Mark, in the middle of a monster-infested forest, surrounded by what was effectively a death-sentence, was staring at technology. Not just any technology, evidence that there were other people out there, maybe even civilization.

Because right in front of him, there was a door.

“What the fuck?” He shared a glance with Veronica as they approached, her phone providing the illumination needed to avoid tripping on their way further into the cave.

The flat piece of furniture was embedded into the cave wall. It was made out of dark wood, simple and flat, with no decorations or grooves. It would’ve been easier to call it a plank if not because there was a wooden handle on the side. Mark reached out and twisted it, pulling the door open.

“Well, it’s not Narnia,” Veronica spoke with a dry chuckle.

On the other side, there was a short corridor, made out of compacted earth. There were also wooden beams every two meters, clearly meant to keep it all standing. It almost looked like an incomplete mineshaft that was only a dozen meters long or so. And within this tunnel, there was one thing that stood out above all else.

A big metal door. The second door they’d witnessed today.

Unlike the wooden plank they’d just stepped through, this door was intricately made. Whatever material it was made out of, it was a light bluish hue. Most surprisingly was how the surface was covered in little runes and symbols that Mark was quite sure he had never seen before in his life. “Do you know what these are?”

“Not a clue.” Veronica’s eyes were wide as she leaned forward, fingers caressing the surface. “Huh, it tingles.”

Mark arched a brow, but did not move to touch the door. The last thing he needed was some surprise. So he shifted his attention to figuring out how to open it. There was a handle on the side. Wrapping his hand in cloth, he reached out and squeezed, trying to yank and then to push. But no luck.

Veronica laughed bitterly. “Go figure that the first sign of civilization we find is a locked door we can’t open.”

“Maybe it needs a riddle to open,” Mark muttered, scratching the back of his head. “Like those fantasy doors or whatever.”

“Never took you for being someone that read fantasy.”

“I didn’t. That was…” A slight drop of his shoulders as he sighed, eyes feeling heavy all of a sudden. “… That was Barry.”

“Well, whatever, he’s not here, we are.” She pressed her palm against the metal, moving it up and down over the runes. “If this shit is locked, then that must mean there’s something of worth behind it.” With a short laugh, she traced several of the runes with her fingers. “Maybe some old dusty books and a rusty sword.”

“I think the place isn’t as unused as you think it is.”

Mark followed his words by pointing at the ground. There were footprints in the dirt, moving in and out, and through the area the door occupied. Clearly, someone had been there and not that long ago.

“Oh shit, you’re right.” The young woman rapidly crouched to get closer. “These look like girl feet.”

“You can tell?”

“I worked in a shoe store. These are girl shoes. Shit soles tho,” she muttered, rubbing her choker for a moment. “I think we should stick around and wait for whomever went through here.”

He grimaced at the suggestion. Was this a good idea? Could they trust whomever was going to show up would help? “I’m not too sure.”

“Do we have a better alternative?” Veronica arched a brow. “We’re lost in the woods, we don’t have a clue where civilization is, and I doubt we’ll be able to track these out there with the torrential rain.”

“We can’t stick around forever.”

It was as close to a concession as he was going to give, and judging by the way she looked at him, she seemed aware of it. So, with a sigh and a nod, she tossed her baggage next to the metal door. “Well, might as well get comfortable.” Veronica promptly ignored him. She opened her bag and pulled out her drenched clothes. She did her best to hang them from the beams on the low ceiling in an effort to get them dried up.

She proceeded to remove her clothes as well, going down to her underwear. Mark would have blushed if he wasn’t keenly aware of her every inch by now. The glow of the phone screen was the only source of light they had, and it cast her in a white light that made her skin all the paler.

“Like what you see?” She let out a bark of laughter, doing her best to dry her skin with her hands. But her touches slowed down as she noticed his attention upon her, turning into simple caresses.

And then a long shiver. She grumbled, lowering her head and sighing. “Fuck.”

“Cold?” Mark wondered with amusement.

“You’ll be too if you don’t strip off of that drenched thing.” She gestured at the only thing he wore, his pants. “At least getting dry will help me stop shivering.”

She was right, he knew. Staying drenched would end up with him being colder than if he were naked but not wet. So with a sigh, off his pants and shoes went. The socks followed, and soon enough, everything he had was left hanging from the wooden beams to drip and dry. It was the better option under the current circumstances.

Veronica didn’t miss a beat, moving in and removing her underwear as well, only the choker remaining right as she turned off the light from the phone. In the absolute dark around them, she stepped into his embrace. Her skin was ice, and it was hard to miss the shivering. His arms moved to wrap her into a hug as she held herself against him. “This sucks a lot less.”

“Yeah…” He didn’t know what else to say.

They stood there, in the dark, naked and cold, but at least not as wet. Mark awkwardly fumbled a little to adjust his position, and Veronica nudged him forward. Her ankle hooked against his, and they fell. The young man groaned from the impact. The woman straddled his hips but kept herself tightly in his embrace. “Happy?” He asked with a bitter growl.

“Just add some candles and a towel and I will be.”

The eye-roll went unnoticed in the dark. “Why do you keep doing that?”

“The teasing and sneering and little dumb remarks?” Her shoulders shrugged against his own. “Mostly to distract myself from the loss of a friend. Also works as a distraction from the looming reality that we might die in a shit-hole.”

“Now try the answer that’s not from a textbook.”

“It wasn’t, you jackass.”

“It’s hard to tell with you.”

“Yes, because you’re a blunt guy who’s thicker than cement and duller than a brick.” Snorting, she placed her hand on his chest. “Look, short of it is that I want to fuck for once without needing that stupid fruity Viagra.”

“Why?”

“Because reasons.” She slapped his shoulder. “It’s not like I’m going to record it and upload it as revenge porn or anything.”

“… I doubt I’d be able to stop you, anyway.”

“How generous of you. Now grab my ass with those warm hands of yours. I’m cold.”

She leaned forward, kissing him, softly and tentatively. Even her lips were cool, her touch pushing warmth within him. Mark obliged with her request, and indeed, her bare ass was as icy as she’d promised, but his kneading quickly solved that particular issue. She molded herself into him, stealing his warmth for her own, and igniting the flame in his body.

The day was long and dark, and the night longer still. Their time together grew more intense when they ate the purple fruit to get themselves something to quell the hunger. Every couple of hours, they would approach the lip of the cave and look outside. The deluge had not stopped, but it had slowed. In the darkness within the cave, their bodies became drawn to one another as the familiarity of their hands against each other slowly became ever bolder.

And after what might as well have been an eternity in this intermittent darkness, their supplies dwindled out and their energy felt as if it was following on that trend. The fruit had strangely enough kept them energetic even if hungry, but after two days of this back and forth, half-naked most of the time, and fully naked the rest… they were reaching the limit, they would have to head out to look for food again.

And on the morning of the third day, there was a knock at the door.