Star Haven

Chapter 4.

Sebastian 

Sebastian shivered as the coolness of the bunker's AC hit his skin. In the few hours since they'd left the bunker and found another, everyone had stripped their suits, relishing in the relief of the removal of sweaty radiation suits. Fabric indentations marbled their skin, alarmingly red.  

He moved closer to Jade, ignoring the looks from the others on either side of him. Every night in the bunker, he'd fallen asleep by her side dreaming about walking the surface with her. Instead of holding her hand, un-gloved, he had spent the day climbing through rumble of crumbled buildings and trying to forget the ruin he had seen. He hadn't expected the ruins of the city to be good, but nothing could've have prepared him for the pure devastation of his home he saw.

"I can't believe it." Jade whispered mournfully as he sat next to her as the others separated into their perspective corners. Sebastian's chest tightened, but he forced himself to stay calm. There was no time to mourn the city, especially if they could bring it back to life. He'd been living it rough for many years on the streets before the city was ruins. If Boston was known for anything, it was known for being Boston Strong. 

"We are Boston Strong." He whispered back to her softly. The familiar slogan made Jade smile. That says had brought pride to the city after the marathon bombings of 2013, it endowed strength and resilience into the  citizens of the city when nothing but pain and grief marred their thoughts. 

As the doors of the bunker closed behind them, he'd been thinking back to when he had met Jade. They had met by accident. He had been set up on a blind date, and so was she, but they hadn't been set up by any mutual friends. They mistook each other for the date they were supposed to meet. It made his stomach twist over the idea they may have never met.

"Hey you two, we found some food. Come grab some." Orion called, whose hand held a plate laden with nutrition packs and what looked like instant ramen. From what Sebastian could see, it looked like there was over a month's worth of canned food, which could last them quite a while if rationed properly. There could be more further back in the shelter or in others throughout the city.

"At least there is decent food for our first night. It is better than what grows in Jade's substitute soil. Don't know about you, but everything has an irony after taste." Jo joked lightly before taking placing  a small pot on a hot plate. 

Sebastian rolled his eyes, ignoring the her. Jade had worked hard to find a substitute after the nutrients suddenly dying, especially since she did all the work on the fly. No one knew the soil would die, and no one knew if it would ever be back, but without Jade, they would have ran out of food sooner due to mass panic initially and many survivors hoarding rations. Leaning back, he closed his  eyes and beautiful visions of Boston flashed before his eyes. It was strange to think that a few short years ago and the walls of this bunker separated him from the bustling city that had been the only world he'd ever known. His chest  ached for what used to be, for what now as an ugly sight. The remnants of his past lay on the other side of the door. 

"Soup's up!" Jo sang with the tiniest hint of joy. "Bring your bowls up."

"So where the hell is the bathroom in this place?" Orion asked, looking around the bunker as if he expected one to magically appear.

Sebastian cleared his throat, jerking his thumb behind him. "There's the sign. Would have known if you actually looked. It is really astonishing what your eyes can do. In the meantime, the rest of us will use our brains from now on."

Orion made of show of annoyance, glancing to find the sign. "Thanks smart-ass," he said, prompting grunts of agreements from the rest of the group.