Read The Prepper: A Short Story (Voices of the Apocalypse Book 2) for Free Online

any of the other girls. Her crystal blue eyes gleamed like Venus on a clear night. She glanced up toward the back row and caught a quick glimpse of Critter. He noticed a flash of relief spread across her porcelain white face. She turned away, flipping her hair over her shoulder, and smiled to the audience of excited seniors.
    “She just gets hotter, doesn’t she?” Trevor said, nudging Critter.
    “Yeah, I suppose she does.” Critter took another sip from the flask and leaned back against the cinderblock wall. As much as he tried to blot out Mona, she was always right there in front of him. He relaxed as the heat of vodka burned through his veins.  
    “Too bad she’s a cheerleader,” Trevor said.
    He didn’t respond because he knew Trevor was testing him. Critter had sworn to his buddies that he had moved on, but they knew he was shackled to Mona; she was the air he breathed. They all knew it, but they’d never acknowledge it.  
    “Did you get your bags to the meeting place?” Critter asked, changing the subject.
    “Yep. Over the weekend. It was tough, carrying that bag on my board.”
    “It’s good practice,” Critter said.  
    “Also, John and I spent Sunday night siphoning gas like a couple of crack whores sucking dick. We’ve got plenty of gas to get us to the San Juans.”
    “Cool. What about Dave?”  
    “You don’t know?”  
    “Know what?”  
    “Dave ain’t goin’ no more,” Trevor said.
    “What?” Critter looked down the row at Dave. “Hey, Dave, come here,” he called over.
    Dave waddled down the row and squeezed in next to Critter, his chubby legs pressing against him. “What’s up?”  
    “What’s this bullshit about you not coming?”
    “I can’t. My dad found my draft notice in the trash, and now he’s got me on lock-down. Says he’s takin’ me to Denver if he has to drag me. It’s my turn to serve our country.”
    “Not possible. You gotta come with us. One for all, man.” Critter held out his fist.  
    Dave reluctantly bumped his fist on top of Critter’s but didn’t seem very committed to the cause. “I don’t know, dude. Look at me; I’m in no condition to survive in the wilderness.”
    Trevor laughed. “He’s got that right. You should’ve seen him trying to ride his bike and balance his bag. Fell down, like, twenty times.”
    “Cool your jets, man.” Critter glared at Trevor. “Dave’s had a rough year.”
    Down below, the cheerleading squad started shouting motivational words and the audience cheered back. It was too loud to continue the conversation.  
    “You’re coming, dude,” Critter yelled to Dave over the ruckus.
    Dave went back to his spot on the bleachers, shoving John over a bit to make some space. At one point, Dave had been the best skater of the crew, but when his mom got sick and died earlier that year, he put on a bunch of weight and gave his skateboard to Trevor. He had given up on living, but Critter had been trying to convince him that he’d start to feel better once they got to the woods. Once they all got away from the Repatterning.
    Critter tried to be casual about looking at the gymnasium floor. He didn’t want to seem too eager. He watched Mona bouncing up and down, clapping and smiling. The light from inside of her beamed throughout the entire place. Critter felt his heart leap upwards, like when he performed a Caballerial. He caught Mona glancing up at him between cheers, and he pretended not to notice.
    After a few announcements from Vice Principal Alberts, the students filed out of the gymnasium. Most of the students didn’t bother heading back to class; instead they left campus and headed to the lake, where they’d party until someone got hurt. Critter had zero desire to hang with the idiot squad, so he went to English class and sat in his usual spot in the back of the room. Attendance was spotty and Mr. Chader decided to let the students spend the hour doing some creative writing in their digi-pads. Critter had