The Disaster Diaries: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Apocalypse (12 page)

Chapter
Fifty: The Morning Walk

***

Bird songs echoed throughout the canopy above.
Isabella and I walked hand in hand down the country lane. I could feel the heat
on the back of my neck from the baking sun. There was not a single cloud in the
sky. It was a beautiful summer’s day and I was spending it with such a special
woman. Isabella hadn’t stopped smiling all morning. It was infectious. I felt
so good to be near her. Lucy zigzagged across the path in front of us, smelling
all the various bushes and the markings left by other dogs.

‘You are so lucky, Logan.’

‘I am?’

‘Yes. This is such a wonderful place to live. Do you
walk here every day?’

‘I tend to walk Lucy twice a day. She is getting on
a bit now, which means sometimes we only go for one walk in the winter, as her
legs get a little stiff. On days like today we generally go out twice. I take
her here, as it is on our doorstep, but sometimes we go down the beach. It is
really peaceful and relaxing down there.’

‘You will have to show me sometime.’

‘I would love to. There is no rush. You will see it
a lot when you are my girlfriend.’

‘Aren’t I your girlfriend already?’

‘You are still married.’

‘I know...’ she sounded sad. ‘I decided to tell him
that I have found someone else. I will wait until he goes away this weekend and
then pack up my gear and move in with my parents. I will phone him when he
returns and tell him it is over. You and I can then be boyfriend and
girlfriend.’ She gave my hand a little squeeze. ‘I always dreamed of meeting a
caring man like you, Logan.’

I kissed her upon the forehead.

She did say the cutest things.

‘Can I ask you a question?’

‘You can ask me anything,’ I replied.

‘Who was that woman last night?’

A cold shiver ran down my spine. How did I describe
my relationship with Clarissa? How did I explain what she meant to me? I could
exactly tell her that we were fuck buddies, how shallow and horrible would that
make me look? I had to pick my words carefully. I didn’t want to ruin this
relationship, too.

‘That was my friend, Clarissa.’

‘She is just a friend?’

‘Well...’ I hesitated slightly. I let out a deep
sigh. Honesty was the best policy. There was no way I could even attempt a
relationship with Isabella if it was built upon a foundation of lies. ‘Clarissa
and I have known each other for a very long time. We have had an off and on
relationship for many years. Recently, we have been talking about going on a
few dates and seeing how things get on. I agreed to go out with her after I
found out you were married. I think I was so upset that I thought you betrayed
and tricked me I just wanted someone’s company.’

‘I can understand that. Finding out I was married
must have been a shock for you. Why was she so upset with you last night?’

‘We had agreed to go out this weekend. It was to be
our first official date. Last night, she was on a date with her ex-boyfriend
Tyler. She loves him and the two of them are constantly breaking up with each
other. The guy is a bit of a dick. I didn’t expect to see her last night. In
truth, I thought she would end up in bed with Tyler and the two of them would
work it out. I didn’t think she would come around to my house to confess she
wanted to be with me.’

Isabella stopped in her tracks.

‘She wants to be with you?’

‘Yes.’

‘That was why she stormed off when she saw me?’

‘Yes.’ I looked towards the ground.

‘Does she love you?’

‘I don’t know.’

‘Do you love her?’

I replied by shrugging my shoulders. ‘I don’t know.’

‘Do you love me...?’ This time it was her turn to
break eye contact.

‘Honestly?’

She nodded her head.

‘I don’t know.’ I could tell from the disappointed
look upon her face that she was upset by this answer. ‘I told you all about my
ex-girlfriend Samantha.’

‘Yes.’

‘You know what she did to me?’

‘I do.’

‘It is so difficult for me to trust anyone. It is
hard for me to put myself out there. I don’t know if I will be able to ever
fully trust someone after what she did. She killed my baby. The last few weeks
you and I have been talking for hours on end. We talk all freaking night.’
Isabella giggled. ‘We talk about our lives, our loves, our hates, our interests
and our families. We can talk for hours on end about pointless things. How many
other couples can do that? I am crazy about you. You are a really friendly,
kind, fun, intelligent, interesting and such a sexy woman. I love talking to
you. I love being in your company. I was so excited about our date. I never
thought we would end up in bed together. I was so happy by what we did, but
when your husband turned up I thought you were just like Samantha. I thought
that maybe I was just a play thing to you.’

‘That was never my intention.’

‘I know this now. I am crazy about you. I really am.
I just need time. I need time to get my head around the fact you are married. I
need to build up trust. It was just a shock to the system.’

‘I do love you,’ said Isabella. ‘These are not just
words. I do love you. You make me happy. I am not going anywhere, Logan. I am
going to leave my husband. I am going to be with you. I will spend every single
day proving to you how much I love you. I know you will love me back. I will
earn your trust.’

Chapter
Fifty-One: The World Goes On

***

I pushed the shopping trolley down the aisle, as I
searched for a bag of dog biscuits. Lucy was at that age where I had to get a
special kind. She had a very sensitive stomach. Isabella had returned home to
her husband. She would play the innocent housewife for a couple of hours. I
would see her tonight at some point. In a few days she would leave her husband.
I think I will believe that our relationship is possible when that actually
happens. Actions speak louder than words.

I found the biscuits and placed them into the
trolley.

I ticked “dog biscuits” off the mental shopping list
in my head. Next on the list was wine. I wanted to get something nice to share
with Isabella. I turned left at the end of the aisle and walked by a row of
checkouts. A young brunette smiled politely, as she walked on by. I smiled
back. The voice of doubted started to grow louder in the back of my mind, was
this really the day the world was going to end? It didn’t seem possible, or
realistic. I had been counting down the days in my dreams. Every single night I
would dream of the world ending. A voice would tell me I had X amount of days
left. I really believed that it was going to happen. I thought some kind of
nuclear war would happen and the world would be changed once and for all. As I
look around the super store I don’t see how it is possible. Nothing has
happened in the news. No one is worrying about the global situation. Yes. The
economy is fucked, but people aren’t walking around like the world is about to
end. People are going about their daily lives.

Was I wrong?

Are my predictions nothing more than graphic dreams?

Are my dreams nothing more than my brain trying to
process the events in my life?

Have I given these dreams such power over me?

What about Brendan? Was meeting him a coincidence?
How could we both dream the exact same things if they were not real? Why haven’t
other people been dreaming the same thing? Has a single person in this super
store ever dreamed about the end of the world? Why was it only Brendan and I?
It just doesn’t seem possible. It doesn’t feel like the end of the world. I
sometimes feel a sense of dread hanging over me, but today I feel good. I feel
happy to be alive. I am going to be starting a new relationship with Isabella.
This is a step forward in the right direction.

A thought occurred to me.

Are my dreams about the end of the world?

My dreams could be about the start of a new life?

Yes. My life with Samantha has finally come to an
end. Isabella could be what the dreams are about. It cannot be a random
occurrence that she is now in my life. The woman looks like she should be a
movie star. She is funny, cute, intelligent and interesting. She is everything
and more. I sometimes wonder why she is with me. I am nobody. I am nothing. Is
this what the dreams are about? Have I had the interpretations wrong? It wasn’t
about the world ending. It was about starting my new life with Isabella.

It did beg the questions.

What about the gun?

What about the dead bodies?

What about all the blood?

It didn’t matter. In ten hours it will be midnight
and this day will be over. The countdown is on. In ten hours the day of prophecy
will come to an end and my new life with Isabella will begin. It is only ten
hours. I just need to get through the next ten hours.

Chapter
Fifty-Two: Breaking News

***

The drive back home was always very pleasant. I was
lucky enough to live out in the country, which meant I could take the scenic
route home. Outside of town were several farms, which have some really strange
and beautiful animals. One farm always interested me. It had a field filled
with cows, but these were not just any cows. They were highland cows. They
looks liked miniature wholly mammoths. Well, in my opinion they did. My family
never could see the comparison. I just found them amusing, which was why I
always came by this way whenever I returned from the city centre.

‘Breaking news,’ said the voice of the reporter on
the radio. ‘A truck filled with explosives has been detained in New York this
morning. Police have arrested the driver of the vehicle. Stay tuned for more
information.’

It was a terrorist attack?

Was this part of the apocalypse?

Was this how it all started?

I could feel my heart starting to throb within my
chest. I had to get home. I had to get online and find out what was happening.
This couldn’t be happening. It isn’t fair. I am finally happy. The end of the
world cannot happen. I pressed my foot down the accelerator and sped down the
country lane. If this was the end of the world, and my dreams were true, then
there must be a way for me to stop it.

Chapter
Fifty-Three: Six Hours until Midnight

***

The day drifted by, as the countdown continued. In
six hours the day of the apocalypse would be over and I will be free of these
damn dreams. I just had to get through the next six hours without anything bad
happening. The truck bomb had been defused and removed. The suspect was part of
a terrorist organisation, but the police believed that he was working alone.
New York City and all of the United States of America were on alert. It would
have to be a genius terror attack to crack the heightened security. If that was
the catalyst for the apocalypse, did that mean the end of the world would not
happen?

I picked up my cell phone and glanced at the screen.

I was kind of hoping Clarissa would call me.

She hadn’t.

Maybe I should call her? I am the one that is in the
wrong after all. Should I explain about Brendan, and how I was drunk and upset?
Did that justify me sleeping with Isabella? What if she asked me to stop seeing
Isabella? Would I? Could I? Did I want to? I have strong feelings for Isabella.
Last night and this morning were so nice. It felt like I was starting to have
some form of normality in my life again. I don’t want to lose Clarissa. She
means so much to me. I like her so much. I am so attracted to her. I could be
happy with either of these women. I didn’t want to lose Clarissa as my friend.
I should call her. I should call her and let her swear at me. She will be
pissed for a while, but I know she will forgive me.

I picked up my cell phone and called Clarissa.

It rang twice then she answered. I was met by silence.

‘Clarissa?’

‘What do you want?’ She sounded incredibly pissed.

‘I wanted to see how you are.’

‘Why?’

‘I care about you.’

‘Fuck off, Logan. You care about getting laid.’

‘No. Last night was a mistake.’

‘You couldn’t wait until the weekend? You had to go
fuck that bimbo?’

‘It wasn’t that. I was upset about a friend of mine
that...’

‘Fuck off. I don’t believe I actually trusted you. I
thought you and I were going to make this happen. You are just like every other
guy. You say one thing, but all you really want is sex. Don’t call me anymore.
I am not your friend. I hate you, Logan.’ It felt like someone was stabbing a
knife into my chest. Hate was such a powerful word. I knew she would be upset,
but what can I say to this? How could I make Clarissa like me again?