Know What Is Coming

Chapter 2

The next morning, I woke up before sunrise.

For a few seconds, I forgot everything.

Then the memories came rushing back.

The gate.

Maya's smile.

Adrian's betrayal.

The infected.

My death.

I sat up slowly.

Three months.

I still had three months before everything changed.

I couldn't waste a single day.

I got dressed and drove to the property I had chosen for my shelter.

The workers had already started reinforcing the outer walls.

I stood in the middle of the compound, studying everything carefully.

The walls needed to be higher.

The gate needed another layer of protection.

The windows needed stronger metal coverings.

And most importantly, I needed a reliable source of water.

"Make sure the underground tank is completely sealed," I told the contractor.

He nodded.

"Don't worry. We'll have it done soon."

I looked at the construction workers.

In my previous life, I had never understood how quickly ordinary things could become priceless.things like food, water, medicine

Would cost a fortune.

After the apocalypse began, people would fight over them.

I wasn't going to make that mistake again.

I spent the rest of the morning visiting different stores.

I bought canned food, rice, beans, flour, bottled water, medicine, batteries, flashlights, blankets, clothes, hygiene products, and tools.

I didn't buy everything from one place.

I didn't want anyone becoming suspicious.

Every purchase was carefully planned.

By afternoon, my car was filled with supplies.

When I returned home, I noticed Maya standing near the entrance.

She looked at the bags in my hands.

"Are you opening a supermarket?"

I forced a smile.

"Something like that."

She laughed.

"You've been acting strange lately."

I said nothing.

Maya stepped closer.

"Is something wrong?"

Everything.

I almost laughed.

In my previous life, that same voice had comforted me whenever I was upset.

I had trusted it.

I had loved her.

Now I knew what was hiding behind that innocent expression.

"No," I replied.

"I'm just trying to get my life together."

She studied me for a few seconds.

Then she smiled.

"Well, don't forget that we're family. You can always count on us."

My fingers tightened around the shopping bag.

Family.

Those words almost made me angry.

But I kept my expression calm.

"Of course."

Maya walked away.

I watched her disappear around the corner.

Then my smile vanished.

I would never make the same mistake again.

That evening, Adrian called me.

I stared at his name on my screen.

For a moment, I simply watched it ring.

In my previous life, I would have answered immediately.

This time, I let it ring.

Then it stopped.

A few seconds later, a message appeared.

Adrian: Are you okay? You've been acting distant lately.

I stared at the message.

Distant?

He had no idea how much I already knew.

I typed a reply.

Elena: I'm fine. Just busy.

I didn't tell him anything else.

He called again.

I ignored it.

After several minutes, another message arrived.

Adrian: Can we meet tomorrow?

My heart remained completely calm.

In my previous life, I would have been excited.

I would have spent hours choosing what to wear.

I would have wondered if he had planned something romantic.

Now?

I knew exactly who he would eventually choose.

And I knew exactly what Maya meant to him.

I deleted the message.

Then I opened my notebook.

I had already written down everything I remembered about the apocalypse.

The first major outbreak.

The neighborhoods that became unsafe.

The places where supplies disappeared first.

The survivors I had met.

The people I had lost.

And one group in particular.

A group of strangers who had once come to my family's shelter.

I remembered them clearly.

They had begged for help.

They had food and useful skills.

But my family had refused to open the gates.

I remembered watching them leave.

At the time, I had been too afraid to argue.

Later, I discovered that they had survived longer than anyone expected.

Some of them had even played an important role in discovering information about the virus.

But in my first life, I never got the chance to know them.

This time would be different.

I wrote their names down.

They would be part of my plans.

Not because I knew whether I could trust them.

But because I remembered what happened when my family chose to abandon them.

I closed the notebook.

Outside my window, the city was still peaceful.

People were going about their lives without a single thought about what was coming.

I wondered how many of them would survive.

Then I remembered something else.

The virus wasn't the only danger.

Desperate people were often more dangerous than the infected.

That was why my shelter needed more than strong walls.

It needed rules.

I wrote the first one at the top of a fresh page.

Trust must be earned.

The second came immediately after.

Never reveal everything you have.

And the third:

Never sacrifice myself for people who would sacrifice me.

I stared at those words for a long time.

Then I closed the notebook.

Three months.

I had three months to prepare.

And this time, I wasn't going to waste them.

I wasn't going to save everyone.

I wasn't going to trust everyone.

But I would save the people I could.

And when the world finally collapsed, I would be ready.

Because I had already died once.

I had no intention of dying twice.