18 Floors Above the Apocalypse

Chapter 37

Even though she knew Cooper was tough, Stella hoped he could become even stronger. After all, who could resist the allure of a juicy steak when faced with the threat of starvation? So, Cooper had to get stronger. Jasper's request was simple. "I'll help you train your dog, and you have to teach Rosie how to read."

That was the deal? Stella was taken aback. "Rosie is smart and obedient. You can teach her yourself."

Jasper looked a bit uncomfortable. "I can't teach reading. Training dogs is easier."

Stella relented, "Alright, it's a deal."

He would help her train her dog, and she would teach Rosie to read.

As soon as she opened the door, a dark shadow pounced on her. The low whine sounded anxious and restless. A pair of paws were continually scrabbling at Stella.

Stella petted his head. "It's okay. I'm not going anywhere."

Cooper was abandoned before and weren't easy to soothe, so she fed him a hot dog. But it was still restless, following Stella wherever she went, not letting her out of its sight.

Not only was she exhausted today, but she was also famished. Reuniting with Cooper was worth celebrating, so Stella took out some grilled ribs, roast duck, and stir-fried beef, along with a beer. Even if he wasn't hungry, Cooper still watched eagerly, practically drooling.

Stella gave him a bone, and then started watching a show while eating.mCooper was so greedy. He jumped onto the couch and lay on her, occasionally pushing her shoulder with his paw. When Stella was unmoved, he fetched his own food bowl, as if he was saying 'feed me"!

"You're a clever one." Stella tossed him a bone to gnaw on. "Don't stuff yourself. There will be good food every day."

After dinner, she had to teach Cooper to use the toilet. Not only Cooper, but the pair of breeding rabbits and their litter, too.

The balcony was still damp despite being glassed in, which made the rabbits look quite wilted. She placed a lot of cardboard in their hutch. After moving them to the bathroom, they perked up. Once they got used to it, they weren't afraid of people and started wandering around the house.

the rabbits. He instinctively wanted to pounce and bite. Stella quickly stopped him with

eating meat or

had lived together before, so Cooper was quite familiar with her temperament and could only endure

training, he was able to relieve himself in the trash can lined with a black bag in the

so clever. No matter how much she taught them, they just wouldn't learn. She

job to take care of them." He needed to be a sensible dog and share

night. Stella went to bed, only to find Cooper dragging

several times during the night, always because of Cooper. He was extremely sensitive to noise, so he would get up at the slightest sound downstairs, standing guard at the stainless steel front door and refusing to leave. A long period of life on the streets had changed the dog's nature, so he wouldn't easily make a sound to

the door, Hector's classmate was knocking on the door downstairs. "Stella, Hector was stabbed by you yesterday and bitten by

just closed the door

of cereal with two bagels.

dog, in addition to Rosie. There was a punching bag in the hallway now, which was brought by Lukas and Cody. She could

voice came over the loudspeaker, saying that today's food supply had already sold out, and those who needed it should come early tomorrow. "I got here at midnight last night. How can it

up at nine o'clock last

couldn't do anything at all. Now there were armed

with frustration, lingered a

other things on the way. The crowd dissipated, and the enormous mall suddenly seemed empty. Compared to last time, there were significantly fewer items this time. Anything that could fill a

water purifying service. Ten dollars a litre. People had to bring their own container. Thinking of

it. There were still two rubber rafts left. Lukas thought about buying them for later, but seeing the price tag of 50,000 dollars each, he didn't dare to speak. Stella had a clear goal, to prepare life-saving supplies for extreme

up much. After all, money needed to be spent where it mattered most, so

actually saw a mink coat. The knee-length purple mink coat was soft to the touch and very

and women's versions, and the prices were almost the same. Stella bought seven in one go, even including one for Cooper,

dollars in one go. Lukas' heart bled. "Why don't we get

doing saving money now? To