18 Floors Above the Apocalypse

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.

wash the maggots clean and stuff them into their mouths when the boss isn't looking," Rosie recounted, feeling

you

hesitated, "I pretended I

"Why?"

to steal food, but they're so thin. They must be starving every day." Rosie had her reasoning, "If they had a choice,

had known hunger, and that feeling was

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

them on her very first day, didn't it stand to reason the

a blind

expose

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

wrong, it's forgivable. As long as it doesn't affect you, sometimes it's okay to turn a blind eye and

approval, Rosie

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

a moment,

our peace because others carry the burden. We 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 from other

can't just lie back and wait for others to do the work. What if

country. It's only through the hard work of every survivor that our

nodded with resolve, "I

course, if work gets tough or you're feeling down, don't keep it to

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

even more determined,

job tomorrow. I need to set the right example for Rosie. Can't have her thinking it's okay to loaf around all day." Stella rewarded

outside, and

Jasper accompanied her, aiming to find a job with

together, with the doting brother continuing to mentor

a lazy morning, waking up at nine to freshen

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

replaced them with the adorable image

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