by Crist, J. D.
She went into the bathroom and found the towels in the linen cabinet. She set a couple on the sink for herself later and took one back to the downstairs bathroom. The house was becoming darker as the sun began to set, and the light that the one lamp was providing was proving not to be enough. Emily did not want to draw attention, though, if there were any dead still roaming the town. She set to work on closing the heavy curtains through the house. Once they were all closed, she set to work, turning on the living room lights. She then went into the bathroom and called for Marley. He came without hesitation, bounding into the room. He had always hated baths, but even he was excited for one at this point. Once he was in the tub, she began to scrub. It took half an hour to get him clean, but soon he was. She dried him down and placed his new collar on him, and watched as he ran out of the bathroom. She quickly cleaned the tub and floor and took the towel with her to the kitchen. She opened the basement door and looked down. She resolved to get a basket to put down at the base of the steps. For now, she tossed the towel down and allowed it to land on the floor.
She then looked at the clock in the kitchen that showed it was six-thirty. There was no time for her to shower yet. They needed to eat. She checked the meat and was relieved to see that it was thawed. She set to work on dinner and could hear Marley snoring in the living room. Once it was done, she served it on the kitchen island and filled Marley's bowls with food and water. At the sound of the food, he was awake and running into the room. They both ate their meals, and for the first time since the flash, everything felt completely normal. Once they had finished eating, Emily put away the dishes from lunch and washed the dinner dishes, leaving them in the strainer once again to dry. She then headed out of the kitchen, turning off the light. She considered maybe watching a movie but decided to head upstairs instead. She turned off all of the lights except the two table lamps, just in case she needed to come back down.
Once upstairs, Marley jumped right up on the bed and got comfortable. Emily headed into the bathroom and began to peel off her clothing, hanging Joe's lucky bandana off the hook in the bathroom. When trying on pants at the store, she noticed how tight her jeans were, but pulling them off again provided a fantastic sense of relief. Emily continued to remove her clothes and then turned on the shower.
While she waited for the shower to get hot, she looked down at her stomach. The indent marks from the tight jeans shone brightly on her waistline. She could not help but feel guilty about putting that much pressure on the baby. She then stepped under the warm water and stood there as it washed over her. She did not dare look down at her feet because she knew the water would be disgusting. She just wanted to stand here for a few minutes and enjoy this feeling. She decided to start with her hair. She lathered up the rich shampoo let it set for a few minutes and then rinsed. She knew she needed to rinse and repeat with as long as it had been since she washed her hair. She lathered her hair once more and rinsed. She then grabbed the conditioner and, despite the warm water, could not help but feel a shiver down her spine, thinking of how much her hair was going to have to soak this up. Emily allowed the conditioner to stay in her hair while she began the process of scrubbing her body. Halfway through the scrubbing process, she felt her body relaxing and energy-draining. The razors would have to wait for another day. Soon she was clean and rinsed, wrapping herself in a towel.
She looked up at the fogged mirror in front of her feeling the fuzzy bathmat under her feet. She had avoided looking at herself for months out of fear. She remembered that woman in the bathroom mirror at her house, and she knew that woman was not going to be in this one. She reached up and wiped away the fog with her hand. When she finished, she stood staring at the stranger who stared back at her for a long time. Her face was deathly thin, and her cheekbones looked as if they could tear through her skin at any moment. Her shoulders looked like the skin was draped over the bones, with nothing between them. Her belly was more prominent than it was, but everything else looked like she should have been among the dead. She leaned forward and ran her hand over the scar on her shoulder. Even now, she could tell it was a bite mark. She forced herself to keep moving. She unwrapped her hair from the towel and brushed it. Once done, she put the clothes in an empty hamper by the door and walked into the bedroom. She put on a fresh pair of underwear and a t-shirt.
She looked back at the bed where Marley already laid, still awake, waiting for her. She closed the bedroom door and locked it. Though she was sure there was no one alive here and that the dead could not open doors, she was not going to risk it just yet. She then turned off the lights and crawled into the bed next to Marley. She had forgotten how comfortable beds were. It was amazing how this mattress seemed to absorb her, and before she knew it, she was asleep.
Chapter 16
Emily woke the following day, forgetting everything that had happened and thinking she was back in her bed. As she opened her eyes and looked around, the truth came flooding back to her. Marley was still asleep, and if his snore had not drawn the dead in, nothing would. Emily reached over and pet him on the head, causing him to wake. He jumped down, stretched, and walked towards the door. Emily suddenly remembered that she had not let him out the night before.
"I'm so sorry. You probably feel like you're about to burst." Emily threw back the blankets and stepped out onto the cool floor. "Just give me thirty seconds." Emily made her way to the bathroom and barely made it herself. Once she finished, she considered getting dressed for the day, but Marley's dance by the door told her that he could not wait anymore. She unlocked the door and followed Marley as he ran down the stairs. He ran for the front door, and she followed, but instead of opening the door, she grabbed her crowbar and began to walk to the kitchen. Marley didn't hesitate and followed her to the back door. Emily unlocked and opened the door allowing the sunlight to pour through it, blinding her for a moment until her eyes adjusted. Marley seemed to have no problems as he bounded out the door immediately. Emily waited for her eyes to adjust and then scanned the backyard. It had a privacy fence around it, and the only gate seemed to be still closed. The yard was almost as big as the house and had several what looked to be fruit trees growing in it.
Emily left the door open and turned back to the kitchen. The clock on the wall said it was seven-thirty. The day had just begun. Emily filled Marley's food and water bowls and then made herself some toast. As she waited for the toast to cook, she remembered the girl she had seen in the mirror. That girl needed more than just toast for breakfast. She needed food. Emily began looking through the cabinets and found a box of flavored oatmeal packets. She had just chosen a strawberry packet when Marley came back through the door. Emily set the packet on the counter and closed the door. The toast popped out of the toaster, and Emily set it on a plate. She then grabbed a bowl, mixed the oatmeal and water according to the instructions, and put it in the microwave. She grabbed a piece of toast and began to eat while she waited for the time to run on the microwave. Behind her, she could hear that Marley was already enjoying his breakfast.
Emily had just finished her second piece of toast as the microwave timer went off. She opened the door and carefully grabbed the hot bowl. She set it down at the table and then turned to grab a spoon and close the microwave. As she sat back down, she could still hear Marley chomping down on his breakfast. Emily poked the oatmeal for a few minutes. She already felt so full from the toast. The image of herself in the mirror came back to her mind. Emily forced herself to take a bite and was surprised that she felt the hunger come over her. Perhaps she had just trained her body not to feel hunger after a small meal, but one bite of that oatmeal made her feel ravenous. She had to remind herself several times to slow down as she devoured the oatmeal.
The bowl was soon empty, and Emily could not help but feel happy about the feeling of a warm meal filling her belly again. She had enjoyed dinner the night before but had not allowed herself to overindulge. Most of it was stored in the refrigerator for dinner tonight. Just the thought of it mad
e her mouth start to water again. Emily feared that overeating too soon, though, would make her sick. Instead, she washed her bowl and spoon and put them in the strainer to dry. Marley had finished his breakfast as well and stood watching her while she did the dishes.
It was now eight, and Emily had to think about how she would spend her day. Her routine had been the same for months, but things would need to change now that she was here. She had reached her goal and found a place where her child could be safe. But now, she had to set out to find a way to ensure that they were the only ones here, dead or alive, find out what supplies they had or didn't have, and ensure that the food here would not run out. Emily could not help but feel overwhelmed by the changes, but that feeling quickly changed to excitement and determination. If only Chad could see her now, mayor of a town. An empty town, sure, but still the mayor. Emily laughed to herself as the thought went through her mind.
Emily looked down to remember she was still dressed in only the shirt she had slept in the night before. She made her way back upstairs and put on one of her new outfits. She did not have to wince in pain to get the pants on. This was enough to make her life complete. Once dressed, Emily made her way to the study and was happy to find notebooks in one of the drawers and pens in another. The way she had kept track of everything at work was with lists, and she felt that this was a list-worthy situation. Emily started by just writing everything she needed to get done in the long term. Some of these things included setting up a nursery, while others covered the town and learning how to farm. Emily turned the pages as things kept coming to mind. By the time she was done, she had three pages of things she needed to get done before the baby got here. Emily sat back and reviewed the list again and felt herself trying to become overwhelmed again. She glanced up at the clock on the wall to see she had been in here for two hours.
Emily forced herself to push back the negative feelings and rip her list out of the notebook. She had only a few months to get this done, and feeling sorry for herself wasn't going to help. She would not get anything outside done today. She was going to take her Christmas and make a plan. Emily then set to work making herself a daily schedule for the next week. She would follow it as much as she could and make adjustments the next week as needed. She knew she would need to check on the farm every day, and she wanted to get the nursery set up before she couldn't move the big items up the stairs. It would already be a challenge. She decided she would try to research hunting and farming, making looking after the farm productive. Emily decided it would be after lunch that she would walk the town and look for any death that may be wondering.
Once she had finished her schedule for the next week, she looked up at the clock to see that it was noon on Christmas. She felt excited like a kid as she made her way to the kitchen and reheated the pasta from the night before. The microwave seemed to be moving extra slow as she watched the seconds tick off one at a time. She quickly opened the door to retrieve her meal and began eating it as soon as possible. She again tried to remind herself to slow down, but it was hard to slow down after breaking the mental block of not feeling hungry when she was starving. Soon the leftovers were gone, and Emily sat enjoying the warm, full feeling in her belly.
She finally forced herself to stand and wash her dishes and add them to the strainer next to the oatmeal bowl and spoon. Emily then looked through the cabinets to see what she would like to have for dinner that night. She should have picked something that morning as all the meat was frozen downstairs, but she would need to be careful with her decision now. She had forgotten how many meals there were when you did not have to eat out of a can and could cook. The kitchen was fully stocked, and after several minutes, she had decided on sloppy joes. Not a gourmet meal but to her sounded like a five-star dish. She headed down to the basement, being sure to pick up the towel she had thrown down the night before and add it to the washer, and found a package of ground meat. She also grabbed a package labeled chicken and a loaf of frozen bread. Emily carried her finds upstairs and could not help but feel excited.
The chicken would be for tomorrow, so she slid it into the refrigerator. She then placed the ground meat into the sink to thaw and the bread on the counter. She hoped that both would be ready in time for dinner. There were several bags of chips in the cabinets that she would eat with her sandwiches. She was already following the list. Meal planning for the next day was one of the things on her schedule. Emily then made her way upstairs and opened the door to the room next to hers. The room was empty except for a twin-sized bed that was not made and a small dresser. This would be the one she would use for the nursery. She was sure the baby would share her room for a while, but she still wanted this space to be set up. Emily decided that she would leave the bed, her child would need it eventually, and she would push it against the far wall. The room was reasonably clean, and only a thin layer of dust could be seen on the dresser. It would not take her long to have it ready for the baby stuff to be moved in. Emily headed back downstairs and headed to the study. Marley laid on the floor in here, sure that she would be returning.
Emily looked through the bookshelves to see if maybe anything she needed was in here. Ronald had collected many books here, both fiction and non-fiction. As she looked through the spines, she noticed a few that she would like to read but forced herself to move on. As she made her way through the shelves, Emily saw that Ronald had wanted to educate himself on everything he may need to run the town. In addition to a fantastic collection of fictional works, he also had books on physiology, medicine, construction, agriculture, and many other subjects. Emily found that one of the bookcases was filled with journals and books. The books all appeared to be written by Ronald. She would need to add these to her reading list as they may have more information to help her run the town or perhaps protect her child.
Emily felt confident that she had enough reference material here to start learning how to take care of the farm and that she would not need to look for more in the town just yet. Emily looked out the study window and could see the fruit trees in the backyard, and Emily felt her mouth water at the thought of an apple. It was, of course, too late in the season for there to be any fruit on the trees, but Emily remembered seeing apple sauce in the kitchen. She turned back to the shelves and grabbed one of the books on agriculture. This one seemed to cover farmyard animals. Emily walked to the living room, placed the book on the table, and then retrieved her snack from the kitchen. When she returned, she found that Marley had changed positions and was now lying on the couch. Emily giggled as she sat down on the spot he had left open for her.
Emily ate her applesauce in silence, and soon the tiny cup was empty. She sat it on the end table and began to read her book. She slowly turned the pages, trying to absorb every detail she could from the words. There were many things to remember about milking cows, but the one fact that caught her eye was that cows could go dry if they are not milked regularly. The text said that there is a chance that if the cow gives birth, the milk can return, or even stimulating the utters can help. However, sometimes there is just no getting it back. She had been looking forward to fresh milk for both her and her child, but she would just have to see what happened. Emily sat for hours reading up on different farm animals, some sections she chose to skip as they pertained to animals that she did not see that day. If she saw some later, she would be sure to come back to it.
As Emily finished the book, she felt that her brain was heavy with all of the new information and that she could at least do primary care for the animals. She had seen a wagon at the farm and hoped to learn how to attached the horses to pull it, but it was not covered in this book. For now, at least, she would be walking and carrying everything on her own. She considered going to see if she could find a book that may have the information, but a glance at the clock showed that it was already after five. Emily stood from the couch and carried her book back to the study, and placed it back on the shelf. She then grabbed her cup and spoon from the side table and headed into t
he kitchen. Sensing that it was dinner time, Marley jumped down from the couch and followed her. Emily grabbed the meat from the sink and was excited to find it defrosted enough to cook.
Emily cooked her meal and refilled Marley's food and water bowls before sitting down to eat. She couldn't help but laugh that the two of them may get fat now that they could eat. Emily ate her sloppy joes and chips slower than she had her breakfast or lunch. The starvation phase of her eating seemed to be over, and now she could enjoy her meals. Once she felt that she could not eat another bite, Emily cleaned up her dinner dishes and added them to the strainer. She resolved to come back here later and put them all away so she could have a fresh start tomorrow. It was now seven, but Emily did not feel near ready for bed just yet. Instead, she made her way back to the living room and began to look at the DVD collection. The amount Ronald had collected was overwhelming. Much like his books, there were many fiction and non-fiction choices to choose from in the collection.
Emily looked at each title carefully and considered watching some documentaries about farm life but decided that she needed to relax if she could remember how. She stopped when she came across "It's a Wonderful Life." Her mother had made the family watch this every Christmas when she was growing up, and it was something that Emily had done even when she left home. Emily pulled the DVD from the shelf, deciding that this would not be the year she broke the tradition. She carefully put in the DVD and pressed the button on the TV. Emily sat on the couch as the TV sprung to life and its glow spread across the room. Emily found the remote and pressed play on the title screen. The opening credits started as Marley jumped back up on the couch and placed his head in her lap.
