Darling, I...

The sun hadn’t been out for at least a couple of days. The already dwindling amount of crops they had left were drying out. Stanley already knew he had to go out for another scavenging run soon, but this dust storm had made it all but certain. This area had been this way for as long as Stanley could remember, though the dust storms would never last this long, and the wind was never this dry. Something was changing in the air, and Stanley could feel it. He was one of the few that could sense it. It was a gift from God, he knew it, and believed it wholeheartedly. His father had always raised him to trust in what God had planned for him, and to always listen to what God has to say.

But there was little time for God now.

With the wind whipping against his face, he elected that he would go inside for the day, for the wind he thought would prove too much for him if he kept working as hard as he had. He pulled the bandana from his face and ripped the tight goggles from his eyes before entering his humble shack that he had made years before. The rickety old door made a horrible screeching noise as he opened it, waking up his sleeping wife.

Her name was Aubrey, and she was fairly tall for a woman, standing at about six feet with a lanky body build. She was built like a runner, with long legs that helped her travel long distances without becoming tired. She had messy and curly dirty-blonde hair, and big, round green eyes which were the most prominent feature on her body.

The two scavengers met at a weather shelter in the ruins of the once great city of Minneapolis. Crumbled skyscrapers and other buildings littered the streets of the dilapidated metropolis that once housed millions of people. The shelter was located in the middle of the city where an old football stadium once stood tall and proud, but now the great structure’s roof had caved in, leaving the playing field at the mercy of mother nature. But under the great structure laid an expansive series of tunnels that sheltered thousands of survivors and scavengers, all working together to keep humanity alive. It was a thriving community, relatively friendlier than others, and food was also easier to come by.

Their paths crossed here, in the gray, dark expanses of the underground fortress that housed so many people.

Stanley had just returned from a supply run, and had just came back from the supplymaster for which he had to deliver the supplies for. Everyone in the small concrete room were in their respective cliques, talking and joking with one another, eating and having as much of a good time as they could in their bleak situation. But one thing stood out, and that thing was a woman. She was sitting alone in the furthest corner of the small concrete room. Her face was in her knees, and her body was slightly shaking as if she was crying. Stanley didn’t know why, but something told him to approach this woman.

He walked slowly, but deliberately towards the her, and tried not to draw any attention to himself. As he approached her, she stopped shaking and slowly looked up at him. On her face he read a look of complete despair, a look that told her story entire story before she even opened her mouth. She had lost everything. He proceeded to sit down next to her, actually enjoying another’s company for once, and stayed with her until they both fell asleep.

Something happened to Stanley that night. Never before had he cared for something so much, as he cared about that woman in the corner. He didn’t even know her name. The woman was helpless, and he felt the need to approach her and comfort her. Whether it was destiny, or God’s will, he cared for her nonetheless. It was a feeling that he had never felt before, and would never feel again. Never again would he care for someone so deeply as he did for his soon-to-be wife.

---

“Has the storm let up?” Aubrey asked groggily.

“No, not one bit. I’m afraid I’m going to have to go on another supply run, honey; and this one might take a little longer than the last few,” Stanley answered, exhausted from the already hours of work he had done that day.

Aubrey laid back in the bed forcefully, and let out a long groan. She was tired of the scavenging runs. They were difficult and dangerous work, and these runs were a big reason that people died. Raiders and various thugs were always fierce competition for the supplies that were found in the wasteland. They were psychopaths, often kidnapping innocent scavengers to torture and mutilate them. Everyone around these parts carried a gun, and for good reason. Raiders were well armed, and weren’t afraid to waste their ammo to kill you. They were not a force to be reckoned with.

“You know, it’d be a lot safer if I went with you,” she proposed. “I could watch your back, make sure no raider shoots you in the back.”

Stanley pondered her suggestion. It was a good point. He had neither suggested nor thought of that strategy before. But then he thought of the consequences. He couldn’t take the risk. One body going out there could sneak past a group of raiders easier. Aubrey didn’t have much experience out in the wastes, and with the storm brewing outside, he didn’t think that it was very good time to teach her anything.

He chuckled, “Maybe another time.”

“Are you kidding me?” she retorted, obviously upset by his rejection. “Can you stop treating me like your prized possession? You don’t have to keep me locked away and out of danger. Violence and danger are a part of the world now, hell, it always has been! We need each other to survive. You and I both know that you can’t do everything alone. I need to help you.”

He processed her words for a moment, then laughed. Aubrey’s face flashed in anger.

“You think it’s funny?” she said.

He slipped his backpack on and answered: “The thing is...you are my prized possession. If I lost you, I...I wouldn’t know what to do. And to tell you the truth, I was planning on taking you down to St. Lou to get more supplies in a few days. I know I haven’t let you help that much lately, but you need to know that it’s only because I want to keep you safe, and that I love you. I promise.”

She didn’t look satisfied with his answer, but Stanley didn’t care. He proceeded to put his boots and gloves on, then slipped his bandana over his face before departing. He was unhappy about the way the morning had gone so far, and hoped that he would find something that would cheer him up.

Before leaving their quaint settlement Stanley filled his canteen with water at the well they had dug a few months earlier. Without it, they would’ve had to travel twenty miles to the nearest stream just to get water. It was the only well for miles, so they shared it with other families living in the same area. Their generosity was appreciated throughout their community, and was often repaid with food and other rare goodies like candy. Candy was hard to come by and was often way past its expiration date, but no one cared enough to heed the warning. Candy was one of those things that took your mind off of your current situation, if only for a couple of moments. And every little moment helped.