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in, icy and soaking, coming down even harder as she sat upon the weathered wood. Her jeans were long since soaked on
Roding, the gentle slope there affording one at least a hint of privacy. The corner of Roysten
d to call them quid. It had never sounded right, and not just because she was an American. Calling dollars "gre
s, another point in the location's favor, and the driving rain wasn't
orphan girl from Spokane, Washington had found herself on a dr
o tag along with her on an extended summer trip to the UK with her father hadn't been the smartest de
gnize her former friend. Shana though had been her last lifeline in the UK, and ever since, Rose had been riding couches, bumming a spare
the very bench now freezing
o another as part of Greater London metro. There was a shimmer off to her left, toward the water, and she peered in vain in its direction. But there was nothing there. It reminded her of the glint of passing headlights off the rippling surface of water. It wasn't the first time she'd seen it, and the first few times she'd assumed it was a play of city lights against the current. But with the pouring rain, the shimmer shouldn't have been there. "Who cares?" she muttered. "You're probably hallucinating from lack of food, you idiot." Her stomach growled angrily, as if on cue, and she wrapped her arms around her belly, trying to decide if she wanted to spend her last bit of money on this Earth for a little something to eat. "Bum a fag, love?" She almost fell off the bench, her heart in her throat, the softly spoken words taking her utterly by surprise. The voice was familiar - which wasn't a good sign. His tall, gaunt form was plastered with a rain-sodden bright blue windbreaker, the hood pulled tight about his face in a way that made it impossible to make him out. "You want to smoke? In this?" She shook her head, looking up. "Even if I had one, we'd never be able to light the damned thing. Maybe try building an ark or getting a clue. Either way, better use of your time." An acid tongue could chase off most of them, and she hoped it would work this time too. She didn't have the energy for a
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