Old School Cool

There weren't many places where a Martian could still find an old school cell phone still running off a non-quantum network. Fortunately for Gallus, such a phone existed at a run down old tech store across town. The tablet like device was chained to a table, and looked warn out and dusty. Gallus paid to rent the phone for an hour, and began to fidget with it's settings. After a crash course in ancient tech, Gallus figured out how to punch in a phone number and make a call.

He sat there awkwardly for a moment as the phone sang its strange electronic tune, awkwardly tapping one foot and glancing around the small shop nervously. Finally, he heard the cool and familiar voice of his acquaintance on the other end of the wireless connection. "Donald?" Gallus muttered, keeping his voice down.

"That depends, who's asking?" Donald replied, his voice stern and gruff. "Donald, it's me, Gallus, we met yesterday at the bar and you asked for some information and..." Gallus cringed in annoyance as Donald broke out into a bout of laughter. "I know, I'm just fucking with you. You think I use this phone often? I kinda figured it was you." Gallus sighed. "Anyway, I think I have some information for you."

"Damn." Donald replied. "Didn't expect you to snap so soon. I assume this is too sensitive to blab over a public phone." Gallus nodded involuntarily, even though no one was around to see it. "Yeah, meet me at The Dying Sun on Saturday, I have a lead we can check out." "Alright." Donald replied. "How do I know this isn't some kind of trap?"

Gallus groaned. "I've got better things to do then catch idiots who haven't actually committed a crime. I risked my ass today getting this info. You in or out?" "I'm in." Donald said. "And I like angry Gallus. He's actually got a pair. I'll see you this Saturday. Lay off the cruisers though, alright?" Gallus chuckled. "I think that was a one time occurrence. Didn't sit well with me in the morning. See you Saturday."

Gallus hung up the call, adrenaline rushing through his body. Nothing he had done that day was particularly exciting, but he feel tantalizingly alive. Even yelling at Donald had felt incredible, even if that was more of an anger reaction than an attempt at an adrenaline high. With the task completed, Gallus hurried home to see Rachel.

When the pod snaked its way to his house it was about 6:30PM, and Rachel was already inside waiting for him. She was sitting on the couch flipping through the daily news stream, her eyes darting up to meet his as he entered the room. For a moment, they both shared a brief smile, thrilled to see each other once again. After a moment though, Rachel's smile faded, and Gallus knew he was about to die.

"What the hell were you thinking Gally, getting shitfaced in the worst part of the goddamn city?" Gallus sighed. "Work has just been really tough, and I guess I wasn't acting like myself." She raised an annoyed eyebrow. "Work is always the excuse." "Work is always the reason." Gallus replied. He strode towards Rachel, and ran a hand through a lock of her long brown hair. "I'm sorry. I can't undo it."

Rachel let out a long sigh. "I know you can't undo it. I'm not happy about it, but... let's not let it ruined the evening." Gallus exhaled with relief. "I couldn't agree more." He sat down next to her and relaxed into the plush couch. "You seem wired." She noted, a tinge of concern in her voice. He smiled tiredly. "Life comes at you fast. Really, really fast." She ran a hand across his cheek. "Maybe you should put that energy to good use."

They locked eyes and he leaned in for a long, passionate kiss. The next thirty minutes were a flurry of adult activity, and Gallus found himself sharper and hungrier than he had been in a long time. Part of it was that he hadn't seen Rachel in a week or so, but there was something else too. He felt alive, and his body felt alive with him. One kiss had broken the dam of his lust, and he surged into the experience like an overflowing river.

Later, the couple lay exhausted in Gallus' bedroom. She curled up on his chest and he stared off into the ceiling, drinking in the afterglow of the experience. She laughed lightly. "You've been holding out on me all these years, huh?" Gallus chuckled. "I don't know what's gotten into me lately." "Well," She said. "Whatever it is, I like it. Minus you passing out in dive bars."

"Fair enough." Gallus said, a tinge of embarrassment invading his headspace. "Have you put anymore thought into where you want to get married?" Gallus shrugged. "I don't know, I don't feel stable enough right now. My job pays well and all, but I'm always worried about losing it. Besides, I don't know what planet we would even have it on." She frowned. "We'd have it on Mars, where we live. If your family wants to come, they're going to have to get on a laser line from Earth."

Gallus sighed. "I guess. I'm just afraid they won't come." "Don't worry." Rachel said. "I'm sure they would. And your job is safe, you're in oxygen, which is a pretty safe job here on Mars." Gallus was a bad liar, so he kept his mouth shut and just nodded in agreement. After a moment's silence, Gallus took his shot at changing the subject. "You know." He stated. "We were so busy having fun we forgot to eat dinner." His stomach growled on cue to accentuate the point.

"Hmm..." Rachel hummed. "I think your stomach gets flustered and hungry talking about the wedding." "C'mon sweetheart, the wedding will still be there after dinner, but at this rate, I won't be." Rachel laughed. "Alright, fine, but we have to make a decision eventually. We've been engaged almost three years now." "I know." Gallus replied solemnly. "And I'll get to it, I promise." He kissed her on the cheek and sat up. "But for now, dinner awaits."