the door, a hissed,
“What do you want?”
“I want you to know that I can’t agree with what you did. But… you also don’t deserve to be stuck here. It’s kind of… um, cruel?” Joshua says.
“What are you going to do about it?” Elijah asks.
“I’m going to let you go,” Joshua says.
“Why?” Elijah asks.
“Because it’s cruel to keep you here,”
“That sounds like a bit of a lie, dear,”
And Joshua goes quiet for a moment before his lips set themselves into a frown.
“Ugh! Fine. We knew each other, like, a really long time ago. And I think… there’s still some good in you, despite all the shit you pulled. So yeah, you deserve this, but I want to give you a second chance,” Joshua says.
Elijah is quiet as Joshua inserts the pin with a little click. As the door swings open, he and Elijah stare each other down for a few seconds. Joshua can feel his heart pounding— he wants to be held by him again, to have Elijah’s scarred hands combing through his hair. But Elijah merely looks him up and down.
“I suppose you do look familiar, dear,” He says at last, voice soft.
Finally, Elijah brushes past Joshua, and as Joshua watches him crawl out the open window, he remembers a promise from almost a century ago.
“It’s us. For now, and for always.”