crack_van | Flicks, by pink

FANDOM: LIFE ON MARS
AUTHOR:

pink_bagels
AUTHOR’S FIC SITE: Pink_Bagels’ LoM Fic Tag
PAIRING: Sam/Annie (sort of)
LENGTH: 24,262 words (over the course of 8 parts)
WHY THIS MUST BE READ: Given the central conceit of Life on Mars, it’s reasonable to expect that Sam Tyler, as explored in fic, will make occasional references to Special Knowledge of the Future That Only He Can Have. Hell, he does that in canon. But this fic takes this idea just that little bit further, and is brilliant with it. Take a read and watch

pink_bagels wreak merry havoc with your senses; it’s an horrific and suspenseful ride that’s well worth taking.

“Do you think you'll get scared?”

The cinema was packed to full capacity, a rarity that Sam hadn't experienced since he was a kid going to see The Empire Strikes Back. His Aunt Helen had taken him, and he'd strained to see over a large-haired woman in her thirties, hairspray molecules mingling with his popcorn. That was possibly the last time he'd truly felt the magic of a movie theatre, the quiet hush that overcame the audience as the thick, red velvet curtains opened in complex layers, revealing the massive window into another world beneath.

“Blimey, it's crowded. I wouldn't have thought so, what with it being the day after Christmas and all.” Annie precariously balanced her tub of popcorn on her arm, her steps wobbly as the theatre porter shone his flashlight ahead of them, guiding them to an empty set of seats. Sam was behind her, brandishing a couple of cups of flat, sickly sweet soda, stray popcorn kernels getting stuck in the ridges on the soles of his shoes. He tried to kick them off, but only succeeded in shaking loose a bit of soda which now dribbled down the side of the cup. He could feel the corn kernel properly wedged, like a piece of glass or a stubborn pebble, and it made his steps uncomfortable, if not downright slippery on the painted concrete floor beneath them.

Annie had settled comfortably in a seat near the middle, and Sam sat beside her. There was a mutual exchange of soda, popcorn and shy smiles all around.

“Funny, them playing a film like this just the day after Christmas, don't you think? It's hardly uplifting. Considering the subject matter, I wouldn't half wonder why people would get upset.”

Sam shrugged at Annie's observation. “We didn't have to come and see it,” he said.

“Oh no, Sam, we had to! We simply had to!” Her eyes were dancing in the half light of the theatre, an animation within them that belied the intense intelligence that always hovered just on the surface of her person like a layer of soft, pink lipstick. “The papers have had a right time with it, and all my friends have been talking of it. I'd feel a right fool if I didn't get in some framework for my own opinions.”

Flicks

Flicks, by pink_bagels (PG-13)

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