I drove closely behind Jacob’s truck, and Colton trailed right behind me in his own. I was sandwiched between the two. They escorted me all the way into Windland. “This is going to be interesting. I knew we were fresh meat the couple times we came up here before, but this?” Breelyn leaned forward. She was sitting in the back with Emma, but she slid into the middle so she could see the road. She liked to see what the car was doing, so she knew what to expect.

  “I know,” Emma spoke between each nail she chewed off. “I’m kind of nervous. Why am I nervous?” I could feel my stomach churning. I was terrified, and there was no reason for it. I reached forward and turned the radio on. I tried to find a station that worked up here, but nothing was on. I turned it off, then Phoebe started singing her own song. It was the chorus of an old 2000s hit. Emma joined in, then Breelyn. I just hummed along and laughed.

  I awkwardly parked between Colton and Jacob when we arrived, then we all filed out of the car. I liked how their school was similar to ours, though. Not the building and not the field, but the mascots and the colors were all identical to our own high school. Luckily, we had all brought clothes that had the school colors or the emblem on it. It would help us blend in a little bit more.

  Inside were more people than I had ever seen in one area. From the parking lot, I could see the stands full of parents, students, and little kids. I stopped walking and stared ahead. I could feel my weapon underneath my shirt. I didn’t want to go anywhere without it, and I wasn’t even sure if I could physically bring myself to part from it. “How thick is their security?”

  “Why?” Hunter turned around as I spoke. He could tell something was up the moment he heard my tone. I put my hand around my waistband. “Oh,” he glanced down. “It’s not noticeable, you’ll be okay. Just don’t… freak out.”

  “Okay,” I ended up grabbing Breelyn’s hand and squeezing it until my knuckles turned white. We walked inside, and the lady up front greeted us with a smile. Everyone was so friendly, and there were so many of them. I started to feel hot. I was very uneasy all of a sudden. I didn’t feel comfortable being here. I slowly fell to the back of the group, my steps slower than the rest, but I kept going forward. We went to the section of the stands designated for the high school and sat in a big cluster. We got a few looks from everyone. They stared as they watched people they knew speak to the four of us, the people they couldn’t recognize. It was the apocalypse, and four teenage girls they’d never seen before were standing among their tight-knit community. I’m surprised they didn’t have more safety measures, but then again, they didn’t have a clue about the events outside of these walls.

  People slowly filled in the stands around us. There were legs behind me, backs in front of me, and people everywhere. I wouldn’t be able to leave even if I wanted to… or needed to. I tightened my arms around my abdomen, feeling the gun press against my skin. It was there if I needed it, and these people weren’t going to hurt me. I had a family to get home to, after all. I whipped my head up as someone new slid into our row. I was squeezed between Phoebe and Breelyn, but I didn’t mind at all. I felt safer in a way, knowing that they were there. I crossed my legs to feel a little more secure.

  The sun was all the way down by the time the game started, and the stadium lights lit up the whole football field. Players walked out onto the grass, and the whole stadium rose, clapping and cheering. I could spot Hunter at the front of the team, throwing his arms up in the air to get them to cheer louder. I could faintly see that the bracelet he always wore was still on his wrist. The opposite team was East City, a town ever so slightly larger than the home team, Windland. Both teams were inside the wall that was built around them. They were all together in a divided square. It was weird, but I’m sure they found comfort in it. Maybe it wouldn’t be that bad if they were all at peace together. If they lived the way life used to be, why would they choose to leave their safety square and suffer with the rest of the world when they couldn’t do anything about it?

  The crowds cheered and called their chants. Even the cheerleaders called the same cheers we had from back home. I was getting too big a sense of deja vu. How did I manage to travel back in time? I called the chants back to them, but I wasn’t yelling it like most of these people. I noticed Emma, Phoebe, and Breelyn doing the same thing I was. We weren’t getting into it, but we were enjoying and soaking in the moment. I looked up into the stadium lights and stared at the hundreds of bugs circling them, drawn into it like a deer in headlights. As I stared, I heard a low humming noise. It wasn’t the bugs. I turned my head around and stared up at the sky. The humming was getting much louder. The stands lightly shook from it. I stood up and turned around, but Jacob grabbed my arm and pulled me down. “It’s a helicopter, what’re you doing?” I glanced back again. I hadn’t seen or heard a helicopter in a long time. There weren’t very many people around who could fly them anymore, but something wasn’t right.

  “Jacob, I don’t think this is right.” I crossed my legs and gripped the edge of the seat.

  “It’s okay, just- go take a breather, alright?” A few people around us gave us strange glances.

  “Hey, we’ll go with you,” I could see the fear in Emma’s eyes as she spoke. The four of us got up, Jacob and his friends sparing no more than a couple of seconds' worth of stares before the crowd interrupted with a loud yell of excitement. Tristan grabbed my hand as I stepped by him. He could feel how tense I was. Both of us turned our heads as the crowd roared again. Hunter scored his third touchdown of the game.

  “You alright?” I looked back at him again. He still had a hold of my hand. I looked back at him, speechless for a few moments, then I realized people were watching. My friends were waiting on the bleacher stairs.

  “It’s an overwhelming culture shock,” I squeezed his hand in reassurance. “We’ll be back. I just need some air. Don’t worry,” He held my gaze before our hands slid apart. He nodded, letting me know he understood.

  “Don’t get lost.” I laughed at his comment. He smiled when he saw that fearful look in my eyes change. When I turned back around, a terrible feeling washed over me.

  We walked down the stairs, each of us tenser than before. We made it to the concessions, which were placed right by the entrance, when I turned around and looked at the helicopter. I thought it was a helicopter, at least. I didn’t have enough time to truly look at it and see what it was before my vision went black. There was a loud boom that shook the ground. I could hear what I think was the rattling of the stands.

  I turned over and looked up at Phoebe, who was right next to me. She had a hand over her head and was looking up into the sky, pure fear in her wide eyes. She had tears streaming down her cheeks. Most of my weight was on my forearms when I pushed myself up to look around. There was a big crater in the football field, and people were screaming. I could hear them over the ringing in my ears. I felt arms around me, and I was pulled to my feet before I remembered that I could stand. I hardly stayed upright. I could barely remember how to breathe, let alone stand. The ringing in my ears was all I could focus on, but Emma was dragging me to the entrance. Finally, my hearing turned in, and I finally realized what I was looking at. I ripped my arm out of Emma’s grasp and yelled for my cousin. “Jacob!” I screamed. My throat felt raw. “Emma, no-” She tried grabbing my hand. I was reaching in the opposite direction from her. “He’s in there!”

  “There’s nothing you can do!” She yelled back at me. People were running for the entrance from the stands, but then another one hit. I grabbed Emma as we fell to the side, slamming into the wall of concessions. Breelyn and Phoebe were in front of us for one moment, then they were drowned out by the crowd the next.

  “Jacob is in there!” I tried to yell over the screaming, but it sounded like a whisper. “There are people, hurt people! It’s my job-” Another one hit. We threw our hands up over our heads, both of our bodies fully flinching at the same time. I could hear her screams of fear. The air suddenly smelled strange. It was a mixture of burning metal and gunpowder. My hands were trembling in front of me, but I could help people. “Emma, get out of here!” I yelled. She looked at me, fear in her eyes as she screamed for me to come back, but I got up and started to run.

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  The fear made my legs feel weak. I thought I would fall over, that I would surely collapse to the ground and never get back up again, but I kept running. People ran into me, pushing my shoulder back, but I ran straight through the crowd and for the football field. I stood at the edge of one of the field goals and stared at the stands. There was a big crater in the middle of one of the bleachers, and another in the field, then another on the far side of the school building. It wiped out half of the high school building. I looked up, but I couldn’t see anything through the clouds. The helicopter noise had gone away earlier, but now it was louder. I saw something shining that dropped through the clouds, and it landed right on top of the exit. I hunkered down and shielded my head after cupping my palms over my ears. No matter how much I tried, it was still too loud to handle. I felt my ears pop. I pinched my eyes shut, screaming, but I couldn’t hear my own voice anymore. I felt a warm liquid dripping down my neck on both sides.

  With each impact, the ground didn’t shake for very long. I couldn’t hear anyone or anything anymore. It sounded like a TV playing on the lowest volume, but not quite zero. There were small buzzing sounds. Faint people. I grabbed the field goal post and brought my hand to my ear. I pressed my palm against the warm liquid and brought it in front of my face. My stomach lurched at the sight of blood. I looked back out onto the field where some of the football players were lying. They were grabbing each other. Parents ran out and got their kids, and some of them were stiff. The stadium lights illuminated it all, but one of the lights was collapsing inwards. I looked where it was going to land as a shadow slowly cast beneath it, but nobody was beneath it. I turned away and squeezed my eyes shut as it made its impact, but I couldn’t hear it. All I felt was the vibration. I started to walk forward, wincing as I put some pressure on my ears. My palm suctioned over them, but it wasn’t helping at all. It felt like I was underwater, only my ears just wouldn’t pop. They started to ring a bit. It got louder and louder, and it was the only thing I could hear.

  I ran to the middle of the field, parents and people running past me to get to the entrance. I walked, slowly spinning around and looking at everyone. I couldn’t bear to look at the stands, though. I didn’t know what section was hit, but there was a pretty big crater. I could see the firemen and paramedics running onto the scene.

  I ran up to the crater in the field and saw a couple of players down on the ground. Only one was moving, and the other was lying on the ground. The first player was trying to help the boy on the ground. I slid down the side, dirt gathering beneath my foot as I slid, and finally stopped myself at the bottom. I ran up to the player and grabbed their shoulder, pulling them back to get a look at their face. They seemed okay, but confused. Their mouths were moving, but I couldn’t hear a word they were saying. I could feel myself breathing heavily. I ignored their silent words.

  I leaned down and took off the player’s helmet. He was staring up at the sky. His eyes were wide and slightly moving left and right, but he wasn’t looking at anything. His forehead was pale and beaded with sweat. I put my fingers on his neck. His pulse was rapid, and his breathing was rapid, but he was alive. His hands gripped the neck of his jersey as I looked at the rest of his body. His foot was gone, and on the same side, so was his hand. He looked like a soldier who had stepped on a mine. He was going into shock. I looked back at the player standing behind me. He was yelling something to someone that I couldn’t see. “I need you to,” my mouth felt numb as I spoke. I couldn’t understand myself. “I need your jersey. Get help, he’s top priority,” I said what I wanted to say, but I wasn’t sure if it was executed correctly. “Go!” They looked at me for a second, dumbfounded, and took off their jersey before climbing the side of the crater and taking off. I looked back at the victim. He was staring at me now. His mouth was moving, but I didn’t know what he was saying. “I can’t hear,” I pointed to my ears and shook my head. “I can’t hear anything at all. You’re going to be okay. He’s getting help. Don’t worry, alright? I’m an EMT. You lost your foot, and we’re going to fix it. You’ll be able to walk again.” The rules for consoling a patient have changed since the end began. Normally, you couldn’t tell the patient lies, and you couldn’t make promises. Now that was all we did.

  I squeezed his arm and went down to his legs. The wound was very, very choppy. His foot could still be there, but not all of it. It was a whole mangled mess. I grabbed the jersey and wrapped it tightly around the entire wound, then took off his other shoe and grabbed the laces. I ripped them off and tied them below the knee, then did the same to his arm below the elbow. “It’s gonna hurt for a second, alright? You’ll feel a lot of pressure,” I started to count up to three, but gave him no warning as I cinched the laces as tightly as I could. He didn’t budge, though. He had a high threshold of pain, or he couldn’t feel anything at all.

  I tied it off and went back up to his head. I put my cold hand on his forehead. It wasn’t going to tell me much, but he still felt warm. At least he wasn’t cold. I grabbed his good hand and squeezed it again. “I don’t know what happened here,” I glanced back. Nobody was running around above us. I had felt the ground shake a couple of times, too. “We’re safer down here than we are up there anyway. Help is coming, I promise,” He squeezed my hand back. I saw his lips start to move, but he stopped. He knew I couldn’t hear anything. “I’m Jacob’s cousin. Do you know him? Jacob Frost?” He shook his head. The fear I thought I had seen in his eyes was gone. He seemed peaceful, but he was still in a lot of pain. “I’m from two hours away from here. Hartland Missouri. I don’t know if you live here, but I know this place is surrounded by these walls that keep the people safe, and the world out there is terrible. People are murdering each other, there’s no electricity, and no running water. Nobody goes outside anymore, unless they want to get shot. It’s beautiful here,” He nodded, letting me know he was listening. “Could you tell me your name? Write it on my palm?” His shaking hand released from mine. He pointed his finger and started writing letters in my palm. Each letter he wrote, I repeated out loud to make sure I got it right. “Ryker?” I spoke about the result. He nodded. “I knew one of those in high school,” I smiled at him. He smiled back, then stared back at the sky. I could tell he was in pain. “Are you a junior, Ryder?” He shook his head. “A senior?” He shook his head again. He held up numbers on his hand. Nineteen. “I would ask where you’re going to college, but that’s not really an option anymore,” I laughed. His body moved a little. He was laughing too. “Are you religious?” He nodded his head again. “Christian?” He nodded. I brought my other hand over my neck and took off my long, black cross necklace. I usually wore it below my shirt since the chain was so thick. Usually, people didn’t know I had it on. I held it above his face so he could see it. “The Lord is watching over you, Ryker,” I slid it around his head and positioned it on his chest. “Don’t worry about anything. He’s with you, and so am I.” My body jumped as I felt something squeeze my shoulder and pull me back. I gripped Ryker’s hand one last time before getting pulled away. I turned around, staring at the paramedic in front of me. He was saying something, or yelling something, given how tense his neck was. I stared at him without flinching, looking him up and down. He kept saying something, but I looked away from him and back to Ryker. Two people were kneeling and talking to him. He looked over at me, the two people following his eyes.

  “19-year-old male, Pulse is 154, respiratory rate is 39. The patient is showing signs of hemorrhagic shock. Malformation of the lower right and upper right extremity,” I waited for the man’s mouth in front of me to stop before I started to tell him what I knew. “His name is Ryker. I’m an EMT of the Southern Hartland Fire Department,” I held my hand out. He slowly reached out and shook it. His mouth moved again. “I can’t hear anything, sir.” He stopped talking and looked back at the two people who were now lifting Ryker. He must not have shown any signs of spinal deformity. The man grabbed my hand and started leading me to the top of the crater. As we surfaced, I saw smoke rising everywhere. There were a lot fewer people than before, but still, easily around sixty were injured and lying all around. I couldn’t imagine the number of fatalities in the stands. The man held onto my wrist lightly and led me towards the triaging area they had set up in front of the ambulances and fire trucks. He sat me on the rear end of one of the trucks and shone a light in my eyes, then my ears. He touched the liquid coming out of them and looked at his fingers. He looked back at my face, biting the inside of his cheek as he pushed out a tiny notepad from his shirt pocket and started writing with the pen light. He flipped the notepad.

  Eardrum ruptured?

  I nodded, then held out my hand. He wrote a few more things down before handing it to me.

  Name? Age? Any injuries?

  “My name is Amelia Clark. I’m 18, from Hartland, Missouri. It’s two hours from here. The world out there, I’m not sure if you know, but everyone’s dying. I know my fair share of traumas. I can help you.” He stared at me again, then nodded. He opened the back of the truck and pulled out a medic bag and a navy blue button-up shirt with their emergency services emblem on it. He took the pad back from me. My ears were ringing again.

  Do the best you can.

  I nodded to him. “One last thing, sir. If you can, can you tell me the whereabouts of that patient I was with? That is, if you see him again?” He nodded and squeezed my shoulder before running off to help. I grabbed the handle of the medic bag and thought for a moment. I couldn’t talk with patients, or at least I couldn’t hear their feedback. They couldn’t use me in the primary triaging area. I opened the main zip pocket and started taking out a few things. I grabbed a Bag Valve Mask, a few tourniquets, some gauze and bandages, and triaging tags before I ran back into the stadium with only the essentials.