Autumn in the City of Lights

by Kirby Howell

  It occurred to me I’d never get to do exactly that again. With Sarah, or anyone else. But I didn’t want to replace or mimic my friendship with her anyway. It had been too precious. It was the same with my parents. Connie and Daniel could never replace them. And no one would ever be a Tess to me again. Or a Shad. They would forever be trapped in my past, no longer part of my present or future.

  I didn’t want to be okay with that. But I eventually needed to be. Now that Karl was gone, I could see the future more clearly, as if a light up ahead had been turned on.

  I attacked the weeds with my trowel again and wondered what Grey was doing at that moment.

  After he’d left with Connie, Daniel, Ben, and Wingfield, I’d wanted to wait for news but couldn’t keep my eyes open, so Lydia sent me to bed. I woke eighteen hours later, and Lydia told me Connie’s baby had arrived safe and sound. It was a boy.

  Over the past week, I’d done nothing but eat, sleep, and play games with Rissi. Lydia wouldn’t allow me to go for a ride on Snicket or even leave the house until I had my full strength back, so Rissi had been running around New Burbank, collecting news on those in the hospital, and the new peace talks beginning with what was left of the leaderless Front.

  There had also been a number of visitors, but Lydia the guard dog hadn’t let anyone past the front gate. Not surprisingly, the residents of New Burbank, and also some ex-Front members, were anxious for answers. I didn’t feel right answering their questions, and Lydia refused to, so we agreed to wait until everyone had returned from The University.

  “Autumn!”

  I looked up quickly at the sound of Rissi’s voice. She bounded outside from the kitchen.

  “Are they here?!” I asked, my heart jumping into my throat as I leapt to my feet.

  “No... just wondering if you’d seen them yet.”

  I slumped back down in the dirt. This was the third time she’d done that.

  “Yes, they’re back,” I called out sarcastically. “But I thought I’d stay out here and yank weeds out of the ground.”

  “Not funny!” she said, pouting and going back inside.

  Five minutes later, the back door opened again.

  “Autumn?”

  “What?!” I demanded, throwing a fistful of weeds over my shoulder.

  “You certainly are cranky this afternoon,” Lydia said, appearing next to my garden. “You need to eat something now. There’s more chowder.”

  I swallowed, wondering for the millionth time if there was a way I could make Lydia’s chowder disappear without her realizing it had been thrown away. She might have made a decent doctor, and she might be a brilliant member of The University, but she couldn’t cook to save her life.

  “Sorry, Lydia. I thought you were Rissi. She’s been driving me crazy this afternoon.”

  “It’s fine,” she said, emotionless. “Stop what you’re doing and come eat. I want to put at least two more pounds on you this week. And two more the week after that. Maybe by then your face will have improved, too.”

  Keeping my back to her as I worked, I rolled my eyes. Lydia’s bedside manner hadn’t improved in the months she’d been gone. But she had a point. The bruises on my face and body had turned a nasty yellow green that reminded me of split pea soup, and while I’d gained a couple pounds in the last week, my clothes still hung awkwardly on my bones.

  “Let me just get through a little more, and then I’ll come in to eat,” I promised.

  “Fine.” Lydia turned and began to walk back to the house, and I paused in my weeding.

  “Lydia?”

  “Yes?”

  I twirled my trowel in the dirt and studied the tomato dangling nearest me. I’d been wanting to ask this for days but hadn’t the courage. I also didn’t want to admit to myself that I cared.

  “What... what’s going to happen to Karl? What will The University do to him?”

  Lydia was silent for a moment, and when I looked up, I couldn’t read her face.

  “He’ll be tried,” she said simply.

  “Is that like what happens here? Like our court system?”

  She nodded. “It’s very similar.”

  “What happens if he’s found guilty? Does The University... do they have... believe in... ”

  “Capital punishment?” she finished for me.

  I nodded.

  “No. Crime is extremely rare within The University. If he’s found guilty, he’ll be imprisoned and will do menial work.”

  “But how will they hold him? He can project.”

  “Do you remember back at the movie lot, during the fighting, when Karl tried to project away, but kept re-appearing in nearly the same area?”

  “Yes.”

  “That same principle is applied to the area where he’s being kept. He’ll never leave the ship again.”

  “How did you know where to find us? The last time you were with us was in Hoover.”

  “We knew Karl was based in LA and came here to collect him. When we went to his headquarters at the warehouse on the Westside, we heard of his whereabouts on their radios.”

  I nodded. This was the most Lydia and I had said to each other all week. It wasn’t that we disliked each other. She just wasn’t much of a conversationalist. That’s why it surprised me when she continued speaking now.

  “I’m sorry events escalated here so fast. I wish we’d been able to arrive before more lives were lost.” She stopped. A glimmer of understanding lit up inside me. She was talking about Shad.

  “It’s not your fault. I’m just glad you got them to come.”

  “It needed to be done.” Her expression didn’t change, but I could sense relief in her posture. As if we’d blame her for not working faster to save Shad. Realizing she felt responsible, even though she hadn’t been at fault, made me like her more.

  “Thank you, Lydia,” I said, squinting up at her.

  A smile slowly spread across her face. I laughed at the sight. But then like a plug being pulled from a drain, it was gone.

  “What?” she insisted.

  “I’ve just never seen you smile, that’s all,” I explained. “You should do it more often.”

  “Oh,” she said, then motioned to the garden. “Do you need help?”

  “If you don’t mind getting dirt on your hands,” I said, handing her my trowel.

  She accepted it, and without a word, she knelt down in the dirt beside me and began working.

  Moments later, footsteps pounded across the porch.

  “Autumn!”

  “Rissi, if you don’t chill out, I’m going to come inside and make you read aloud from the dictionary until you fall sleep!”

  “But Autumn—”

  “You are not allowed to speak again until they’re home, understand? You’re driving me nuts!”

  “But they’re back!”

  I looked up. Rissi stood on the porch, one hand on her hip and an annoyed expression on her face.

  “They’re back?”

  “That’s what I said! They just appeared out front!” She turned and ran inside.

  I scrambled up from the ground and tore around the side of the house. Connie was the first one I saw, her blonde ponytail shining in the sunlight, her cheeks flushed with excitement. She cradled what looked like a small bundle of blankets in her arms. I slowed down as I neared her.

  Connie looked up at me, her eyes bright with tears. “Autumn, I want you to meet someone.”

  I glanced at Grey, who smiled and nodded. “It’s okay. The baby’s immune now.”

  I approached cautiously. The baby was so small in her arms. I craned my neck to see the little face without getting too close. Miniature lips. A teeny button nose. Two barely there wisps of eyebrows hovered over closed eyelids. One tiny fist with even tinier fingers was visible, tucked just under the baby’s chin.

  “This is our son, Shad,” Connie whispered.

  I looked up at her, but she was staring adoringly down at the small thing in her arms. Daniel appeared
behind her. He squeezed my shoulder.

  “It is a boy,” I said. “You called him a boy right before you left. But how did you know?”

  “Just a sudden feeling,” Connie shrugged. “Well, that and after having three boys already, I figure boys are the only gender I can make!”

  I wanted badly to touch that small, fuzzy head, but I kept my dirt-caked hands clasped behind me.

  “Autumn?” Grey slipped his arm around me, pulling me into a hug. I looked up at him, and he bent his head to kiss me. “It’s so good to see you.”

  “It’s so good to see you, too. All of you.” I looked behind Grey to the empty street. “Where’s Ben?”

  “He’s up on the front porch, talking to Rissi.” Grey pointed toward the house, his smile growing wider.

  “I should go say hi. Don’t disappear again until I’ve gotten to hug you at least ten more times. Okay?”

  “I promise,” he said. “Go say hi to Ben.”

  I started toward the porch where Ben stood talking to Rissi. I was so happy they were all home again. Maybe now we could all start really living.

  “Ben!” I yelled and jumped up the steps. “So did The University recruit you? Are you too smart for us Earthlings?”

  Ben spread his hands wide, laughing. “Isn’t it obvious?”

  Then I noticed Rissi was crying. I looked back at Ben, and it hit me. He was standing. Standing.

  I took a step back and realized I was standing at the top of the stairs. I wobbled for a moment, and Ben reached out and grabbed me, pulling me back. I clutched his arms and stared at him. It was as if the accident had never happened. He stood perfectly with no assistance or pain.

  “But, but... but... How?” I finally managed to say.

  “I’ll explain it over food – I’m starving. The University may have the advantage on medicine, technology, and pretty much everything else, but their food sucks. Let’s eat.”

  I stared in wonder as Ben picked Rissi up and tossed her over his shoulder, like he used to do when she was little, and carried her inside. I pointed to them as Daniel assisted Connie up the steps and into the shade of the porch.

  “I know,” Daniel said.

  “It’s a miracle,” I said.

  “To us, it is,” he agreed. “But to The University, it’s science. Same thing with this little ball of warm dough here.”

  Just then, Daniel’s little ball of warm dough parted his tiny, red lips and let out a shrill wail that seemed much too loud for such a small thing.

  “Shad’s hungry,” Connie said.

  “Some things never change,” I replied, staring in wonder at the now squalling baby waving his tiny fist in anger.

  “Are you coming inside?” Daniel asked as they passed.

  I nodded. “Wouldn’t miss the chance to eat at the same table as this Shad.”

  They disappeared into the darkness of the house. Then it was just me and Grey. He held out his hand to me.

  “Sit with me a minute before we go in?”

  I took his hand, and we sat close together on the top step. I leaned against his solidness and sighed, content.

  “I have to go back, Autumn,” Grey said quietly. “Not forever,” he added, when I looked up at him suddenly.

  I let out a shaky breath and put my hand on my suddenly pounding heart. “Can we be done with freaking each other out and just be together forever?”

  He laughed and drew me closer, under his arm. “Yes, please.”

  “What do you have to go back for?” I asked. “And for how long?”

  “We still need a solution that will eradicate The Plague here on earth so that none of the next generation die after they’re born.”

  “Right,” I said slowly. “So I guess The University isn’t interested in being the permanent Labor and Delivery wing of our local hospital?”

  “No, they’re eager to move on. However, Wingfield has agreed to make sure the ship stays put while we work so I can come back and forth.”

  I leaned my head against him. “Can you stay for a little while before going back?”

  “Of course,” he murmured, stroking my hair.

  “I have one more request,” I said, closing my eyes.

  He chuckled. “Yes?”

  “Will you take me to see Mamó soon?”

  “Absolutely.”

  “Maybe we can take Ben and Rissi with us?”

  He nodded. “I’ve missed you, Fòmhair.”

  I pulled away just enough to look up at him. His blue eyes burned as he stared down at me. His fingertips grazed one of the bruises on my cheek, then his eyes finally met mine, and his expression softened. He lowered his head until his lips met mine. His kiss was like coming home. Welcoming, familiar, safe.

  We looked out together across the yard and heard our family inside, preparing a meal in the usual loud way. Some things don’t change. And that was good.

  “It’s over,” he whispered, holding me tightly against him.

  “No,” I said. “It’s just beginning.”

  THE END

  EPILOGUE

  January 1

  13. Thirteen. 13. 13. 13. Finally. I’m going to be a teenager soon. It’s about time!!! I can’t wait. Being 12 is SO last year. We’re going to have a party with all my friends from school, and I think Miles is going to come. Le sigh! He is seriously the definition of CUTE. I’m not sure what I’m going to wear, though. It has to be awesome.

  Ben gave me this journal for Christmas, and since it has a date listed on each page, if I write more than one page today, I guess I don’t have to write anything tomorrow.

  So everything’s gotten pretty boring around here since Karl disappeared and The Reconstruction Front was disbanded. I mean, “boring” is probably not the right word, but honestly, it’s kind of dull around here now. All the adventure in the few years right after The Plague is over now, but we’re still as busy as ever. Constantly building, constantly cleaning (I HATE cleaning), but things are getting more organized, which I guess is good.

  I spend a lot of my time helping on the Preservation of Life Committee. “We’re dedicated to finding and preserving the pre-plague way of life, striving to help others remember it and introduce it to the new lives among us.”

  That’s our motto. We all had to memorize it. (I HATE memorizing things, except for maybe song lyrics.)

  It’s mostly kids my age who work with P.O.L. I think the adults created it just to keep us kids out of their way. We save anything we find from the old life and store it all in these massive warehouses. Music, artwork, books, magazines, tools, toys, electronics — everything that used to mean something but isn’t all that useful right now gets logged, categorized and stored. It’s mostly really boring stuff, but sometimes we find something pretty cool. We’re allowed to borrow stuff from the catalogue, and right now, I’m obsessed with borrowing records. Miles found a record player last fall, and I got it working again, so he let me have it. I’m keeping it a secret from P.O.L. It’s under my bed, and I listen to music late at night. I also borrow tons of scifi books. I LOVE science fiction, especially anything by Heinlein. Maybe it’s because of Grey. It’s probably because of him. I can’t get enough! When I’m in the middle of a good book, I sometimes forget about school or a P.O.L. meeting I’m supposed to be at.

  Ben is a super nerd, so he loves that I’m reading scifi. He runs four radio stations and talks about nothing but that these days. His wife Jen (my sister in law – WEIRD!) works at the hospital with Grey.

  I also babysit a lot for Connie. Her son Shad is kind of like my little brother. He’s three years old and has adorable bright red hair, just like his dad. Shad’s little sister, Betsy, is one, and Connie is pregnant AGAIN. Autumn and Grey are also expecting. Both she and Connie will have their babies this fall.

  They’re not the only ones either. Since Grey figured out the cure for the Crimson Fever, people started having babies like crazy. Grey stays so busy at the hospital these days that we hardly ever see him. Autumn
still comes around just about every day, though. They live in a house across the street, but she says the garden there still isn’t as good as ours. Something about the dirt. I don’t know.

  I wish there were more adventures like me and Autumn used to have. I miss it. Autumn says I’m crazy and just being a dramatic teenager. Whatever. At least she’s already calling me a teenager.

  I want more adventures, so I can be like her. She’s a hero. And everyone knows who she is and what she did. No one knows who I am except this journal.

  So maybe I should introduce myself.

  My name is Marissa. And I’m not a little girl anymore.

  Hungry for more books by Kirby Howell?

  Watch out for

  The Wayfarer

  Kirby Howell’s young adult fantasy series!

  way"far"er: noun 1. a person who travels on foot

  The Wayfarer is a story of a teenage girl lost in the Central California foster system. After a particularly frightening confrontation with bullies at school, she runs away and unknowingly stumbles through a passageway to a land called Providence – the place between life and the afterlife. There she searches for someone she believes might be waiting for her, and is the one person who can make everything right again.

  Coming 2016!

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Dana Melton and Jessica Alexander, who write under the name Kirby Howell, have been writing together since 2000 when they met as freshmen in their first scriptwriting class at the University of Alabama. Dana, a native Southerner, quickly showed Jessica the ropes and the joys of living below the Mason-Dixon Line. Having lived in nearly every other part of the country, it didn’t take Jessica long to acclimate to sweet tea, grits and football. Four years later, with a couple film degrees under their belts, they moved to Los Angeles to pursue their professional writing careers.