18 Floors Above the Apocalypse

Chapter 453

Chapter 453

Cooper sniffed Rosie's clothes and immediately backed away, shaking his head with a look of utter disdain.

"Ugh, no way I'm touching that!"

Rosie's heart shattered like a fragile glass ornament, her spirits plummeting to rock bottom.

Stella came over and tugged Cooper's ear, "Off you go, chill out elsewhere. Stop picking on Rosie."

After a brief scolding for Cooper, she turned to the sensitive Rosie, chuckling with a hint of exasperation, "There's no smell, neither your brother nor I can smell anything. Cooper's just yanking your chain." Rosie took another sniff of her clothes, and her mood brightened like a sun piercing through storm clouds, "Cooper, you're such a mischief-maker."

Cooper wagged his tail with a grin, playfully tugging at Rosie's pant leg.

"Come on, let's play!"

By noon, hunger struck like an unwelcome guest, demanding attention even when the appetite was half of its usual size.

Area B boasted a seawater filtration system, but fresh water was still a luxury, rationed to half a bucket per person per day, with strict timings for its availability.

For a shower, one had to hoard water, with communal baths and toilets on the first floor.

With water being such a precious commodity, using it for showers seemed wasteful. A quick wipe-down was a luxury, and any surplus could be bartered.

To save on Arcadia time, the trio and their dog had a pact - they'd digest their meal and then all head in together for a quick wash, wrapping up within thirty minutes, no exceptions. Cooper didn't need a shower; he had The Garden upstairs and downstairs to run and catch the breeze to his heart's content.

If he got dirty, they'd wash him afterwards, dumping the dirty water back into Arcadia.

Towel-drying her hair, Jasper asked with concern, "Rosie, how's the job?"

Don't ask. Just the thought brings up a stench with every breath.

Fresh into the workforce, Rosie's worldview was crumbling, "Brother, some folks in the Maggot Crew are sneaking bites."

"Sneaking bites?" Stella almost choked on her words.

their mouths when the boss isn't looking,"

"What did you do when

pretended I

"Why?"

had her reasoning, "If they had a choice, if

had known hunger, and that

life-or-death situation, who cares about eating maggots when people feast

first day, didn't it stand to reason the boss could too, if

case of turning a blind eye

reason to expose them and bring trouble upon

peaceful times, their actions would be wrong. But in these hard times, they're

wrong, it's forgivable. As long as it doesn't affect you, sometimes it's okay

approval,

significance in the face of disaster. Survivors did whatever it took, and as long as

a moment, "Brother, I

have a base to live in, where we can defer rent or food payments, and receive fresh water daily, all because our country planned ahead. Have you seen survivors

us a home, but we can't just lie back and wait for others to do the work. What if the country can't bear the weight one

to grow with our country. It's only through the hard work of every

nodded with resolve,

tough or you're feeling down,

and your sister-in-law and I will help you find

Rosie felt even

to Stella, "I'll look for a job tomorrow. I need to set the right example for

hard outside, and

Rosie still rose with the sun, and Jasper accompanied her, aiming to find

out together, with the doting brother continuing to mentor his

to freshen

improved, even cheerful, "Sister-in-law, I can take care of the maggots on my own now. I'm the fastest learner among

mentally replaced them with

with good news. His striking looks landed him a job at Area A's administrative center, maintaining law

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