18 Floors Above the Apocalypse

Chapter 429

Jasper might have been clueless before, but after nine years with Stella, he'd picked up on everything he needed to know. Stella didn't hold back. "Yeah, your sister's all grown up."

Jasper paused, feeling a mix of happiness and a touch of melancholy.

"What's wrong?" Stella teased, tapping his chin playfully. "Not thrilled that Rosie's growing up?"

"Of course I'm happy. It's just... time flies, you know?"

Stella chuckled, "Feeling like an old dad who's going to walk his daughter down the aisle soon?"

Jasper opened his mouth, struggled for words, and finally admitted, "Yeah, and you're turning into an old mom, too."

But growing up was something to be celebrated. If their parents could see them from the beyond, they'd surely be comforted.

Raising a child in a post-apocalyptic world was no small feat, especially with Rosie turning out so well-most of the credit went to Stella. He wrapped his arms around Stella and kissed her. "Stella, thank you for all these tough years."

Feeling playful, Stella flirted back, "So, how do you plan to thank me?"

As their kisses deepened, he murmured, "My life for you."

Stella laughed, "What good is your life to me?"

He whispered in her ear, "What about my body, does that work?"

Stella playfully kicked him, "Be serious."

She went to deliver sanitary pads to Rosie and then turned to Jasper with a knowing look. "What are you waiting for? Clean up."

After five days in the submarine, Rosie's period had ended.

Blue Blue's relentless scratching finally paid off, clearing its body of barnacles over the past couple of days, and it hadn't reappeared since.

The silence of the deep sea was eerie, and the initial wonder at observing the marine life had turned to ennui. Not even the prettiest jellyfish or the strangest creatures could stir much excitement in the trio and their dog. Meals were eaten in silence, punctuated only by the clink of cutlery, chewing of food, and the sound of breathing.

Even Cooper's snoring had lost its charm, becoming a source of oppressive irritation.

Stella recognized the signs: deep-sea cabin fever was setting in.

lighting, and cramped space could suffocate the spirit if endured for too

ease the stress, they surfaced

of Arcadia, the warmth of the sun, the open view, and soothing music softened the moods

and Rosie sat cracking sunflower seeds on the

of such pastimes, took turns patrolling the

the seeds and noticing

stared out at the sea. "I've got

instinct, especially as someone who'd lived

horizon with binoculars

reminded her, "Our binoculars aren't

ocean creatures and the mutated Iran, Stella shivered. "You mean someone might be watching us from afar, and we just haven't spotted them?" Without evidence but

Arcadia, and that's what kept them comfortable. But as ordinary people with limited resources, they couldn't ignore that others might have far

and despite the catastrophic disasters, the will to survive

us?" Stella frowned slightly. "To see Rosie and

"Maybe I'm just

safe than sorry, they took a deep breath and the submarine descended once

moved the submarine away from that area, with Rosie and Cooper monitoring from

No disturbances, for now.

nautical miles, they dropped

the bottom of

the bedroom, flipping through a magazine she couldn't focus on, Stella shared her worry, "Do you think it'll

referring to

submerged, even amidst severe human

mere "nations," if they faced survival threats and dropped their national façades, it could lead to even greater catastrophes. The scarcer the resources, the fiercer

provoke

future, Stella comforted

thoughts lead to nighttime

submarine breached and flooding, water rising

in vain to open it

body jerked awake

Jasper's arms enveloped her. "Bad

for breath, she buried her face in his

turned on a light, patted her back gently, and handed

it was

to sleep after drinking the water, tossing and turning

his arm as a pillow, and eventually, her breathing