Playlist for the Apocalypse

Chapter 22: The Longest Time

EVELYN

As they approached the downtown core, the streets became increasingly choked with vehicles. At first, they were able to manage if Jonathan navigated them through alternative back routes but by the time they reached the Cambie Street bridge, the indefinitely stalled congestion was impossible to avoid. Truthfully, Evelyn was a bit sad when they were forced to abandon the car and set out again on foot. Jonathan maintained that she did great for a first-time driver, but, to his credit, he was an exceptionally patient teacher. She didn't know that driving could be so stressful even without the usual hazards or traffic rules, and more than once Jonathan had gently reminded her that she didn't need to choke up quite so much on the steering wheel and could probably press down on the gas pedal a bit more. He only had to grab the steering wheel to correct their position twice and if he was ever afraid for his life while she was in the driver's seat, he didn't show it.

She was afraid to admit it but driving around the city with him with the stereo blasting, she could almost forget the fact that most of the other vehicles on the road were abandoned and in various states of wreck or... worse, still occupied by some poor Shell trapped at the wheel. She could almost forget about the virus, their destination, her worries about the fate of her family, the feeling of terror that still plagued her every night when she woke fearing that she'd open her eyes to a grey ceiling... She could almost forget how cold the metal grip of the gun had felt in her hand... she could almost forget it all... almost.

She wondered if Jonathan had felt the same way. She could never really seem to read him. She could still picture him in the passenger seat; his head bobbing along to the music and the light glinting off the sunglasses he'd found in the glove compartment. She could almost imagine they were a couple of carefree teenagers, whose radio could blast away the troubles of the world... almost.

She glanced up at him now, as they wordlessly walked along the bridge around the stalled traffic. His invisible mask was on, concealing any possible clue as to what he was thinking of. As if sensing that she was watching, he turned his head and winked.

The look sent shivers shooting up and down Evelyn's spine which was strange because her cheeks warmed with such an intensity that she was glad she was wearing a face covering. Without trying to draw attention to herself, she glanced around, checking to see if her reaction had signalled any nearby Soulless. Luckily, the stretch of road ahead seemed to be completely abandoned. She looked down at her feet.

Since meeting Jonathan, she'd already had a hard time making direct eye contact with him. Those startling grey eyes were already intimidating enough but lately, now that his bruises and cuts were healing, it was hard to ignore that the scars gave him an almost rugged handsomeness that Evelyn pretended she didn't notice. She had to remind herself that he was still the same idiot who thought it would be a good idea to make himself into a lightning rod during a storm.

They hadn't been walking for long when Jonathan convinced Evelyn to set up camp in an underground Skytrain station, arguing that daylight would offer greater success for tracking down a viable motorcycle or some bicycles that would take them the rest of the way.

It was easy enough to find an abandoned station, clear of any Soulless inhabitants, seeing as the government had shut down public transit to try to limit the spread of Sigma back in the early days of the pandemic. Once they'd navigated past the graffiti covered wooden planks barring the entrance and hopped the turnstiles, it didn't take long for them to sneak down the stairs and pry open the metal doors of the lone train that sat waiting, stalled permanently on the tracks.

Evelyn noticed that while Jonathan kept the pistol holstered to his hip, he made no move to reach for it as they secured the area. Instead, he simply drew the knife he'd tucked into his River District backpack as they moved in unspoken synchronicity to scope out the new space. Neither of them had truly acknowledged their time at the Serenity Society a few days ago and Evelyn had decided that that was for the best. They had enough to think about and she knew if even for a second, she went down that route, everything would come rushing in like water bursting through a dam.