THE ARCHAEOLOGIST
It was cold the day everything changed for Jason.
He’d had to break the ice at the bottom of the pit that morning, and the sun was barely enough to thaw the permafrost enough to dig, and he’d called the shuttle to pick them up later in the day. Another season had come to an end, and Jason Beringer missed trees more than he’d ever thought possible.
That was a lie.
Jason knew exactly how much one could miss trees after six weeks of flat tundra. He’d been excavating parts of the Canadian arctic for nigh on three years. Not that he regretted his choice of thesis topic, “Influence of the Thule on the Shamanistic and Subsistence patterns of the late Dorset People” was a fascinating subject. Certainly more intriguing than the project he had worked on for his professor, back in Undergrad. “Palimpsest of Occupations: the effects of changing occupation on Abbey Chaalis.” Really, there were SO many different studies on early modern europe. One always risked being incredibly derivative when working in Europe, or stepping on someone else’s toes, with all the Academic risk that THAT involved. Still, Jason did appreciate the experience. It had been his first dig, after all, and Professor Gargan had been incredibly old, and so likely didn’t care about his academic reputation all that much.
Yes, Jason Beringer loved what he did, and couldn’t imagine ever wanting more.
A hum in the distance broke his revery. Spinning, he saw the silver glint of the shuttle sent to pick them up. Grabbing the gun that he’d left at his side and climbing down the ridge overlooking the camp, he called out to the Undergrads who were working to break down the tents.
“They’re almost here! How are we doing?”
“Just gotta get the Alchemy Oven broken down and fill in the outhouse pit. We should be ready to go in just a few minutes.”
The hum of the shuttle got louder, and it finally crested into view over the ridge, just as the last of the camp had been broken down. The oblong shape settled softly, hovering just above the ground, and Jason and the others worked together quickly to load up the camp. Still, it was getting increasingly cold and dark, the sun almost reaching the Horizon on its journey across the sky.
The flight back to Charleston was a quick one, a bare three hour jaunt out of the stratosphere and then back down, and by the evening, Jason had showered, shaved, and had corralled his exhausted undergrads out for a night on the town.
It was after his first pint that he saw her.
It was before his second that he met her.
She had been standing with some friends at a corner of the bar, talking, and when he saw her, the rest of the bar faded away.
For a moment, she seemed to stand in a dark void, illuminated from above by divine light.
She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen: a bit short, with long black hair, a smattering of freckles across her cheeks and nose, and the brightest smile he had ever seen.
As if by some divine providence, she looked around, just as he managed to recover mobility. Their eyes made contact, just for a second, and she gave Jason a very small smile, before her eyes moved on. The bar snapped back into focus, as did the amused smiles of Jason’s companions.
“I’ll get the next round.” Jason said, getting up and heading towards the bar.
“And the next one!” one of his companions called to him as he walked away. “You owe us! Six weeks without showers or beer, you’re getting ALL the beers tonight.”
She was at the bar when he got there.
“Hi! I’m Stephanie!” He almost jumped when she spoke, her hand extended to shake his.
Jason didn’t bring back the beers. He spoke with Stephanie for hours, even as the bar emptied up around them.
They went home together, that night.
And that night turned into a week, and then a month, and then a year, and then years. They built a life together, bought a small house in Iowa. Jason taught archaeology at a local university, and Stephanie finished medical school, getting a position at a hospital. The late shift, helping the dissolute and the drunk.
They did not see much of each other, their schedules on opposite clocks, but they made sure to spend at least some time together everyday, either before his day, or before hers.
They knew this was only temporary. That she would get a better schedule, and they’d be together always.
They were paying their dues, and their deserved reward would come.
It was a life that promised to be a good one, would be happy. There would be children, and grandchildren, and then, when they were old and content, they would die together. One could have been forgiven for thinking it too perfect, but there’s no such thing as too perfect, Jason thought.
But then, one cold winter night, when the stars shined brightest in the sky, everything came crashing down.
The phone call came in the early in the morning. Stephanie had been working late, and the road was icy, and nobody had found the car for too many hours, and it was too late.
And Jason died.
For months, Jason stayed dead, barely going through a pale imitation of life.
He tried to drown his sorrow in liquor, but they just came back bigger and badder when the alcohol wore off. He threw himself into his work, published two groundbreaking books. He tried to get rid of everything that reminded him of her, sold the car, sold the little house, quit his job, but it was for nothing. EVERYTHING reminded him of her. A woman’s laugh, a flick of black hair seen from the corner of his eye, the taste of peaches, the touch of the wind on his cheeks.
He thought about ending it more than once. It was only the thought of her disappointment that made him put the gun down.
It was one night that he made his decision, as he lay in the darkness looking up at the stars. If everything on earth reminded him of her, then he had to leave earth. The War in Space, which had not really affected him or anyone he knew, had just ended, but surely the Academy would still be looking to replace its losses.
Without telling anyone, not his family, not her family, not his friends, not her friends, he quietly sold everything that was left. Everything but the pictures of her he had, and signed away his death in exchange for a new life.