She was quiet, thinking about it. It wasn't really the time to talk about it. But she noticed something on the corner of her dress that made her blood run cold.

Maybe she had been listening, faintly, unable to really turn her attention away. It seemed impossible, because even she shouldn't be able to hear the running sand that would tell her when her life would end. But as Gene spoke, she felt a sudden heaviness, and turned to look back.

The hourglass was empty. But she felt nothing. She expected something right away, so at first, she smiled with relief. It was just a game, all you had to do was sit and wait and--

It was hot.

Just all of the sudden, it was hot. So she dropped her glass, letting it spill all over her tablecloth as she stumbled back and away from Gene. She saw it, just on the corner of her dress and tried to pat it out, but it didn't go away.

"Oh, no. No, nonono--!" She had come with the picnic in hand knowing that she would die. She had resigned herself to that. But when it came to it, she didn't want to die. Especially not this way. Already, she could feel that flame searing her flesh and it hurt. And it was getting larger and larger.