QSFer Ashley R. Singleton has a new lesbian spec fic romance out: “Evermore: The Following.”
How long until a lover meets their destiny as a human? How long until a meeting of fates? How long will their love last without falling prey to a deadly virus?
A destiny of many lovers rolls on until a darkness strikes them unawares. Will they survive to tell the tale?
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Excerpt
Erin closed her eyes and took a deep breath to steady herself as she sat on the bench. One bronze hand was clasped tightly around a picture of Rose and herself on their wedding day, the other nervously fingering her ring.
She looked at her watch, her hand sweaty and trembling. 2:05. The train was running late. Erin smoothed the front of her dress shirt and tie. She had picked her nicest clothes for the occasion. All the best to die in.
Erin looked around the station. The platform was empty except for a homeless man asleep in his ragged blankets and a single train attendant who was very busy cleaning the dirt from under his fingernails.
She let out a sigh, her body losing some of its tension. Erin tried to come at the least busy hour possible. She didn’t want too many people to be traumatized.
Erin studied the picture in her hand. The corners were bent and crinkled, her and Rose’s still smiles beginning to fade. It was the day of their wedding. Even with the fading, she still looked beautiful.
***
Erin remembered the day they had met. It was college, three days before finals. They had accidentally bumped into each other in the library, the books and papers they were holding had spilled onto the floor. When their eyes met, she knew that Rose was the one.
Erin smiled and touched Rose’s picture, a knot rising in her throat. Her eyes stung and began to blur. She wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her shirt and pressed her lips to the picture. I’ll be with you again soon, Rose.
A draft of wind and the windy roar of the train signaled that it was time. Erin stood, gripping the picture tightly. The train’s clunking filled the entire station. She took a deep breath and steadied herself. The train attendant looked up and noticed Erin standing. His eyes widened.
“Excuse me, miss?” he said, rising from his chair.
Erin turned away, began walking toward the speeding train, then broke into a run.
“Miss wait!” Footsteps ran behind her.
The train was upon her now. Erin squeezed her eyes shut. She thought of Rose’s laugh and how it brightened the room. Erin jumped.
***
Erin felt as if she was violently being sucked from her body by a vacuum. A deafening roar filled her ears. The roaring and the pulling continued for what seemed like forever. What was it like to die?
Then, just as suddenly as it came, it stopped. Erin opened her eyes to a white void.
She was sitting in her favorite red chair, it’s seat worn in exactly the right places. She played with the loose strings that hung off the chair. She looked around, but the only features were the chair and a screen in front of her.
“Hello?” she said. She looked around again, but found that she was alone. A sound in front of her made her whip her head around. Her earliest memory flitted across the screen. She saw her mothers’ and happy faces on her first birthday, her sister- Leanne- as she was brought into the world and her ma’s look of relief and joy.
Her first day at school, Rose’s proud face streaked with tears. Her grandmother’s funeral, her mothers clinging tightly to Erin and her sister. Her first day at college, the nervous excitement she felt in her chest as she walked onto campus for the first time. The day she bumped into Rose. Their first date, an evening picnic on a school roof. The day Erin proposed, and Rose tearfully accepted.
Their wedding. Their first night together. They had saved themselves for one night of passion. They moved as one.
Author Bio
Ashley Singleton is an author with many talents, such as rock climbing and music. She lives in the Midwest and enjoys the outdoors, and is also in love with her partner of 15+ years.
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