Marcia looked up at her in worry.
“I appreciate all that you do, Ali, but don’t you think it would be easier and safer for us if we just join another family making the trip. I know some families from church that would gladly help us. You don’t have to do this on your own.”
“Granny, we’ve talked about this before. We can’t trust anyone. People are desperate to have their way. If we put ourselves into their hands, they will use us the way they want to and throw us away when they are done. We can’t hand ourselves over to people that cheaply. We can do this, granny. Trust me on this,” Aaliyah said as she wrapped a blanket around Marcia.
Marcia looked at Aaliyah in surprise. Aaliyah was nonplussed.
“What?”
“Well, it’s partly that, I can’t remember the last time you aired the thoughts that ran through your mind. I miss hearing about your philosophies. But, more than that, I’m bothered by the philosophies themselves. They’ve changed and become pessimistic. What makes you think that way - that everyone would betray us?”
Aaliyah sighed. The dream had really shaken her up. Her emotions were all over the place.
“Don’t worry about it, granny. Just wait for me, please. Will you?”
Marcia sighed too but then she smiled and nodded.
“The only reason I’m going to let you go out there on your own is that I don’t want the money your father spent on martial art classes to be a waste. You’d better use it to take good care of yourself,” she said.
Marcia tilted her head and smiled. “Okay, grandma.” With that, she drew her hood over her head and ran off towards the town. Marcia smiled as she watched Aaliyah go. She was grateful that not everyone was taken away. True, it hurt to lose her daughter, son-in-law, and the entire family. But she was glad that Aaliyah stayed. Aaliyah had always been sweet and thoughtful. If there was anyone who would take it upon themselves to care for her, it was Aaliyah. The little girl would even insist on taking her to church so that she didn’t miss out on her life because of her health. Suddenly, barely one year ago, Aaliyah had changed and become a recluse. She would come back from school and go straight to her room without even spending time with Marcia as she used to do in the past. Everyone, including her friends from church, tried to talk to her to no avail. Soon they all gave up but Marcia kept praying for the sweet child. Then one day, she announced that she wanted to take martial art classes. Everyone had thought that she was back to her bright cheerful self. They were wrong.
She only became a self-confident recluse. Marcia sighed and said a silent prayer for her granddaughter.
Barely a second later, a young man walked up to her.
“Hello, Ms. Marcia. It’s been a while,” he said. She looked into his moss-green eyes and she smiled. It was Ted Hankins, the lead guitarist from the church.
“Oh my, it’s truly been a while. You know my health no longer allows me to move around alone. That’s why I had to stop coming.”
Ted took her hand and held it in his.
“Well, am I glad to see you. It’s a miracle we’re alive, you know. Where’s the rest of your family? It’s weird that you’re all alone out here.”
Marcia’s smiled dropped and he got the message.
“Oh,” he said slowly. “I’m so sorry. How have you been moving all this time then?”
Marcie smiled again; this time ruefully.
“Well, my granddaughter was not in the car with them. We were at home when the EMP hit. She’s been fending for me all this time. In fact, she just went to get us something to eat.”
“You mean Aaliyah?”
“Yes. You remember her!”
When he smiled, his cheeks turned red.
“Well, I do actually.” There was a brief silence and then Ted piped up again. “Hey, you know what? Why don’t you guys join my family? We could all work together to survive the trek. And it’ll be good for company too. We’re having canned beans for breakfast. There’s plenty to go round.”
Marcia’s eyes lit up.
“That will be splendid. I kept telling Ali that we should find a friend to pair up with but she’s such a lone ranger.”
Ted laughed with her.
“Well, we are all over there,” he said as he helped her get up and led her to where his family was. His family consisted of his parents and a boy of about twelve years. There were all seated around a smolder, eating from cans. Some other friends sat around too. They all lit up when they saw Marcia.
“Granny!” Elizabeth, Ted’s mother, said as she got up and hugged the elderly woman. Ted piped up.