Blood Moon by Gwendolyn Harper (books for students to read .TXT) 📕

it just me, or is that water gettin’ colder?” He asked, shutting the door behind him.

Caitlin dragged the stitching of his shirt between her fingers. “We think the generators are running low on fuel. We could go search for more…” She swallowed. “Or…”

He paused, waiting for her to finish.

“We could start thinking about moving on.”

Booker made a soft grunt at the back of his throat. “Y’think that’s the right idea?”

“Well, we never planned on staying here permanently,” she said, still worrying with his clothes. “Right?”

Slowly, Booker lowered himself onto the edge of the mattress. He might’ve made it out of the woods, but he was still exhausted and weak. Dark crescents under his bloodshot eyes only made it more obvious how close he’d come to knocking on Death’s door.

“This place…” he started, leaning forward on his knees. “It’s shelter. A roof over our heads, comfortable places to sleep, we’re far enough away from the city—”

A coughing fit interrupted him, and he hunched over as it passed.

“Here,” Caitlin murmured, rushing to hand him the water glass left on the nightstand.

“’M alright,” he croaked.

“Please, Jack.”

Relenting, he took it, swallowing half the contents before pushing it back towards her.

The resounding silence was crushing. Caitlin couldn’t take it.

“We don’t have to talk about it right now,” she whispered, refolding his tee shirt. “We still have some time.”

Booker nodded, staring at the floor between his feet.

Draping his clothing over the footboard, Caitlin offered a tense smile and backed towards the door.

“I’ll just go rustle up something for breakfast.” She gripped the doorknob tightly. “I’ll be right back.”

“No need,” he said. “I’ll come down.”

“Booker—”

“Cae, if I have to stay in this pastel bedroom for one more hour I’mma lose my damn mind.”

Despite the ache in her chest, she grinned. “Geez, alright,” she said. “Don’t get all dramatic.”

As she turned, she swore she saw him smile.

* * * * * * *

Ever the pragmatist, Nicole started several lists on the dusty magnetized grocery list pad taken off the side of the fridge. The cheery farm animal design at the top was nearly ironic given the topics written on each page.

Pros and cons of staying.

Pros and cons of leaving.

Pros and cons of searching for friends and family.

Caitlin stared at the closest paper as she chewed her tasteless beans and canned meat.

Finding their loved ones seemed so far out of reach. A naïve pipe dream that should be left to fade like smoke.

The pros listed under leaving were lengthy.

If they headed west, the population would be thinner, and the abundance of land would offer plenty of opportunities to build a more permanent camp or homestead.

Southern California was an option, if only for the better weather conditions. Hot summers and mild winters were more agreeable than the brutal cold of the fly-over states.

The pros of staying were logical.

They could fortify the house. Build a larger perimeter to keep herds out.

Having permanent shelter was the biggest draw. Beds, bathrooms, running water until the municipal facilities quit running.

They could attempt to make a life for themselves again.

The third list was the shortest, but it still pulled at Caitlin’s gut.

Find our friends and loved ones.

She read it over and over, until it felt seared into the backs of her eyes.

Was it worth it to even try?

“If we stay, we’ll need to figure out how to keep this place running,” Nicole said, tapping the end of her pen on the paper. “Closest stores for supplies, generator fuel, gasoline, better food…” She punctuated the last sentiment by letting the gelatinous bean mixture fall off her fork.

“Could set up a radius grid,” Booker said, sipping his Gatorade. “Start by going ten miles out, then fifteen, and so on until we know what’s around here.”

“That could take days, maybe even weeks if we can’t find more gas to syphon,” Nicole said. “We might not have enough fuel in the generators for that.”

“At least we’d have a home base,” he countered.

Nicole nodded. “True. We could make do for a few days without the stove.”

As the others grew quiet, Caitlin was acutely aware she was being watched.

Glancing up, she frowned. “What?”

Booker shifted in his seat. “Nothin’,” he said. “Just you usually have a pretty strong opinion about these sorts of things.”

Her shoulders went stiff as she turned back to her meal. “Not today I don’t,” she muttered.

“Well, if it were up t’you, what would you do?”

Caitlin scraped her fork against her plate, finishing what was left. “It’s not up to me,” she said, standing up. “Majority rules.”

She felt them stare at her as she began rinsing her dish.

“Caitlin, do you want to stay? Go west?” Nicole asked. “Or do you still want to try looking for people?”

Sighing, she looked over her shoulder. “Don’t patronize me.”

“I’m not. I know New York is gone, but you thought it was possible to find others and we all agreed—”

Shutting the water off, Caitlin faced them.

“Do you really think I’m stupid enough to believe that’s still an option?” She snapped. “Our city is overrun with Geeks, no one knows where our families are, and we’re thousands of miles away.”

Booker scowled. “Meadows…”

“Don’t,” she cut him off. “I was clinging to hope before, but turns out hope is a very heavy load to carry.” Folding her arms over her chest, she shook her head. “So I’m dropping it.”

Anger flashed in Nicole’s eyes.

“I guess that means I have to pick it up then,” she said.

“What?”

“Scott is still out there, Caitlin,” Nicole snapped, pointing towards the door and the outside world. “My husband. Or did you just forget about him?”

“Of course I didn’t—”

“You think it’s easy for me to sit around here and