A serial with a troubled development history, TDG is about a trio of girls coming of age in a colony that has lost touch with Earth. These girls have unique gifts that nobody understands yet. Even I don’t understand all of it, I just wrote the daily serial chapters. It leaves off abruptly – I ran out of audience and steam. But I really liked the setting, and the eventual romance.
Katie smelled fire.
She hurried to the backyard and found Ash there. He had cleared a circle and set up a crackling fire. He was tossing small books in, one after another.
Katie darted in without thinking and pulled out the least damaged one. “What are you doing!?”
“They’re old journals,” he said. “Something about the kids reminded me.”
She grabbed another, The fire licked her wrist and she hauled back. “Don’t burn them!”
“They’re dead weight. My life, years two to eleven in this planet’s calendar. I like reading as much as you do, but none of this matters anymore.”
It was the most she’d seen of him all month. She stared at the flames. “I’m a historian, Ash. I can’t approve of destroying the records of who you’ve been.”
“I can’t approve of being who I’ve been. Sorry.”
“What’s so bad about you? Honestly, I don’t see it.”
“You were there when I killed people. Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten.”
Did he think he was the one suffering? “Do you think I like this? Do you think I enjoy feeling this way?”
He clenched his jaw. “Like you’re living? Like imagining it on every surface in this damn town…gentler, if you want. Thorough. Slow. Again, and again.” Her heart throbbed under the spell of his voice. “But that isn’t something you care about. I understand that.” His lip twitched. “You don’t like it, and I need to go.”
“Don’t be obtuse!”
“If you think we should be apart,” and his voice cracked on the word, “don’t tell me you want me.” One eye, then the other. “If you tell me you don’t want me, I promise you, I can do one impossible thing for you in return.”
One thing, like letting this go. “Why do I have to do the impossible thing first?”
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