Blank Zone

Josh sat in his beanbag chair with a milk shake in one hand and a remote in the other. The channels were the same stuff over and over. The news. Ever since the SubNet was taken over the television had been down, but somehow, despite the apocalypse of the Internet, there was still news. Everything else was gone. The Saturday morning cartoons, the public channels about knitting, and sports television were all gone. Josh didn’t know how they kept the news going, and he didn’t care. He just wanted to good old days back. The days where he could go places do things, and no one would care. The days where cars were still a thing, and planes flew in the sky. It was amazing how the world became dependant on computers that when the virus attacked everything sort of… devolved. They had to find ways of making parts for things without depending on robotics. It was terrible! Conspiracy theories went wild, rebellions came and went, countries split, entire corporations turned to dust. That was just in seven years. Now the news was talking about some scientist who may have the answers to the world’s problems, blah blah blah. All people can do these days is hope. The world is at a standstill. No one can go anywhere or do anything.
This was Josh’s problem. For five years he’s been stuck with these people. He took the job to get money for his mother. Do you know what happens to people with cancer after the whole of technology is destroyed? They promised him that she’d get her treatments if he helped. The downside is he can never see her. It was the entire “top secret” business. Josh got letters and photos from her, and one phone call a year, but it wasn’t the same. He missed her terribly.
The milkshake was gone, and after flipping through the channels a hundred times he was bored. The clock on his nightstand said it was lunchtime. He got up and pulled his green shirt off of the clothing pile. His room was a mess. The bed wasn’t made, there were dishes with food standing around, and the white walls were bare. There were no windows because the base was underground. There were no windows anywhere. This he hated about the place more than anything. Josh pulled the shirt over himself then turned off the light and left the room. The hallways were filled with blinding office lights. People were walking up and down with places to go and people to see. Where Josh had to be was the cafeteria.
When he came to the cafeteria he noticed something a little odd. There was a young teenage girl standing there, looking at the pie selection. She had ridiculously long black hair, a hospital gown on, and fuzzy white slippers on.

****
I looked at all the different types of pies. Lime? Chocolate? Apple? Strawberry rhubarb? I can’t remember if I’ve ever had pie before. What does it taste like? What does anything taste like?
“Need help deciding?” A voice said behind me. I turned around to see a young man standing behind me. He was thin and tall with shaggy brown hair, and wore a very bright green shirt.
I nodded my head. “ It’s the first thing I’ll be eating something besides drinking water in seven years.”
“Whoa! Then we better make it count!” He leaned against the glass to look at the assortment of pies. “ I suggest the chocolate caramel. It’s my favorite.”
I asked the lunch lady for the pie and then sat down across from the boy. He watched me as I took my first bite. The sweetness blanketed my taste buds. The whipped cream whooshed around my mouth as the chocolate and caramel softened onto my tongue. I sat there staring at my plate of pie, letting it settle in my mouth. It may have been the only pie I’ve ever eaten, but it sure was my favorite. Eventually I chewed and swallowed. When I looked up at the boy he was sitting with his arms folded, smiling at me. “How was it?” He asked.
“It was the best pie I’ve ever tasted!”
“Haha, it’s only cafeteria pie.”
“There’s pie that’s better than this?” I dared not to believe it. “What pie could be better than this?”
“Oh trust me! There’s pie that’s way better. By the way, I’m Josh.” He held out his hand for me to shake.
“I’m Leila.” I looked at him critically for a moment, but I couldn't resist that smile. We shook hands.
“Oh, so you’re the girl they found in the asylum? You don’t seem insane.”
“I’m not.” I explained. “The man who owned it was my uncle.”
“Ohh…” He was unsure of what to say next. “Uh, Philip Peterson was your uncle?”
“No, that was my great grandfather. Dalton Peterson was my uncle and his twin brother was my dad. We had a messed up family.” I began to play with my food.
“Sorry if I’m asking personal questions.” Josh apologized.
“No, I’ve told the adults everything already.”
We were silent for a while as I finished the pie.
“You know what I think?” He said.
“No? What?”
He smiled. “I think we’ll get along just fine.”
“Me too.”