You're not the only one

"Yes," I whispered out of curiosity.

The moment the word left my mouth, the carton I had placed my hand on disappeared.

[Storage successful.]

[Current storage capacity: Unknown.]

[Time flow within storage: Suspended.]

I held my breath. “Okay, this has to be some sort of joke.”

I tried to convince myself I was only imagining things, but my curiosity had already been awakened.

One look at the foodstuffs that were scattered around the warehouse and I decided to try this again.

I placed my hand on a pack of bottled water and took one deep breath in. “Store this.”

The pack disappeared before my eyes.

[Storage successful.]

“It worked!” I screamed out in excitement. “Retrieve the pack of bottled water.”

The pack reappeared exactly where it had been before. Out of excitement, I screamed until my voice echoed through the warehouse, reminding me I was alone.

“Well, let's go big this time,” I closed my eyes. “Store everything in the warehouse.”

I opened my eyes and one by one, the cartons of instant noodles, bags of rice, canned food, bottled water, cleaning supplies and even my handbag vanished into thin air. 

[Storage successful.]

“Oh my gosh!” Then I remembered it had taken my bag as well, so I said the first words that came to my mind. “Retrieve my handbag.”

My handbag landed on the same position it had been, startling me as it made a sound.

“Looks like I wouldn't be having an issue with storage,” I smiled as I left the warehouse.

When I got back home I could not help thinking, there was no way I had this ability before in my previous life.

But somehow I had awakened it now, and I was going to make the most of it. My mind kept wondering how the ability worked, thinking of the worst that could happen with it as I made noodles.

A silly thought crossed my mind, when I remembered it said something about time flow being suspended in the storage.

I placed a bowl of steaming noodles on the counter and stored it, then waited for thirty minutes before retrieving it.

My eyes almost dropped as I saw steam still coming from the bowl. "You're kidding me."

I tried again with a cup of hot tea and the result was the same. That means time does not pass in this storage space and to store anything, I had to touch it and say the magic words.

“My food won't go bad, meat won't thaw, medicine too if I follow the proper requirements for it.” I sat on the sofa, thinking of the endless possibilities as I slurped on my noodles.

The real estate agent I had contacted earlier called, when I was almost done with my food.

“Would you like to take a look at the property, ma'am?”

“Sure, I'm on my way.”

I grabbed my keys and headed out to what was going to be my fortress. One look at it and I sighed, it was not perfect but I was going to make it work.

It was on the outskirts, but close to the main road which was good for emergencies. The house had a high wall with a gate, very spacious basement, and enough space.

Even if the generator was not strong enough to carry the house for an extended period, it was a good starting point since I was going to buy a new generator with lots of backup batteries.

"How soon can the sale be completed?" I asked.

The agent adjusted his glasses. "If the funds are available and your lawyer approves the documents, I'll say today. The seller is relocating and is willing to negotiate."

"Alright."

I walked through every room, checking the locks, windows, doors, and emergency exits. I paid particular attention to the basement, it looked perfect for storing fuel, tools, and emergency equipment.

The house itself would be my shelter during the great freeze. I would need to install a more reliable heating system, add independent power sources and a water purification system.

If the world was going to freeze over, I wasn't going to sit inside a beautiful house and die because the electricity failed.

By the time I finished inspecting the property, I had a clear list of modifications. I reached out to my lawyer and after giving me the go-ahead, I paid the required deposit.

As I walked back to my car I looked at the house again. In my previous life, I had spent the great freeze trapped in a place where I had no control over my own survival.

“Good job Irene,” I said, patting myself on the back. “This time you'll have supplies and resources to survive without Andrew or Lucas.”

I drove back to the warehouse and stored the next set of supplies in my spatial storage.

Trying to experiment with the storage, I discovered I could make sections like food, medicine, weapons and equipment in it. 

So I stored noodles, rice, canned meat, beans, biscuits, powdered milk, cooking oil, salt, sugar, and bottled water in the food category.

I arranged each category into a separate section of my storage space as best I could, labeling where I wanted things to go in my head.

My phone buzzed, it was a text from Lucas. He had just sent Bryan's number. “Right on time.”

I copied the number and called it without wasting any time. “Hey.”

"Irene?" I could hear the surprise in his voice. “Look who remembers I exist."

I allowed myself to let out a sigh. “Hello to you too, Bryan."

"Don't hello me, when was the last time you called? Christmas? Back then, I think I was the one who called you."

"I've been busy."

"You're always busy. So, what happened? Did your husband finally annoy you enough to make you remember your friends?"

I stared at the wall because he just hit me where I did not expect. “Bry, I need your help with something."

His teasing tone disappeared. “What do you need?"

"I need medical supplies,like a whole lot of them.”

"How much is a lot?" He asked after being silent for a minute.

I glanced at the list in front of me, I had written down antibiotics, painkillers, antiseptics, wound dressings, sterile gloves, bandages, emergency blankets, trauma kits, and other essentials.

"Enough to stock a small medical facility," I answered. “I can send you the list, if you want.”

“That's better, let's talk after you send it.” He ended the call.

A minute after I sent it to him, he called back and I answered. “So?”

"Irene, what are you planning to do with all of that?" 

I had prepared an explanation but the words could not come out of my mouth. 

The world is going to freeze in seven days, things will get worse and people will die. There was no way I could tell him that without sounding insane.

“I need them for an impo— important cause,” I stuttered. “People are going to need help and I want to be prepared."

"Are you in trouble?"

I laughed out loud. "No, thank you Bry." 

“Don't thank me yet, that's a lot of medical supplies,” he sighed loudly for me to hear. "I can help you source most of it. Some items will require proper authorization and documentation, like prescription medications.”

"Of course, can I get them today?”

"That would have been possible, but I think you can only get them tomorrow,” he paused. “Someone placed an order on the exact supplies you need, five times more I think.”

My heart skipped a beat when I heard him, as only one question came out of my mouth. “Who?

“It was a man, it seems to be for private use.”

Bryan's voice faded in my ears. The great freeze was still days away and normal people were not aware of what was coming, so there was no need to order that much supplies unless.

Maybe the man was a doctor preparing for an emergency. He could own a private clinic or had another reason to stockpile medical supplies.

But five times what I ordered?

My hands tightened around the phone. I had returned to the past with memory of the apocalypse, determined to change my fate. 

Until now, it had not crossed my mind. The possibility that someone else might have received the same second chance.

"Is he from the future like me?”