Becky flinched at the dull thud transmitted through the cold concrete as dust drifted down from the ceiling. It seemed like hours since she had fled into the basement of the abandoned farmhouse, hours that those distant concussions had started hammering like some giant's fist slamming time after time into the ground. A trickle of sand rained down from an overhead beam, the soft rasp of the grains falling against the concrete the only sound.
Becky tried to stifle a sob, palm away the trail of tears cutting through the dirt and grim on her check while ignoring the way the shadows jumped and danced from the vibration of the tiny candle lantern. She stared at that simple candle lantern, a reminder of happier days, of trips to the outdoor store to buy what was essentially a fancy toy for camping trips full of electric lights, plentiful food cooked on propane grills, and...
Safety.
She stared at the flickering candle and wondered where she was going to find thirty-two more for her birthday next week, her stomach growling noisily at the thought of a red velvet cake that she always loved for her birthdays.
She flinched again as another concussion thudded through the concrete and then stifled back a scream as she heard the sound of the door to the basement being forced open. She had found the door down a steep set of stairs at the back of the house already partially open and barely hanging by one hinge. She had managed to squeeze inside and then close the door before jamming a broken board beneath the doorknob to hold it in place when she had arrived a little after sunset.
Now Becky scrambled backwards on her butt into the darkest corner of the basement as someone rammed against the door hard enough to force the board back several inches. Becky bit the back of her hand to hold back her sobs and used a mildewed blanket to cover herself as someone rammed the door again, the board falling with a sharp crack as it struck the floor.
The door shifted and lurched as it fell from the doorframe to lean drunkenly by the single hinge followed by a muffled curse from whoever was outside.
"Hello?" a voice called a moment later, "Who's there?"
Becky peaked out from below the edge of the blanket as a man slipped past the door and into the basement, his head swiveling as he tried to look into every corner at once.
"Hello?" the voice called again.
Becky's moment of terror passed as she realized the man was probably no more than a boy in his late teens, his voice cracking in his own nervousness as he continued to look around.
"I saw the light..." the boy called out and quickly pushed the door back into place before reaching down to shove the board beneath the doorknob again, "I... I was hoping I might be able to stay with you..."
Becky had been on the move for weeks, barely scavenging enough to make it day by day and one thing she had learned repeatedly was that strangers no matter how harmless they may look were dangerous. Becky's hand shifted to the kitchen knife she had found soon after the invasion had begun that she kept hidden inside her purse and...
"I have food," the stranger said quietly, "It's not much, just some Spam, but I'd be willing to share..."
Becky's mouth flooded with saliva, her jaw aching at just the mention of food, the knife, even her wariness of only moments before forgotten.
"Is it just you?" Becky asked quietly.
The boy's head snapped over to look into the dark corner where Becky was hidden and after a moment nodded.
"Yea, only me," the boy replied, "Is it just you too?"
Becky pushed the smelly blanket off and slowly stood up before giving a curt nod.
"I'm Daniel," the boy replied without moving.
"Becky," Becky said and walked slowly over to the candle lantern.
Both Becky and Daniel gave a jump when a concussive blast shook the basement and more dirt and sand rained down onto them. They both gave each other a guilty look before Becky sat down while watching Daniel warily.
"You said you had food?" Becky asked as her belly gave an audible rumble.
"Oh... yea," Daniel replied and pulled a small backpack off before walking over to sit across from Becky with the candle lantern between them.
Daniel rummaged through his backpack for a moment before pulling out two foil packets of single serve Spam and three packets of saltine crackers. Becky's belly rumbled again at the sight of the feast and tried not to snatch one of the foil packets and a package of saltines out of Daniel's hand when he offered them to her.
"Never thought I'd enjoy Spam!" Daniel said with a grin as he watched Becky tear open the foil and take a bite.
"Mmmm," Becky moaned as she chewed, "I used to only eat organic stuff, I'd have never looked twice at Spam!"
Both Becky and Daniel laughed softly before another concussion rocked the basement. Daniel glanced fearfully at the door while he hastily finished eating, even ripping open the foil packet to lick the inside clean before looking forlornly at the last of the three saltine packages.
"Do you know what's happening?" Becky asked after licking the cold congealed grease from the inside of her own foil packet.
"No, not really," Daniel said after a moment, "I heard from someone who heard from someone else that they are trying to take the 205 bridge after the I5 one blew up, you know."
Becky's eyes never left the saltines in Daniel's hands and he glanced from her stare down to the cracker when he noticed.
"Share?" Daniel asked after a moment.
Becky quickly nodded and Daniel grinned before he came around the candle lantern to sit next to her.
Becky watched as moved, his chin and face covered in a soft, patchy fuzz of a beard with his stringy black hair hanging down into his eyes. He had obviously lost weight with his clothes loose and baggy but was still close to six feet tall with an athletic build. After so long without a haircut... or a shower she thought she probably didn't look much better herself although she had managed to braid her auburn hair into a half dozen tightly woven dreadlocks. Daniel opened the package carefully and handed Becky half of the crackers before beginning to nibble at one himself.
"Are they ever going to leave?" Becky asked as she savored the dry salty flavor of the cracker.
"I hope s..." Daniel began before the ground lurched from a blast much closer than any of the others.
Becky gave a yelp of terror and wrapped her arm around Daniel's shoulders as a cascade of dirt fell into the basement. A crash from upstairs sounded as something heavy toppled over before silence fell once more. Becky realized that Daniel was holding onto her as much as she was to him, his arms trembling against her back.
"That was..." Daniel began.
Becky nodded and then snuggled in closer to Daniel while pulling him against her body.
