“I still can’t believe no one tried to keep us from leaving the garage, let alone the city,” Adan was saying to Aura as he followed her into a heavily wooded area less than three hours later.

“Mom said they weren’t enforcing it,” she replied distractedly as she tried to remember the proper path through the woods to their destination. After all, the bunker was her father’s pet project. She had only been there herself when he first acquired it, then again when he deemed it 'finished.'

“I thought for sure they would be, but I guess people are following it anyway. There was barely any traffic. It’s just past nine now and we’re already here,” Adan continued. He then took another wary look around the forest as he moved to keep up with Aura. “Wherever here is,” he couldn’t help adding under his breath.

“The bunker my crazy dad bought, remember?”

“Yeah but I honestly thought you were joking when you told me. I mean, who does that?” Adan continued as he glanced back toward the road which was no longer even in sight anymore.

“My crazy dad,” she said in a tone designed to try and hide her own worry.

Adan shook his head and continued to follow her deeper into the woods. “OK, so he has a bunker, but still not quite sure why we’re going there now. Last I heard the virus wasn’t airborne yet, and they’re supposedly working on a cure, right?”

“Supposedly,” Aura mumbled as she pressed onward past a vaguely familiar looking patch of trees.

“Now you’re starting to sound like them,” Adan teased.

Aura finally halted long enough to look back at him. “I’ve been the one saying my parents are nuts for years now. But you didn’t hear her Adan. She sounded really upset and then...” she just shook her head and began moving again.

“Then?” he coaxed as he continued following her to this secret destination of hers.

“The whole ‘too late now’ and ‘get there by noon’ shit? And she hasn’t answered any of my calls since we left. There’s definitely something weird going on,” Aura told him, trying to puzzle it out herself, despite the panic that was already inherent in her before the last two weeks had nudged the entire world a little closer to panic mode.

“So you think your parents are crazy but we’re the ones in the woods looking for some bunker?” Adan tried to keep his tone light, but that was becoming increasingly more difficult, even for him.

Aura shook her head again. “I’m guessing they plan to meet us there. And maybe Reese too. I don’t know. I don’t understand any of this. I just know how scared she sounded.”

Adan sighed and was quiet for another few steps before his own well hidden worry made him speak again. “And who’s Reese again?” Another pause. “Wait, is he that military friend of your dad’s?”

“The same,” Aura continued in her muffled tone.

“So some crazy military survivalist guy tells your mom to send her seventeen year old daughter to a bunker in the middle of the woods by noon, and she does it? And we’re going? How does that not sound just a little sketch to you?” he couldn’t help asking, causing her to turn back to him once more.

Though this time the upset on her face was clear, as well as the tears in the corner of her light blue eyes. “You can go back in you want. Mom just told me to get you to bring me here. You don’t have to stay if you really think it’s all just a joke. But it will be noon before you get back to your fancy apartment. So, do you wanna risk it not being just some paranoid delusion of theirs? After what’s already happened? She also said the virus was just the beginning. And the virus is definitely real.”

Adan sighed softly and managed a small smile. “You don’t like my apartment?”

“Adan,” Aura returned in a scolding tone.

He gave her another smile before continuing. “Hey I went from Hollywood craziness to being locked inside with junk food and Netflix for the last two weeks. I could use an adventure. I just think we should take this all with a grain of salt. Your parents are a little out there, Aura. You know that.”

“Yeah if only they were crazy stage parents like yours, instead of survivalist nuts. Yours are much more sane.”

“Touche,” he smiled again.

Aura then sighed as they continued through the trees. “Though my parents forcing me to be rich and famous instead of paranoid would probably have been a nice change. Not that I could ever have accomplished all the things you did.”

“You never know. You could always go to some auditions too. I know some people,” he teased.

She just scoffed. “Please, even if I had any talent I don’t have anything else Hollywood is interested in. Especially for a girl,” she added more quietly.

“What, implants?” he smirked.

“For starters,” she grimaced as they continued on.

“Well if you really want ’em, I could spot you the cash,” he teased again.

“Shut up,” she returned as she shook her head.

“Not that you need em, I...” he just shook his head and took a breath. “We there yet?”

She then cast him a wary look, “You’ve thought about whether or not I need implants?” she asked, not sure whether she wanted to smile or hide.

“No,” he laughed. “well not really.”

“Not really?” she asked a little louder than she meant to.

“I mean I haven’t...” he just shook his head. “How did this conversation get started again?”

“We were talking about being a girl in Hollywood. You know, your natural habitat.”

Adan couldn’t help a chuckle. “Believe me, there’s nothing natural about Hollywood.”

“Especially the boobs,” Aura mumbled as she forced herself to turn back to the path ahead of them.

Adan smirked again as he moved to continue following her, though couldn’t help a quick glance toward her chest. He was a seventeen year old guy talking about breasts after all. It was almost impossible for him not to look at the only set in the vicinity, even if they were hidden behind a plain black tee instead of some low cut sequinned number.

When they finally came to a small clearing, Aura checked her phone once more. “I just don’t get why she’s not answering. I mean she could at least send a text,” she complained as she moved her eyes around the clearing trying to find the rather well hidden hatch that she was pretty sure was there, but it had been a while since her second and last visit to the place.

“I’m sure there’s a reason,” Adan attempted.

“But is it a good one?” Aura mumbled as she began kicking at some leaves in search of the entrance they were looking for.

“Well it’s not even nine thirty. Guess we at least have two and a half hours til the world ends or whatever. Plenty of time for your parents or crazy Reese to call or show up... or for us to find this bunker,” he added as he followed her lead and kicked at some leaves as well despite not having any honest idea of what he was looking for.

After another few moments, Aura finally found the hatch and wasn’t sure if that honestly made her feel any better. “Well, here it is.”

“Wow, he really has a bunker,” was Adan’s only response as he moved to take a closer look.

“Last chance, Adan,” Aura made herself say before kneeling next to the entrance.

“For what?”

“If you really think this is all just my parents being crazy, you don’t have to go in there with me. But...” her voice just trailed off as her eyes moved to the ground.

“Well, does it like lock behind us or what?”

“It’s a bunker,” was her simple response.

“So that’s a yes, then?” Adan returned, his voice finally showing some of that nervousness that was so rare in him.

“I completely understand if you don’t wanna do this. But if there really is something about to happen out here that we need to be in there to avoid?” she sniffled slightly.

Aura honestly didn’t want to force him to come inside with her. She already felt guilty about him being trapped in that apartment with her for the past two weeks. And that was very different from being locked in that bunker with her would be. After all, Adan had everything he could ever want out there. At least if the world ever returned to normal. But if her parents were right and something horrible was about to happen, she couldn’t bear the thought of him not being saved from it, whatever it even was.

Adan thought a moment as his eyes moved around the forest. He took a deep breath. “Well it’s not noon yet, shouldn’t we wait for your parents or Reese if the door really is gonna lock behind us?”

“She’s not calling back,” Aura sniffled again.

“But we should still probably wait though, right? I mean, I really wanna hear from them too before...” he just glanced at the entrance to finish his sentence.

Aura attempted to compose herself before responding. Though she had nearly lost all hope at this point, as she barely had any on normal days. She supposed she should at least give them time to call or arrive and explain what was so dire that it required her dragging him out there to the middle of nowhere.

“Well it won’t be a secret bunker if we’re sitting out here. We should probably at least wait inside the outer door. We can postpone going through the inner door til closer to noon though I guess. I just hope whatever might happen doesn’t happen any earlier,” she added with another shaky breath.

“So, there’s an inner door too? And it’s the one that locks behind us?”

“It’s a bunker,” she repeated as she moved to pull up the hatch door, coughing a bit at the dust that came loose as she did.

“Guess I need to do more movies or shows about the apocalypse,” he mumbled as he moved to follow her hesitantly.

“Or just watch them. Like the rest of us mere mortals,” she attempted humor in the face of their entire situation.

“Well, my schedule seems pretty clear these days. Does this place have a TV?”

She just managed a smile and started down the steel stairs into the darkness below. Adan took another breath, another glance back at the outside world and then followed her downwards.