Isolation

Chapter 13

Sara, as she had expected, didn't sleep very well that night. The next morning, there was a knock on their door.

"Someone's at the door," Maria said as if she didn't hear.

"Are you decent?"

"What?"

"Do you have clothes on?"

"Yes."

"Come in!" Sara shouted.

Tim was at the door. Sara could tell he didn't get much sleep. There were dark bags under his eyes.

"I have your ration card," Tim said to Maria. "They handed them out this morning."

"I like rations. Rations are good."

She climbed down and held her father's hand for a few seconds. He gave her the card.

"Don't lose it," he said.

"I won't."

"Do you want some breakfast?"

"Not now. I want to watch another episode of Glamour Girls then take a shower."

"Right. Your usual routine. Well, I'll be waiting in the mess hall," he said. "See you two soon."

He left. Sara watched Maria turn on the TV and start over the second episode. She sat in the desk chair almost right in front. Sara sat up and threw her legs over the bed. She felt groggy from the lack of proper sleep.

"I'm taking a shower first," Sara said.

She didn't know if Maria heard and didn't care. She knew she had half an hour. She used every minute to run under hot water. Her tense muscles relaxed. She almost wanted to get back in bed.

"I can't," she said to herself. "Can't just sleep all day like Nana used to."

Coming near the thirty-minute mark, she turned the hot water off. Splashed with cold water, she suddenly wasn't tired, anymore. She yelped from the sudden change in temperature and shut the water off. She grabbed a towel and wrapped her naked body to conserve warmth. The shock wouldn't do her body good, but she wanted to be awake. The Drax could come back. She had to be ready. Sleep would come after.

She put her uniform back on, with some new undergarments, and adjusted her comm. She looked in the mirror at the girl looking back. Her hair was wet. Her eyes were dark. She looked a little taller than normal. The girl looking back at her was someone else. It couldn't be her.

"It's my turn, now," Maria poked her head inside.

"Shower is all yours," Sara said.

They traded places.

"Hey, do you want me to—"

The door was shut.

"—wait for... never mind."

She went to breakfast, although she wasn't sure what for. She wasn't hungry. She didn't know if anyone would be feeling hungry today. Maybe a peek at what rations were available would be enough for the time being.

She went down the ladder to the base floor. It was a straight shot to the mess hall. It was only about eight in the morning, but people were already well on their way. Sara couldn't help but notice the solemn faces surrounding her. For a moment, she felt like she was walking in a funeral march. She wasn't the only dead person walking.

The mess hall wasn't huge. It was just big enough to fit all two-hundred-fifty occupants of the ship if they wanted. It wasn't likely to happen, so finding somewhere to sit wouldn't be difficult. She was suddenly reminded of school during lunchtime and felt a sharp pang of homesickness in her stomach. The emptiness was growing, and food wasn't going to help fill it.