"WHAT'S THIS THING CALLED?"

                                   SANDERS, male, and JABLONSKY, female,
                                   climb onto a flat area- that may or may
                                   not resemble the counter of Little City-
                                   in the Antarctic wasteland.  They wear
                                   parkas- or some other available heavy
                                   coat.  They are exhausted.  Wind howls
                                   around them- or from a boom box under
                                   the counter.

                                   JABLONSKY carries a first aid kit.  She
                                   opens it and removes a utility candle
                                   and a box of matches.  She sets the
                                   candle up on the ground and rattles the
                                   box.  One match left.

                                   With SANDERS guarding it from the wind,
                                   JABLONSKY lights the candle and they
                                   proceed to warm their hands on it as
                                   best they can.

                                   A silent moment, and then:

                                   SANDERS
            D-Do you think we k-killed it that time?

                                   JABLONSKY
            N-Nothing c-could have survived th-that explosion.

                                   SANDERS
            Th-That's what T-T-Thompson said after the c-control tower.

                                   JABLONSKY
            N-Nothing c-could have survived th-that explosion.

                                   SANDERS
            O-Okay.

                                   Pause.

                                   JABLONSKY
            W-we're going to d-die here.

                                   SANDERS
            I kn-know.

                                   Pause.

                                   JABLONSKY
            D-Do you th-think we'll know wh-when we're d-dead, or will it
            b-be over b-before we kn-know it?

                                   SANDERS
            D-D-D-D-D-Dunno.

                                   Pause.

                                   SANDERS
            D-Doctor Jab-- Susan.

                                   JABLONSKY
            What?

                                   SANDERS
            Th-There's s-something I w-want to t-tell you.

                                   JABLONSKY
            Oh, f-f-f-fuck.

                                   JABLONSKY pulls out a pistol on puts it
                                   to SANDERS' head.

                                   JABLONSKY
            You were infected?

                                   SANDERS
            No!

                                   JABLONSKY
            You sure?

                                   SANDERS
            Yes!

                                   JABLONSKY
            Okay.

                                   JABLONSKY puts the pistol away.

                                   JABLONSKY
            Then what?

                                   SANDERS
            I. . .I. . .This is d-difficult.

                                   JABLONSKY
            T-Time is of the ess-ss-ence.

                                   SANDERS
            Right.  Yes.  I kn-know.  (Pause.)  I. . .l-love. . .you.

                                   JABLONSKY
            You wh-what?

                                   SANDERS
            L-L-L-Love you.

                                   JABLONSKY
            You're t-telling m-me th-this now?

                                   SANDERS
            I w-wanted to t-tell you s-sooner.  B-But I was scared.

                                   JABLONSKY
            The c-cold is g-getting t-to you.

                                   SANDERS
            No.  I always kn-knew I l-loved you.  I w-was j-just n
            nervous t-to s-say anything.  B-But h-having spent the last t
            twelve hours watching our f-friends and c-colleagues be s
            systematically assimilated by an unkn-kn-known alien species
            and then having to d-destroy them one by one has g-given me a
            b-boldness I n-never kn-knew before.

                                   JABLONSKY
            You l-love me.

                                   SANDERS
            Y-Yes.  And I want to spend the rest of my l-life with y-you.

                                   JABLONSKY
            That's s-s-s-s-s-s-s. . .

                                   SANDERS
            Sweet.  Yes, I kn-know.

                                   JABLONSKY
            Stupid.

                                   SANDERS
            Stupid.  Yes, I kn-know.

                                   Pause.  JABLONSKY begins to cry.

                                   SANDERS
            Dr. . . .Susan?

                                   JABLONSKY
            L-L-L-L-Leave m-m-m-m-me al-l-l-l-lone.

                                   SANDERS
            I d-d-d-didn't m-m-m-mean t-to m-make y-you cr-cr-cr-cr. . .

                                   JABLONSKY
            Y-You didn't.  I-It's j-just. . .