What Comes After

May 19

I woke up at five because I couldn't sleep. The damage was worse than everyone thought. By the time the tides had retreated, millions of people were missing with casualty estimates rising up to the hundreds of thousands. I felt like I should've been more sad or shocked or just felt something about this, but I just couldn't. It's like I still can't believe that this has happened to us.

Mom managed to get a call with her family back in Taiwan. They're a bit shaken, but they're all right. They lived high enough above sea level to avoid the worst of the tides, but who knows how bad it's going to get? Dad came back in the middle of the night pretty shaken up from what I've heard from Mira. I don't think they found anyone alive. He also tried calling his parents. I think he's worried. They live in Mumbai, which is right next to the sea. I hope they're alright.

No one knew what was happening with school. The power kept going on and off, and there was no new information from the school. "Do you think we're going to school?" May asked.

"Maybe," I said. "I don't know."

"We're going to school," Mira said and entered the dining room. "I'll drop you two off at your high school."

"Is school even open?" I asked. "It might be closed because they'll be using it for holding all the injured people from yesterday."

"Maybe," Mira said. "I don't know. I think we should go anyway, just to see if they have any additional information. The internet is down right now, and the radio is mostly focused on the national news, so it'll be better just to see what the situation is like. It's what Mom and Dad would want."

"What are they doing anyways?" May asked.

"They're sleeping," Mira said. "Dad came back late at night from the beach. He wouldn't talk to me about it, but it's bad."

May looked a bit shocked, and I pushed the cereal around in my bowl. There was this stifling, awkward silence that blanketed the room. Mira looked down at May. "Are you okay? Did— Did you know—"

"I'm fine," May blurted out. "I'm fine. Let's hurry up and go to school. I don't want to ruin my attendance record."

Mira looked at her strangely and opened her mouth like she was going to say something, but then kept it to herself.

Mira drove me and May to school. We didn't talk much. The radio kept droning on and on about the tides and the Moon and the deaths. She turned off the radio and when we reached a curb, took the long way around to school to avoid the houses close to the beach, but I could already imagine the destruction.

School wasn't any better. The principal was out there directing the students to get off at an alternate drop-off lane since the main one was occupied by ambulances, sirens blaring as people in gurneys were carted off into the main gym, now transformed into a makeshift hospital with white tarps and rows of emergency workers clad in scrubs. He also said that school was still open, which made sense because it was on dry ground and was something normal and stable, so Mira drove around and dropped us off somewhere a little less grim even though the sirens still echoed throughout the air.

In my classes, there were pockets of students that were missing. I wasn't sure if they decided to skip school today or if they got, you know, swept away in the tides. There were students in the corner crying, some were just sleeping, burying their heads in their arms. Most of us were just staring at the whiteboard, still in shock of everything that happened, as if it wasn't real. I stared out of the window, watching the flashes of the police cars and ambulances reflect across the glass of the building next to the emergency lane. We all just thought that whatever happened just couldn't have happened.

One of our guidance counselors came in and told us that her offices and all the offices of the guidance counselors were open if we needed to talk, and our teacher cancelled all our upcoming assignments. She tried talking about the event, I could see it in her eyes, but no words came out. She sat in the corner of the classroom, crying quietly, and I felt bad that no one was comforting her, but sometimes, it was better to leave people alone. When the bell rang, we all shuffled out and headed towards our next classes, trying to pretend that it was a normal day.

But from the quietness of the passing period, it seemed that we had failed that test, and I heard that apparently some of our teachers were gone too. Everyone seemed to be speaking about the event in low whispers and hushes. During second period, we got an announcement. "A tragic event has befallen our community. To commemorate the losses, let us hold a moment of silence for all those who lost their lives in this tragic event."

Most of the time, people just ignored those moments-of-silence announcements like the ones that happened every year on 9/11. But everyone was quiet this time. Maybe it's because something bad actually happened to them, not just on some TV screen. Our literature teacher tried teaching us for the rest of the period, but I don't think anyone was really paying attention, so we got the rest of the period off.

During brunch, there were vigils being set up in the central plaza of our school. Everyone was just wandering around like zombies, mindlessly tapping on their phones. I saw Charles by the library. "Everything alright?" I asked.

"Yeah," he said. "Maybe. I don't know."

"Yeah," I said.

We stood there for a couple of moments. The wind kicked up a little and the smell of salt in the air became stronger. Charles turned towards me and turned towards me and was about to say something, but the bell rang, and we both said goodbye to each other and headed to our classes as sirens wailed in the background. However, the bell ring didn't seem to register for many students, and I saw some of my classmates just sitting under the mulberry trees either staring blankly at their phones or crying silently. Others just used the opportunity to ditch class despite the fact that the vice principals were patrolling the plaza, but even they didn't attempt to stop anyone from leaving.

When I was heading towards math, I could see lines of students being marched towards random classrooms as first responders began wheeling gurneys into our classrooms. If our massive gym had gotten filled so quickly and that was the backup, I can't even imagine how many people must've been killed and injured by the tidal tsunamis.

In the middle of math class, I got a note from the office, telling me that I had a doctor's appointment today. It was strange because I doubt that any of the hospitals would be open for routine checkups, and I don't remember any doctor appointments being scheduled today. But I still grabbed my stuff and left. Everything was too sad at school and the sirens were driving me wild. I couldn't stand being there any longer.

I went to the office. May was there too along with Mira and Dad. "What are you guys doing here?" I asked.

"C'mon we have to go," Mira said. "Get into the cars."

Mom was driving our small electrical car. Dad took the van. I went in the van with Dad and Mira while May went with Mom. "What's going on?" I asked. "You guys still haven't answered my question."

Dad's face was blanched white. He looked sick. "The damage... What I saw last night. We have to prepare for the worst."

Mira looked backwards from the front of the car. "Here's a list of all the items we're going to buy once we get to the supermarket. Dad and I planned out who is going to handle what. You and May are responsible for getting bottled water and other liquids," she said. "Mom, Dad, and I are handling the canned and dried foods."

For some reason, I started to smile. Mira and Dad weren't arguing anymore. Maybe disasters do bring the best out of people. "What's so funny?" Mira asked.

"Oh, nothing," I replied. "Why did we have to go to school if you guys were just going to take us out?"

"It's my fault," Dad said. "We should've been out by daybreak."

"But that would be before any of the supermarkets opened."

"I know," Dad said. "We might be too late."

"After I dropped you guys off to school, I saw the lines at the store," Mira said. "Everyone's panicking right now. It's pretty crazy out there."

"The news is saying that we might not be getting power or gas anytime soon," Dad said. "We have to prepare just in case whatever's being said on the news turns out to be true."

We sat in the car in silence. We passed by big supermarkets, all of them jam packed with hordes of cars and people. It was like a warzone, people fighting over shopping carts and cars nearly hitting each other. I don't think there was ever a time when I've seen that many people scared.

"If we're going to prepare for the worst, we're going to need medicine too."

"Good point," Dad said. "After you get ten crates of water bottles, head for the pharmacy section. Most people aren't thinking about medicine."

Some color had returned to his face. I think all this planning makes him feel safer for the future, especially considering what he might have seen last night.

"We need to grab Tylenol, ibuprofen, and Benadryl," he said. "Anything else?"

"Vitamins, soaps, toilet rolls, shampoo," Mira said. "There are just too many things to keep track of that we may need."

"First the food and water," Dad said. "Worry about the other things later."

We sat in the car as it rumbled down the road. The sky was gray. I think it was forecast to rain today, which is unusual for May. But then again, it paled in comparison to what happened yesterday.

I asked Dad to turn on the radio. The news station was reporting all kinds of damage around the world. The coasts off of Britain and Ireland were flooded because of their unusually large tidal boundaries. The Netherlands and most of Venice had vanished under the seas. Parts of Australia and Southeast Asia are underwater and most of the Pacific Islands have been buried under the blue ocean. That's all I heard before he dimmed the volume. I don't think he wanted to hear any more of the destruction.

Dad slowed down as we passed by a big supermarket. There were cars sprawled all across the cracked parking lot. Police sirens filled the skies with flashes of red and blue, as the patrol vehicles sped up and down the streets, some of them heading into that nearby supermarket. We passed another supermarket, but there, the police car's window was smashed, and the glass littered the asphalt. Dad swore. "Why the hell are there so many people everywhere?"

"That one doesn't have as many as the others," Mira said and pointed in the distance. "There's a spot."

"But what about Mom?" I asked. "Where's she going to park?"

"Don't worry about it, Neal," Dad said. "Right now, the priority is going into the store and getting food and water. We have to prepare ourselves."

Dad was acting a little paranoid, but I think he was right. With the tides and the waves being so bad, I don't know if life would ever return back to the way it used to be for a while. We're better safe than sorry.

Dad signaled to turn into the parking lot and Mira turned towards me. "Here's some cash," Mira said, handing me a stack of hundred-dollar bills.

'Where'd you get these?" I asked.

"Remember the earthquake kit you made in 6th grade," Mira said. "It turns out that there was a lot of cash left in there for emergencies."

The parking lot was a mess. There were cars sprawled everywhere as lights flashed and people shouted slurs and swears. Dad stopped in the middle of the parking lot. "Get out," Mira said.

"In the middle of the road?"

"Yes," she said. "We got to get a head start. Dad will be right behind us once he parks."

"Okay," I said and opened the door, jumping out. "Don't forget about the bags."

"I've got them," she said and held them up. "Let's try to find a shopping cart."

People were running all around us. Most of them were heading for the supermarket, but other people were desperately stuffing bags filled to the brim with fruits and vegetables into their trunks. I scanned around the parking lot and found two shopping carts half-buried in a dark green bush. "Over there," I told Mira.

We ran for the carts like our lives depended on it. One of the shopping cart's wheels was a bit flattened and the cart didn't roll well, but we had to make the best out of what we got. We navigated our way through the parking lot and found Dad. Mom and May were waiting there for us. "We've only got two shopping carts," Mira said.

"Your mom and I will take them," Dad said. "We'll need to get as much canned food as we can."

"Do you want me to come with you guys?" Mira asked Dad. "Or should I stick with Neal and May."

"We're not children," May said. "We can handle ourselves there. Plus, if things are as bad as everyone says they are, we're going to need a lot of food."

"Okay," Mira said and looked at us seriously. "Remember, do not get separated. Stick with each other."

May gave her a thumbs up, and we hustled to the entrance of the supermarket. If the parking lot was a mess, it was a small one compared to the anarchy inside. There were people crowded everywhere, trying to stuff as much food as they could into their shopping carts while trying to ram their carts out into the parking lot. May and I weaved through the crowds. The floor was sticky with egg yolk and orange juice and wine.

I peeked through the aisles. Most of the fresh vegetables and fruits were taken along with the junk food and candies. There were a couple of people in the canned food sections, but the shelves were less bare than the chocolates and chips aisle. I wasn't sure why anyone would be getting junk food (end of the world binging possibly) or fresh vegetables during this crisis, but people are weird sometimes, especially when they're scared.