Chapter 1:

Earthquakes and buffets

Earthquakes and buffets


The familiarity of a steady beat calms me. After yesterday’s earthquakes, there’s nothing I crave more than comfort and my routine.   


I eat the same breakfast I’ve had for months: oats, though there’s significantly less today. I’ll remind the chef to prepare more, despite my complimentary buffet ending.


Mere weeks remain on my lease, but I can’t stay with the endless tremors and lack of a buffet. Is it worth complaining?


After breakfast, I sprawl out, ignoring the object I accidentally hit. I blink a few times, acutely aware of my unexpectedly dry eyes. There’s no more humidity. My skin feels wrinkly and parched.


My eyes shut slowly. It’s a good time for a nap.


An ungodly scream rips through the air. Surprisingly, that doesn’t wake me; it’s the accompanying earthquake.


At once, I’m awake and clambering, rushing to leave this god-forsaken place. But the door is tiny and narrow; there’s no way I’ll fit. A force pushes me despite my protestations.Suddenly, there’s an icy cold disc on my chest. I cry.


“Congratulations, it’s a girl!”


Hands move me somewhere warm, and I hear the familiar beat I’ve known the past 10 months. 


Was she the one giving me food? 


If she’s the chef, I probably shouldn’t expect any changes to my buffet.