These Last Days

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter 19

Hailey pressed her forehead against the cold glass of the window, staring out at the skyline. The tall buildings of Chicago stood tall in the distance, blotting out the darkening sky.

They were terrifyingly close to the city now. The road between them and the first skyscrapers of Chicago was now nothing more than a few dozen miles' stretch of highway, populated by tiny drugstores and supermarkets and some sparse apartments. They had passed by all of them in their little convoy, slipping by quietly, grateful to not disturb whatever may be waiting inside them.

So far as she could tell, however, the outskirts of the city seemed no more dangerous than anything they'd encountered on the road so far, but that just made the pit of anxiety in her stomach grow heavier. It felt like the universe had something worse than all of it waiting for them in there. She couldn't shake the feeling that all of this- this disaster, pandemic, or the dreaded word "apocalypse" (Steve had put a ban on that word because it seemed to send Abigail into a spiral)- was about to become a lot more real as soon as they crossed past those city limits in the next day or two.

But for now, they were safe inside the walls of a CVS pharmacy, situated in between a ramshackle old bar called Fat Tim's and a movie theater that looked like it hadn't opened its doors in forty years. Getting inside was easy enough, and there had been no problems with any infected.

Hailey backed away and pulled down the blinds on the window. It was the only one in the building, so that and the door were the only points of entry- there wasn't even a back door in this place, much to Terries's liking; it was the only place he needed to focus his attention on while he kept watch at night. But it made Hailey feel like she was trapped more than anything. Only one little door to exit out of in case of emergency. Better hope there's not a fire tonight.

She turned around and surveyed the drug store. Across a few aisles, in the "Family Planning" section of the store, were Steve and Rosemine. They murmured to each other under the fluorescent lights, giggling and smiling. Eventually, Rosemine took notice of Hailey's watching and motioned for her to come over.

Hailey walked over to them. Along the shelves were all types of baby products like toys, powders, formula, and diapers. Steve carried a shopping basket filled with items of that sort, and was holding up a small, travel-sized paperback copy of a Hardy Boys book.

"I'm just saying," Steve said, "I think he'll be a reader. He'll like it."

"Babies don't know how to read, Steve." Rosemine smiled and took the book, flipping through the pages. "Maybe when he's older, we can start getting him books."

Steve picked up a Dr. Seuss's Oh, the Places You'll Go! from one of the shelves. "We'll just start with the classics then." He put it into his basket.

"What are you guys doing?" Hailey asked.

Steve looked up with a pang of regret on his face as Hailey walked over. Hailey felt the same way internally: they hadn't spoken much since their fight in the car. She averted her eyes and looked to Rosemine instead.

"Looking at stuff for your nephew," Rosemine said.

My nephew. Hailey hadn't really thought about Steve and Rosemine's baby like that. To be honest, she hadn't really given the kid much thought at all since finding out about their pregnancy all those months ago. Their trip to Hailey and her dad's house for this past Christmas was their first and only visit since she'd been pregnant, and it just didn't seem quite real to her yet. But here they were, family planning, making preparations for their child. Just another reminder that life goes on, with or without her.