Chapter Five
Lunch was a loud boisterous affair. The entire community met at the same time under a large canopy. Picnic tables had been set up, and they were told to sit wherever they wanted. They walked through a line to pick up their meals and carried them to the tables of their choice cafeteria style.
Once again, Hannah found herself with Justin. She grinned at him as she dug her fork into the first bite of food. Today they had chicken and dumplings, green beans, and chocolate cake for dessert. Everyone was served a glass of milk with their meal.
Once everyone was seated, Meredith Grant, one of the stay-at-home moms who would be helping with kitchen duties stood up. “Attention please!” She waited a moment for the group to quiet before continuing. “We’ve been discussing meals as we’ve spent the morning cooking for you. A decision has been made regarding seating arrangements.”
Hannah looked at Justin surprised. “Seating arrangements?” she mouthed.
He shrugged, looking back at Mrs. Grant.
“For breakfast every morning, you’ll be expected to eat with your family. For lunch, you can eat with whomever you choose, and for dinner, we’ll mix things up. Every night, there will be place cards on the tables. Come in and find your seat, before going through the food line. We’d like to make sure everyone gets to know one another quickly, and think this will be the best way.” She sat back down.
Hannah shrugged. “I guess that makes sense. I’m sure they don’t want us forming cliques and not including others. We have to work as a team, and it’s hard to be a team without knowing everyone.”
“Yeah. I guess. It’ll be fun meeting everyone and getting to know them. We have a really diverse group here.” They ate quickly as they talked, knowing that their lunch was limited to forty-five minutes. “Who are you going to work with this afternoon?”
“You know, I’m not sure. I want to get to know all the jobs. My job, after the pandemic, will be to advise the council. I think I need to learn about all the jobs to do it right.”
He nodded. “I agree with you. So today?”
She sighed. “Today, I think I’m going to wash dishes and help with dinner. Find out how the moms and the chef are getting along. I’ll work my way through the different groups.” She forked up a bite of cake, closing her eyes as the flavor exploded in her mouth. “This is good! What are you going to do this afternoon?”
He grinned. “I’m going to go work with the farmers. I heard some of them talking last night about building fences and getting everything set up for the livestock.”
“Could be fun. You’re going to be really sore tomorrow, though. After a morning with the general and an afternoon building fences, you’re going to be dying.”
“Probably. But sore muscles won’t be an excuse for slacking.”
She grinned. “Your dad would not like to hear you making fun of his rules.”
He shrugged. “The rules make sense. For our little society to work, we have to have order and rules. Maybe I’ll work with the policeman tomorrow. That could be fun.”
“I think we need to call him Sherriff now.”
“It’s like we’re building an old west town!”
She giggled. “I know. I’m so glad we have running water, though. I’m looking forward to a hot shower at the end of the day.” She reached back to rub a spot between her shoulder blades. She was surprised at how sore she already was. Even though she’d put a lot of hours into her swimming, this level of physical activity was new to her.
“Me too!” They took their plates up to the basins and scraped them into the trash as they saw the others doing. They set them on a pile. “I guess I’ll see you at dinner.” He eyed the mountain of dishes. “Have fun!”
She nodded. Walking over to Mrs. Grant, who seemed to have been designated the spokeswoman for the kitchen staff, she offered her help. “You don’t need to be here, Hannah. You should be learning your future job.”
Hannah shook her head. “My job will be advisor to the council. I need to learn all the jobs to be a good advisor. I know how to wash dishes, but I’ve never done this many. It’ll be good to get to know everyone.”
“Okay.” Mrs. Grant pointed her to a large plastic basin that had been filled with hot water. “No dishwashers here yet. Hopefully we’ll have them soon, but for now…”
Hannah walked over and stuck her hands in the steaming water. After an hour, every dish had been washed and dried and stacked for dinner. Hannah already felt exhausted, but she couldn’t let it stop her. She noticed no one else had come to help with the dishes. Hopefully tomorrow there would be more kids here helping out.
“What now?” she asked.
Mrs. Grant pointed to a small mountain of potatoes. “We’re having scalloped potatoes and ham with broccoli spears for dinner. Start peeling.”
Hannah’s hands were already wrinkled from having them in the dishwater so long. She longed for just a short break, but knew there wasn’t time. They all needed to help out and learn what they could.
Every time she finished a potato, she put it into a bowl full of warm water. There was a woman across from her peeling and putting the potatoes in the same bowl. Two other women took the potatoes out and sliced them thinly and put them into a large pot. Once each pot was full, Mrs. Grant added the flour milk and other seasonings, then took the pot to one of the trailers to cook it.
“We’re going to have to get a trailer to cook out of,” one of the women, Sally James, said as she watched Mrs. Grant trudge to another trailer carrying the huge pot. “The work won’t be quite so hard that way.”
“Is it better to do that, or to build the cafeteria right away?” Hannah asked.
“They’re going to start the cafeteria right away regardless. We have enough workers for two construction crews. One will work on the greenhouses, while the other builds the cafeteria. We’ll need something for the meantime, though.” She sighed. “Even with us planning a huge old fashioned barn-raising type day, there’s no way we can have it ready to cook in before a month is up. They’re going to get the foundation laid and the cement poured this week, we hope.”
Hannah blinked. She’d known the buildings would take a lot of work, but she hadn’t really considered how much. The crews would be working non-stop to get them cooking inside before winter. Would they still use the cooking trailer at that point? Or would they sell it?
By the time everything was prepped for dinner, the others were wandering back from their jobs. Everyone washed up, and Hannah stayed in the serving line to help. She really felt for the women who had gotten up before sunrise to cook their breakfast, and had stayed cooking all day long. She was exhausted after only a few hours and one meal.
Finally, she was able to take her seat with a group of other kids around her age. She had interacted with other kids some throughout the day, but usually she and Justin had been together. She was surprised at how reverently they spoke to her. As if she was some kind of savior. She didn’t want that. She wondered again if all the effort was really worth it. Maybe she should have ignored the vision and let everything happen as it would.
Then she saw her younger sister laughing with a group of girls at a table across the room. No, she couldn’t let everyone die out just to get out of hard work. Sure, it was a huge change, and their lives wouldn’t be the fun and games they’d expected of their teen years. But they’d have a life. And that would make it all worth it.
After dinner was their recreation period. Hannah found she didn’t know what to do with herself when there was a large group of people. She’d never been good at mingling and getting to know others in a group, but this was much worse than ever before. Everyone here knew she was the girl who “saw things”. It made her uncomfortable.
Emily seemed happy as she chatted with a group of newfound friends. Hannah wandered over to see if she could join them. “I can’t believe she??
?s so full of herself. She used to pretend her visions were scary, and now all of a sudden, she’s acting like she is going to rule the world because of them.” Emily’s loud voice carried as Hannah approached.
Hannah stopped in her tracks feeling the tears prick her eyes. She blinked rapidly a couple of times and turned away. Justin was right behind her. He’d obviously heard Emily as well. “Who is that?” he demanded. “We need to get someone to talk to her. She can’t be talking about you or anyone else that way.”
Hannah shook her head, grabbing Justin’s hand to pull him away from the crowd. “It’s my sister,” she said softly. “She’s made it clear all along she thinks I’m doing this for attention, and she doesn’t want to be here. She thinks she should have been allowed to stay with friends.” She brushed an angry tear off her cheek. “She doesn’t realize what Mom and Dad are giving up to make sure we both have a chance to live.”
Justin casually draped an arm over her shoulders. “I’m sorry. I can’t imagine how I’d feel if I heard my brother talking about me like that.”
Hannah sighed. “She’s always hated the fact that my visions made me the center of attention. I mean, I’ve always had them. I had the first one when I was two and saw my grandfather die, just before the police arrived to tell my mom. I was hysterical when the police got there, screaming my grandpa was dead.” She kicked at a stick on the ground. “Emily was adopted a couple of months after that, so she’s always grown up with the knowledge that I could see things. You’d think she’d be used to it.”
“She’s adopted?” he asked.
“We both are. Her birth mom has always been part of the equation. Mine disappeared right after I was born never to be seen again.” She looked over her shoulder at Emily still holding court with her new friends as if she was some sort of princess. Emily may hate her for having to come here, but she was definitely making the most out of having a famous sister. “Supposedly, my birth mom took one look at my adopted mom’s picture and said she had to be the one to adopt me. My parents had just finished filling out their initial paperwork. They hadn’t even done their home study yet, but they rushed through everything. It was the shortest wait in history for a newborn.”
“So did your birth mom have visions too?”
“You know as much as I do about her. I’m guessing she did…or at least knew somehow my mom needed to be the one to get me.” She sighed. “I’m really close to my parents. I’m glad I was adopted. I just wish my sister didn’t resent me so much.”
They kept walking away from the others down to a stream that cut through the property. There were multiple streams and even a small lake. Hannah wished she had her bathing suit. Swimming would clear her mind in a way nothing else could. “I wish we had a swimming pool here.”
“Why not build one?” he asked. “It could be part of the community center. I mean, I know it’s not a necessity, but I think all of us would love to be able to swim on occasion.”
She shrugged. “I’d feel selfish even asking for one. I love swimming. I had to quit the swim team this summer so we could search for all the families.”
“You’ve given up a lot to be here,” he said.
“We all have.” She looked at him in the fading light of the evening. “Can I tell you a secret?” She had to tell someone how she was feeling, and she had become closer to him than anyone else there.
He nodded. “Of course. I won’t tell anyone.”
“Sometimes I wish I’d never told anyone about this place. About what’s going to happen. I wish I’d just gone on and pretended to know nothing about the future.” She stared off over his shoulder, unable to meet his gaze. “I just want to go home and swim and be a kid. I don’t want to be this prophet who changes the course of history.” She sucked in a breath. “I just want to be a girl.”
He hugged her tightly. “I know. I could see that in you the day we met.” He was tall, almost a head taller than she was, and dropped a kiss on top of her head. “Wanna know my secret?”
She nodded, loving the feel of his arms around her. She was glad they were already such good friends.
He grinned. “I love knowing I’m going to be the leader of this group. I love knowing I’ll have a huge part in changing history. I’m so happy to be in this situation, I can’t even express it. I was doing really bad in school. I was a screw-up in every way. Here? I’m going to make a difference.”
She grinned up at him. “I’m glad you’re happy here. I know I’ll get there. I’m just overwhelmed by it all, I think.”
They walked back toward the rest of the group. “Your mom would have a cow if she saw us so far from everyone else.” He stretched his arms above his head. “Can I ask you something?”
“Sure.” She looked toward him waiting.
“About your visions?”
She nodded. “I guess.” She was willing to tell him more of it than she told the others, but not everything, of course.
“Do you know who pairs up? I mean, I know it won’t happen for a while yet, but do you know who you marry? Who I marry?” His eyes burned into hers as he asked the question.
She nodded. “I don’t know for everyone, but I know who I marry and who you marry.”
“Do we end up together? I know that sounds like a silly question, but since the moment I met you, I felt this strange….affinity toward you. I felt like we were meant to be together.”
She nodded. “I know what you mean.” She blushed as she looked down at her feet kicking the dirt.
“So?”
“Yeah, we’re supposed to get married. Things could change, of course. Nothing is written in stone, but I think we’re going to end up together.” She paused. “Does that bother you?”
He shook his head. “I was hoping you’d say that.”
“I’m glad you’re okay with it.”
“Why wouldn’t I be?” He couldn’t believe she’d be afraid of that. She was saving the entire human race, and she was unsure of herself. How could that be?
She shrugged. “The others kind of shy away from me. Not the grown-ups, the other kids. They act like I’m some kind of freak. I wouldn’t want you to think you were going to be stuck with a freak for the rest of your life.”
He grabbed her hand to stop her before they reached the others. “You’re not a freak. A freak would have had the visions and kept them to herself. A freak wouldn’t have cared about anyone but herself. You are anything but a freak. I admire you. I know someday, I’m going to love you.”
She smiled. I think I already love you, she thought.
“Promise me you won’t worry about the others. We’ll all work together to make this place thrive. Who cares what they think?”
She smiled. “I do, but I wish I didn’t.”
He squeezed her hand tightly. “So who are you going to work with tomorrow afternoon?”
She grinned. “Well, I’m not going to wash dishes again, that’s for sure. Maybe I’ll spend the day with the general. I want to talk to him about our defensive needs.”
“So we will be attacked?”
She shrugged. “I don’t want to tell you too much. I may change the outcome.”
He stared down into her eyes. “Hannah, I need to know. I will never tell anyone what you tell me without your permission. You can’t keep it all inside. Have you told anyone?”
She shook her head. “I’ve been trying to keep everyone on a need to know basis.”
“So how much have you not mentioned?”
She looked into his eyes, the pain of the world reflected in hers. “Too much to say.”
He nodded. “Okay, but tell the general about any attacks you see. Tell everyone what they need to know. Don’t keep it all inside. You don’t have to tell any one person everything, but you do need to tell what each person needs to know.”
She sighed. “I’m working on it. I’ll go to the genera
l tomorrow. I wish I could just do an apprenticeship like everyone else, but I can’t. I know I can’t.”
“Don’t worry. Together, we can do it all.”