PODs

by Michelle Pickett

  Thump.

  It can’t be our fruits and vegetables. They came this morning.

  “I’ll get it!” Katie ran to the chute like a child on Christmas morning. She opened the hatch and pulled out the container. A few seconds after she’d closed the hatch, we heard another container arrive, this one landing with a deep thump that made us jump. Then another thudded in. And another. By the fifth arrival, we’d all gathered to see.

  “What is it?” Aidan called to Katie, who’d taken the first container to the table to unseal it.

  “Books and stuff.”

  “Uh-oh,” I muttered.

  “There’s a letter. ‘School begins tomorrow. Each of you will be assigned a course guide designed to prepare you in a certain subject. Packets addressed to each POD occupant accompany this memo. Please find the envelope with your name on it and review the contents carefully. Books will be sent via the chute by the end of the day. Links for your online courses will be uploaded via the intranet later today. All class assignments will be completed online via the POD intranet. Please complete the orientation course before you begin your assigned course schedules. Instructions on how to upload your assignments are included in the packets you just received. Please review each item carefully,’” Katie read.

  David held out a canister to me. “Evangelina?”

  I pulled several books from the canister. The large paperbacks still held the curl of the round container. “Thanks. I guess.”

  “‘Evangelina.’ That’s pretty.”

  “Thank you.” I smiled. He returned my smile, and that made me smile wider, like an idiot.

  “So? What’d ya get?” Aidan asked.

  “A bunch of English crap.”

  Another large boom made me jump. Another set of books had arrived. The chute continued banging—making us all jump every time—until everyone had their books. Conveniently, each person’s course work was in a subject he or she had excelled at in school. I guess my theory was right about that.

  We compared notes. Tiffany had biochemistry, with a lot of pharmacology stuff; it looked like they had a career track in mind for her. David also had science materials. George received I wanted">1” I yelled with my several nursing textbooks.

  Aidan didn’t get any books. “My stuff’s comp-sci, so it’s all online. What’d you get, Seth?”

  “Math.”

  “What?” Josh threw the electrical engineering texts he’d received. The books scattered across the floor. “They think they can just choose our lives for us? Screw that!” He stalked off to the boys’ dorm room.

  We looked up to watch him go, and went back to looking at our books.

  “They’re building on our strengths,” David murmured.

  “Yup,” Aidan agreed. “This is going to be so much fun. Much better than playing videogames, watching DVDs and hanging out online with pretty girls in the other PODs all day.”

  David chuckled. “Yeah, a barrel of laughs.”

  We each found spaces where we could look over our books and coursework. Tiffany sat on the couch and George in his beanbag, which had moved from the center of the room to the side of the couch—the side Tiffany was on.

  I went to the girls’ bedroom, letting the heavy stack of books fall on my bunk before I sat down beside them. I looked at the pile and sighed.

  I had worried about how we’d spend our time in the POD, how we’d keep from getting so bored we’d want to pull our hair out strand by strand. My worries were over.

  “Hey, Eva, whatcha wanna play?”

  “Nah, not tonight, guys. I’m going to look over this stuff and see what type of torture is waiting for me.”

  “C’mon, don’t go all bookworm on us,” Seth held up the deck of cards. “We could play hearts again, if you wanted.”

  I shook my head. “Sorry, guys.”

  Seth, Aidan, and I had gotten into the habit of playing cards after dinner. Others would join us occasionally, but the three of us played nearly every night. Looking at the books and the thickness of my coursework packet, I was afraid those days were gone.

  Passing the guy’s bedroom, I saw David and George sitting on their bunks, going through their packets. George had a deep frown, which worried me, mainly because he had so many piercings it was hard to read his expressions. So the fact that I could tell he was frowning couldn’t be a good thing. David’s face was neutral. I couldn’t tell if he was deep in thought or daydreaming.

  I called as I walked by. “That bad, huh, George?”

  “Worse.”

  Great.

  I sat on my bunk and opened the cellophane seal around one stack of books. It held a dictionary, a thesaurus, and the thickest book on grammar and punctuation I’d ever seen. In the pile thrown across my bed was a book on Shakespeare—I had to laugh at that, since I’d been studying Hamlet just before the virus hit—two books on business communication, another book on literature, and finally, a teaching textbook. The teaching book scared me—I’d never considered being a teacher. In fact, I’d considered everything but teaching. I hoped the book wasn’t a sign.

  “It’s not real, you know.”

  I jumped at his voice. “What?”

  “The window. It isn’t real,” David said.

  “Oh, I didn’t realize I was looking at it. Daydreaming, I guess.”

  The white curtain—the designers must have loved the color white—over the glass had a smudge of green paint from when we’d decorated. At night the light within darkened, helping us keep our sense of time. The clocks fastened in each bed’s headboard not only told us the time, but also the day and date. Between the two we felt we had some normalcy, at least where time was concerned.

  “They’re a nice touch,” I said with a smile.

  “Mm-hmm.” He gestured to my bed. “Can I?”

  “Sure.” My heart rate increased.

  “So, what did Santa put in your stocking?” I looked at him stupidly. “The books? What’d you get?”

  “Oh, right, the books. Um, just as I guessed. My strongest subject is… was… English. The books all have to do with English and literature.”

  “What’s that one? The one you’re holding.”

  “It’s the ugly duckling of the bunch. It’s a book on teaching.”

  “Teaching, huh? I could see you as a teacher. You’re really good with Jai Li.”

  “I suppose.”

  “Not sold on the idea, I see.” He smiled.

  “Not really. It isn’t what I would have chosen. Then again, I didn’t have any great plan, anyway. Maybe it’s just as well they chose for me. It’s funny—I was studying Shakespeare in school, just before the virus. I remember thinking I’d never use it in my day-to-day life because I wasn’t going to be an English teacher or librarian.” I laughed at the memory. “Seems the government has other ideas. “What about you? What was in your little bag of tricks?”

  “A bunch of science books. The main focus seems to be on Earth science, biology, and marine biology. I’m not sure what to make of it. Maybe they’ll try me on all three and then decide which I’ll focus on.”

  “What grade were you in? Or were you in college?” I asked. I didn’t know much about David. None of us did. He seemed to listen more than he spoke.

  “I was a senior.”

  “Ah. I was a junior.”

  “So you’re seventeen?”

  I nodded. “And you?”

  “Eighteen. Actually, my birthday was the night before I left for quarantine.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Well, it is what it is.” He shrugged one shoulder. “Where are you from, Evangelina?”

  “Ugh, please call me Eva. I’m from Texas. You?”

  “Michigan. Is your family Italian?”

  “No, why?”

  “Evangelina just sounds like an Italian name. I was curious.”

  He was curious about me? I wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or a bad one. I kept reminding myself that relations elephant sitting in the
middle of , I would apl fhips in the PODs weren’t a good idea. But he smelled so good. And his eyes—gray, almost silver. I’d never seen eyes that color. I couldn’t help but look into their depths. They were hypnotizing.

  “Where?” I asked, and he gave me a puzzled look. “Where in Michigan are you from?”

  “Oh, Lansing. It’s right about…”

  He stopped talking when I started laughing. He looked confused and I laughed harder. He chuckled and raised a brow.

  “I’m sorry.” I tried to force myself to stop laughing. I couldn’t. I started giggling again. Taking in two big gulps of air, I stopped long enough to tell him, “I didn’t know anyone really did that.”

  “What?”

  “Point to their hand to show where they live…” I was laughing harder now.

  “Yes, we do.” He grabbed my hand and pointed at my palm. “And I lived right there.”

  He must have realized I’d stopped laughing. He looked up. I’m not sure what expression he saw on my face. He made small circles on my palm with his finger. It tickled and my first instinct was to pull away, but then he’d stop touching me. And I didn’t want him to stop.

  “Well, I guess I should go. I hear homework calling my name.” Slowly, he let go of my hand.

  “Oh.” I wasn’t ready for him to leave. “David?”

  “Yeah?” he turned halfway toward me, one hand on the doorjamb, the other in the pocket of his jeans. He looked so good, my breath hitched in my throat.

  Keep your mouth shut, Eva. This isn’t a good idea.

  “Do you want to bring your books in here? We can compare our torture,” I said.

  He disappointed me by walking away without answering. I stared at the door, surprised. Not because he didn’t want to study together, that was fine. But that he’d leave without answering me. That didn’t seem to be something he’d do. But, I didn’t know him well enough to assume anything.

  I’d just started flipping through the course packet when he walked back into the room.

  “Do you want me to sit on the floor?”

  “You can sit on the bed.”

  He raised his eyebrows and looked over my bed. Books and pens littered it from one end to the other.

  “Oh, sorry.” I scooped up a bunch of stuff and dropped it on the floor, leaving room for him on the end.

  We sat in silence for a while, flipping through books. The only sound was the ruffling pages and the occasional squeak of a highlighter against a paper. It was a companionable silence, not strained or uncomfortable.

  I grabbed my calendar and started writing what assignment was due each day. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him watching me.

  “What?” I asked, not looking up.

  “Nothing. I thought I was the only one who did that. I generally have more about my assignment due dates on my calendar than anything resembling a social life.”

  “I find that hard to believe.” I groaned inwardly. Did I really say that out loud?

  “Why?”

  “I just don’t see you as the guy without a following, that’s all. You’re more, you know, the it guy.”

  Ugh, shut up before you embarrass yourself any more.

  “The it guy?”

  “Yeah, the guy every girl in the school wants to date. My school had an it guy every year. I just don’t see your calendar filled only with assignment due dates. Dates with girls, yeah, but not dates with assignments.” I looked up at him.

  A small smile tugged at his lips. “No, I was far from being the it guy. And, yes, my calendar was full of due

  Chapter 9:

  Faith

  School in the PODs was about twice as much work as high school had been—maybe because they knew we didn’t have anything else to do: no extracurriculars, no social lives, no family commitments. And the more assignments I finished, the more I realized I was being groomed to be a teacher, especially when they started having me create lesson plans. I was pretty sure they wanted me to teach English, but I’d also been given social studies, art history, women’s history, and world literature. Thankfully, they didn’t include math.

  David’s packets had been pared down to Earth science and marine biology, which made him happy. “Maybe I’ll go home to Michigan, see the Great Lakes to see each other.Yim they?” favorite movie again. I’m sure there’ll be work there.”

  “I wonder what the virus will do to the animals,” I said, frowning. “Will there even be anything left? I mean, the scientists knew so little about it. They didn’t know if it would infect animals, marine life, plant life—”

  “Eva, let’s get through our POD stay first. Then we’ll worry about the toll it’s taken up top, okay?” David reached out and rubbed my hand. My body immediately reacted to his touch.

  Since our first study date, we’d studied together every evening after dinner. We talked a little, laughed a lot, and somehow got some work done in between. The first few days, I felt awkward. I didn’t know him well and we talked very little, focusing on our work. Eventually we talked more, and I grew more comfortable around him. Then it all changed.

  The air became electrified when he was near. My heart raced, and the awkward feeling was back. It took me a day or two to realize what my heart already knew. I liked him—a lot more than I should. It was more than just two friends getting together to study.

  At least it was for me.

  David showed no change in his behavior, which disappointed me, even though I kept reminding myself that a romance in the PODs was a very bad idea. I was falling for David and I could tell myself it wasn’t a good idea over and over again—my heart wasn’t listening.

  When he reached out and stroked my hand, my skin tingled, goosebumps slid up my arm, and I could feel the heat of a blush spread across my face. Maybe he recognized the signs, maybe not. His hand moved away much too soon.

  “It’s late. I should go.” David said as he gathered his things and stood.

  I flipped through the pages of my book to keep my hand moving and resist the urge to grab his.

  “I guess I can finish this tomorrow morning.” I said, trying to keep the disappointment out of my voice.

  “Eva…” He sighed and looked at the floor, resting his forehead against the doorframe.

  I waited for him to finish, for him to say what I’d hope he’d say. I was gripping my pen so hard my fingernails dug into my palm.

  He shook his head before looking at me. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  “Okay.” I wasn’t ready for him to leave our peaceful cocoon, but I didn’t know what to say to make him stay. If we went in the living area the others would be there. We wouldn’t be able to talk.

  “David?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Stay.”

  He ran his fingers through his hair and took a half step back into the room. He frowned and turned toward the door. Gripping the doorframe, he said, “I’ll see you tomorrow, Evangelina. Same time, same place.”

  “Sure,” I answered with a small smile.

  My face burned with embarrassment, and I was glad no one was in the room to hear his rejection, see the red-hot blush covering my face. Tears pressed against the back of my eyes. I took a deep breath and looked up at the ceiling, blinking furiously. It was a trick Bridget had taught me. “If you don’t want to cry, look up at the ceiling and blink, and the urge will pass.”

  It didn’ and shook her head. Rl.pl ft.

  I wasn’t sure what the jumble of emotions filling me meant, but it was more than a typical schoolgirl crush. I’d had those, and whatever I was feeling for David wasn’t one.

  None of us were typical teenagers anymore—that reality had ended the day we’d gotten on those grimy yellow school buses. Leaving our families, our friends—everyone we’d ever known and loved—was hard enough. Leaving them to die was quite different. We’d had to grow up quickly. We weren’t at summer camp; we were fighting to stay alive—to keep the human race from extinction. That was a lot to bear.


  Another reason I knew it wasn’t a crush—a crush is like a match to gasoline; it flares quickly. David and I had been studying together every night for a month. The feelings I had for him had only been an issue for a week, give or take a day. My feelings were from getting to know him—his dreams, wants, and fears. It went beyond a physical attraction.

  And that’s why I knew I had a problem.

  Someone plopped on the mattress next to me, interrupting my thoughts.

  “What are we studying tonight? I saw Loverboy leave and thought you and I could get some time together.”

  Ugh, how do I get rid of him? “I was just about to quit for the night, Josh.” I closed my book, hoping he’d take the hint.

  “So you’ll study with him, but not with me?”

  Yup, you got it. “Ah, like I said. Just quitting for the night.”

  “I thought you didn’t want a romance in the POD, Eva.” He scooted closer to me. I could smell his breath and wondered when he’d last brushed his teeth.

  “I don’t.”

  “Sure looks like you’re getting cozy with David.” His voice was hard.

  “We’re just friends. Not that it concerns you.”

  “It concerns everyone in the POD if you’re going to go flaunting it around.”

  “I’m not flaunting anything!”

  “Come on, Eva. Let’s play.” I jumped at the sound of Tiffany’s voice.

  “What?” Thank the Lord. I don’t care what we’re playing.

  “Canasta. Come on, I need a partner. It’s girls against the guys.”

  “Oh, we are taking Seth and Aidan down,” I said with a laugh, joining her in the hall.

  “Seth isn’t playing. He has too much work to do. David’s taking his place.”

  “David?”

  Tiffany nodded. She didn’t notice the blush that made my cheeks burn and the way my hands started to tremble. Or if she did, she didn’t mention it.

  Aidan and David were already waiting at the kitchen table. I took my seat across from Tiffany and tried not to look at anyone but her. My mind scrambled to find a way out of playing, but I’d already told Tiffany I would. It would make things more awkward between David and me if I made excuses not to play. Yeah, like it wasn’t already awkward.