Stranded

"Oh, I'm sorry," Astra said. "I'd quite forgotten for the moment that you were in the car. I'm on my way home. I live on the far side of the mountains, in a place called Aquaville, and it's a three hour drive, Should I drop you off somewhere?"

She had already told him that she wasn't attracted to him, but he wasn't prepared to give up that easily. "I haven't got anything that I ought to be doing," he said. "I'd quite like a drive through the mountains."

If Astra wondered how he expected to get home again afterwards, she did not say. Her only response was: "OK."

Ninety minutes later, they were going through a pass high in the mountains. The road was a small one that seemed to be very little used, and it was a long time since they had seen another vehicle. Though it was only early November, at this altitude it was quite cold. Astra's car's heater was broken, and Fred - in his bicycle pants and tight grey shirt - was feeling very chilly. Perhaps going with Astra hadn't been such a great idea after all.

Then he saw something that took his mind off his discomfort. "Look!" he said, pointing to a dark opening not all that far from the road though about a hundred feet above it.

Astra briefly took her eyes off the road. "It's a cave," she said. "Big deal!"

"It looks kinda eerie to me," Fred said.

"You reckon? Like in our dreams, I suppose? Well, remember that there are no dragons in the USA."

Before she could say anything else, the car's engine sputtered and then died altogether. "Damn!" she said. "I've had nothing but trouble with this car. I don't suppose you know anything about cars?"

"I'm afraid not."

"I'd better call for help on my cellphone, then... Oh, great! There's no signal. It must be blocked by these mountains on either side. We'll just have to wait for someone to come by."

Two hours later, they were still waiting. It was beginning to get dark, and it seemed to be getting colder all the time. A few flakes of snow were swirling in the wind.

"We could freeze to death before anyone finds us," Fred said. "Let's go and seek shelter in the cave. It should be relatively warm in there."

"Not too eerie for you, then?" Astra responded. She rummaged under the dashboard and took out a flashlight.

1. Soon they were entering the cave.

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