"FWLS13" - читать интересную книгу автора (A Future We'd Like to See)

"Eroki?" a cautious voice behind me said.

"Thank you," I said to the sky.

"Huh?"

"Nothing," I replied. I switched back to the upset and
angry tone of voice he left me in. "So, are you going to
apologize?"

"Yeah," Fluki said, shuffling his sneakers on the wooden
floor. "I really was pretty insensitive there. I don't want...
us, to end that way, dudette. I always figured it'd be over if
one of us is hit by the flaming remains of a blimp, causing us to
be splattered and fried, and only if we couldn't come back from
the Other Side and--"

"I get the picture," I laughed. "And I'm sorry I got so
upset. We both acted like feebs, really, y'know?"

"Yeah. You can go home now, Benson," Fluki called behind
him. "Put the fireplace poker back."

"'bout time," Benson grumbled. Boy, he didn't look good at
all. Rings under his eyes, eyelids half closed, stains on his
pajamas. "That's that last time I led you crash at my pad
depressed. Didn't get a wink of sleep with all the yelling and
crying."

I looked oddly at Fluki, who tried to look away and avoid
being embarassed.

"I'll see you two at the club tonight," Benson said,
lowering the poker. "I'm going home for a good day's sleep."

"What was he here for?" I asked Fluki as Benson left out the
side door.

"Well, he led me here at poker point and threatened to
skewer me if I didn't apologize," Fluki mumbled.

"Hey!"

"I AM being sincere, though," Fluki protested. "I did act
like a weenie back there. It just took a large, restless black
man armed with a heated iron rod to point it out to me."

"The judges will now announce the third, second, and first
place winners of the MurfTech Art Compo, in that order," the