Willia

My life, for as long as I can remember, has always been divided into a before and an after.

Before The Phenomenon.

Before June fifth.

Then there's the after.

After June fifth.

After I found baby Jordan.

After I met Ollie.

After ten years.

"Do you think Jordan would like a book on bugs?" Ollie shouted from somewhere among the shelves.

His voice bounced off the walls of the abandoned library, echoing back to me.

"Just get him whatever," I replied, spinning around in the chair at the front desk. "You know he'll read it."

I only heard a quiet "Hmm" from Ollie in response.

The library was mostly empty. Most of the books were either gone or lying on the floor in torn pieces. I was surprised Ollie had even managed to find any books at all.

The sound of books dropping onto the desk startled me out of my spinning.

I glared at Ollie.

The boy rolled his eyes, brushing his strawberry-pink bangs out of his eyes.

It was getting too long. He was going to have to cut it soon. The scissors at home weren't very sharp, so we'd have to get new ones.

Ollie folded his hands. "I'd like to borrow these, please, ma'am."

I raised an eyebrow but slipped into the role easily.

It was the familiar game of pretend we'd been playing for as long as we'd known each other. Something to distract us from our fragmented reality.

I cleared my throat, pushed my glasses up and pitched my voice a little higher.

"Let's see what you have, sonny."

Ollie rolled his eyes.

There were three books in total. One on bugs, a book on American history, and a picture book written entirely in French.

I snickered. No wonder no one had taken it.

But still, Jordan would love it.

He was ten now and getting increasingly curious about everything and anything. And since there weren't any schools left, we'd have to get him books.

Even though there were hardly any books left.

"Nice getting him the French book," I said, looking up at him. "It'll at least keep him busy for a while."

Ollie rolled his eyes. "He's a fast learner."

Then he picked up the books. "And you broke character."

He turned around and headed towards the exit. I immediately stood up and followed.

As we stepped out of the abandoned library and into the streets of Adam, I made sure to adjust my hoodie over my head.

The streets were mostly empty, and the sky was gloomy.

It was like the sun had disappeared along with the women of the earth.

Well, all the women except me.

Ollie and I strode through the quiet streets of what used to be Queens, now called Adam. Past abandoned stores, stalls, cars and buildings.

It had been ten years, but it still managed to shock me how eerie these once-bustling streets were.

We passed a few people along the way. A man pushing a cart filled with what looked like scrap metal, two boys arguing over something I couldn't quite make out, and an elderly man sitting outside what used to be a pharmacy.

Nobody paid us much attention.

That was one of the things I liked about Adam. People generally minded their own business. Of course, there were exceptions, but it was best not to think about those.

Ollie adjusted the books under his arm. "Do you think he'll like them?"

I glanced at him. "You asked me that already."

"I'm asking again."

"Then I'll give you the same answer. Yes, Ollie. He'll like them."

"Even the French one?"

"Especially the French one."

He smiled.

We continued down the street until the buildings became fewer and the roads narrower. This part of Adam was quieter, with fewer people wandering around. Most of the houses had been abandoned for years, their windows broken and their gardens swallowed by weeds.

Some people had made homes out of the old buildings. Others had built their own little shelters using whatever they could find.

We kept walking.

Our house was a little further away, tucked behind a thick collection of bushes and overgrown trees. You wouldn't notice it unless you knew where to look.

It wasn't much to look at. The roof needed fixing, one of the windows was permanently covered with wooden boards, and the front door creaked like it was trying to announce your arrival to the world.

But it was our house. It was what has kept us sheltered for a long time.

Ollie pushed aside a few branches, revealing the narrow path leading to the house.

"After you, Your Majesty."

I gave him a look. "Such manners."

"I try."

I ducked under the branches, careful not to let them catch on my hoodie. Ollie followed behind me, pulling the bushes back into place once we were through.

The house was quiet, too quiet especially because a ten year old lived in it.

"Jordan?" I called. There was no answer.

I exchanged a glance with Ollie. "Jordan, we're home!"

Still nothing. Islipped off my backpack and placed it beside the door.

"That boy better not have fallen asleep again."

"He's ten," Ollie said, setting the books on the table. "He's allowed to sleep."

"Not when he promised to help me sort the supplies."

"He also promised to become a dinosaur last week. I don't think we should hold him to every promise he makes."

I stared at him. Ollie just shrugged.

I shook my head and walked further into the house.

"Jordan?"

"Stop yelling," Ollie hushed, carefully dropping the books on the rikety coffee table in the middle of the room. "If he's actually sleeping you're going to wake him up."

But the next second, a set footsteps came bounding down the hallway and Ollie appeared.

He was dressed in a faded black hoodie with a peeling sticker of spider and grey shorts.

"See," I said walking up to Jordan and ruffling his hair, "he wasn't asleep. What you up to buddy?"a

Jordan held up a paper to me. I took it from him and he immediately went to the books on the table.

Ollie dropped into a crouch to talk to him.

I examined the paper. It was a list of the supplies they needed, written out in Jordan's crooked hand writing. He had divided the list into different categories. Food, cleaning supplies, medicine and other things.

There were even little boxes beside each item.

"Did you make this yourself?"

Jordan nodded enthusiastically. "I thought it I did it. That way you wouldn't have to stress yourself too much."

"That's actually very helpful," I said, giving him a grateful smile. "Good job, buddy."

His face brightened. "Does that mean we can get some biscuits?"

I looked at the list again. "Are biscuits on here?"

He shook his head. "Then why are you asking?"

"Because I want biscuits."

I pressed my lips together, trying not to laugh. Ollie though, had no qualms and snorted.

I rolled my eyes. "He's getting mouthy."

Ollie gave me a look. "Wonder where he learnt that."

I ignored him.

Jordan, apparently having decided that the two of us were no longer worth listening to, picked up the book about bugs and started flipping through it.

I folded the paper and tucked it into my pocket.

"Alright. Let's see what we can do about those biscuits."

Jordan immediately looked up from his book. "Really?"

"Don't get too excited. We still have to find them."

He grinned and returned his attention to the book.

I watched him for a moment before looking around the room.

Our house wasn't particularly big. It had two bedrooms, a small kitchen and a living room that had seen better days. The furniture was a mismatched collection of things we'd found over the years, and there were more blankets than actual cushions on the couch.

But it was warm and was safe. And in the world they currently lived in, it was the only thing that mattered.

"Did you eat?" I asked Jordan.

Jordan nodded, not looking up from his book. "Beans and bread."

Ollie scrunched his nose in disgust. "Add eggs to that list. It's like the third morning you've had that for breakfast."

I rolled my eyes.

Ollie stood and stretched his arms over his head. "I'm going to check the water."

"Alright."

He disappeared down the hallway, leaving me and Jordan in the living room.

I walked over to the coffee table and picked up the French picture book.

"Do you know what language this is?"

"French."

I looked at him. "How do you know?"