By-Passing Time

Huddled against the open brilliance of a burning morning sky, six survivors sit, staring at the multitudinous food spread between them. Stephen, their impromptu leader, speaks: "Eat as much as you can. Once we hit those cliffs, we’re not going to want to carry it on our backs."

"Leave what you can’t carry. I’m staying." Cheryl stands, wiping her eyes with a trembling hand.

Worried protests are stymied by Stephen’s upturned hand. "She’s right."

"I’m too weak!" Cheryl laments. "There’s no way I can consume enough calories.

"If only that damned by-pass surgery had been scheduled for the week AFTER…!"