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The storm hit at 1:53 am. Junhui woke with a jolt at the sounds of shattering glass, nearly jumping out of bed. He looked over at his boyfriend, his heart pounding. He looked so peaceful. A loud thud followed by the wail of a small child knocked sense into Jun and woke Joshua.
"Whaaaaa?" The still sleepy boy asked as Jun pulled him out of bed.
"The storm's here. We've gotta go," is all he said.
The storm. The so-called "storm of the century". If he had a nickel for every time he'd heard that, he could've afforded to get the two of them to safety.
-
Global warming had gotten out of control 10 years back. Jun, unlike others, believed humankind had had a chance but had blown it. Hurricanes had become a regular occurrence in New York, and the majority of the North American population had migrated to Canada. The majority of the Earth's tropical and temperate zones had become barren deserts rumored to be home to barbarians, humans so driven by hunger and desperation that they had turned to cannibalism.
The oceans had risen by more than 20 feet in the last 2 decades, temperatures were at least 20 degrees above average, Greenland was living up to its name, and Antarctica was more than half gone and wasn't very arctic anymore. Countless species had gone extinct, from honeybees to polar bears to ducks. The coastal oceans had grown too hot to swim in, the Earth's population was under a billion, and Junhui and Joshua were two of the estimated 300 people remaining in New York.
Most people left after the first flood. Junhui recalled looking out the window of their 3rd story apartment to see the tar-like water slowly rising. Junhui guided them away from the window when the first body floated past. Despite being the younger of the two, Junhui had taken care of Joshua ever since California had disappeared under a rapidly rising sea. There was no list of casualties, only of survivors. 22 of them from the entire state of California. Joshua had lost his entire family.
Junhui would've moved them long ago, but Joshua refused to leave the only place he believed to be safe, and at least they had a roof over their heads. Who knew if they'd have been able to make it somewhere safe before the next storm hit, sweeping Junhui and Joshua up with it.
After enduring a year of vicious storms, New York was under 10 feet of boiling seawater, heated by the reflection of the sun that beat down unrelentingly off the buildings. Junhui honestly didn't know how he had kept them alive for as long as he had.
Every day, at the crack of dawn, Junhui launched his makeshift boat made from a few doors, foam insulation, and plastic furniture coverings. It was a miracle it hadn't sunk. He would guide the boat down the streets of New York, entering buildings and taking anything that could possibly be useful. He often cut himself in the process of breaking the windows, but it was worth it to find something for Joshua.
The best finds were always food. One supermarket he had found on the second floor of a building had kept them alive for two months. Unfortunately, the majority of anything food related would've been found on the first floor, which was inaccessible due to the flooding.
Some days he wouldn't make it home with more than a single granola bar he found under someone's bed. He went hungry those nights, assuring Joshua that he had eaten when he was out. Joshua needed his strength. Junhui knew he was losing his will to live.
-
This storm was estimated to be the biggest in history. A category 10 hurricane, which, prior to the change of the last 20 years, wouldn't have been thought possible. The entire month leading up to the arrival of the mega storm had been filled with unrelenting thunderstorms. Junhui didn't dare to leave the house, knowing that if he were to be killed in the raging waters, Joshua would be left without any means of survival. He couldn't leave him.
Junhui pulled Joshua down to where he had stashed his boat, quickly shoving Joshua into his improvised "cabin" made from a table and some shower curtains. Inside was as much food as he could find.
Junhui jumped on after pushing the boat out, where the tiny craft was nearly smashed apart every two seconds.
Their apartment flooded with water shortly after.
He somehow managed to keep the boat together, guiding them down the streets and out of the city. It was pouring, and Junhui was soaked, but Joshua was under shelter and that's all that mattered. He turned to see that the older boy had fallen asleep again, head resting against one leg of the table.
They reached the Hudson River, and Junhui pulled the boat alongside the shore, quickly unloading what little they had before waking Joshua and guiding him towards an abandoned house.
After settling in and taking all necessary safety precautions, Jun sat down, sighing in relief. They were far from safe, but they'd live to see another day.
Junhui looked over to Joshua. The boy was sitting at a table, looking out a window at the rain pouring down and the river raging a few yards away.
"Hey," Junhui said, picking himself up and sitting down next to Joshua. "Are you okay?"
Joshua took a moment to answer. "I'm sorry." He looked up, tears shining in his eyes.
"For what?!" Junhui asked, genuinely confused.
"For everything. I've been nothing but useless since this all started."
"Joshua, why on Earth would you think that, you're not useless, you're my reason to keep living."
Joshua let out a bitter laugh. "Don't try and pretend Junhui. If it wasn't for me refusing to move, you could be up North, safe, instead of hiding in this mess of a city."
"There's nowhere I'd rather be than right here with you Joshua, you know that. I'd never leave you."
"That's what I don't understand. Why don't you. Leave, I mean. I'm nothing but another mouth to feed." Joshua shook his head. "I haven't been right since the flood in California. I haven't talked to you. I made you do all the work, and I didn't even pretend to be grateful."
Junhui was silent. "Because I love you, Joshua, that's why I don't leave. I love you with every ounce of my being, and I don't know what I'd do without you in my life."
"You love me too much. You're hurting yourself. I've seen you cry at night. I know you haven't been eating. Don't try and deny it, Junhui." Joshua snapped as Junhui opened his mouth to protest. "Don't think I didn't notice. You gave me the food, despite having done all the work, and I didn't protest because I knew you would've sooner forced it down my throat than let me go hungry for even one night. And I was selfish. I was too caught up in feeling sorry for myself, I didn't give a thought to your wellbeing. I took you for granted. I didn't love you enough." Joshua rested his head in his hands. "I'm sorry."
"Joshua. Look at me." Junhui pulled himself closer to his boyfriend, lifting his head up to look him straight in the eye. "Listen to me. No matter what you did or didn't do, I love you. I'd do it over a thousand times if that's what it takes to keep you alive and here with me. I got by, didn't I? I'm still here, I'm still alive. I didn't starve. If I accidentally starved myself, I'd let you slap me across the face because I could never do that to you. I could never leave you alone. So just look at the bright side, okay? For me? Think about all the good things in life. After all, we still have each other. As long as we're together, we'll be okay. Okay?"
Joshua sniffed, a small smile appearing on his face despite the tears that still glistened on his cheeks. "Okay," he replied, his voice small.
Junhui leaned towards the older boy, closing his eyes as he moved to kiss him. He stopped, eyes springing open, when he felt the familiar chill of water seeping into his sneakers.
"Shit," he mentally cursed himself for being so careless. "Come on."
He grabbed Joshua's hand, grabbing their few supplies before rushing out the door. Looking behind him, the water was quickly enveloping the house they had been in only moments earlier.
Junhui cursed and started running faster, but Joshua was struggling, having not moved very far in months. He was already out of breath, and Junhui knew he wouldn't be able to keep running.
Making the decision, he picked Joshua up and sling him over his shoulder, continuing their race away from certain death.
"Junhui," Joshua gasped. "Stop. Put me down."
"Are you hurt?! What happened? Did you step on something? Are you okay?" Junhui started freaking out.
"I'm fine," Joshua assured him. "But you won't be if you don't leave me."
"What the heck are you talking about?"
"I'm slowing you down. You won't be able to outrun the water with me. Leave me. Save yourself."
"Have you gone crazy!?" Junhui shouted. His foot landed in a hole, his ankle giving out, sending the two of them flying.
"Maybe I have," Joshua smiled sadly. "But I have enough sense left in me to know that you. Have. To. Leave." Joshua pushed at Junhui.
Junhui struggled to his feet, attempting to pull Joshua with him, but his leg crumpled under him and he fell to the ground again, groaning in pain.
"You idiot!" Junhui grimaced in pain as he tried to move. "Don't you realize that I'm not leaving you? That I'm never going to leave you?"
"I know. And it's going to doom us both."
"We are NOT going to die. I won't let it happen. I will fight to my last breath to get you to safety, even if it means I won't. I will get you to safety."
Junhui grabbed onto a tree, took a deep breath, and pulled. He made it onto his feet, and grabbed Joshua. Half leaning on Joshua, half pulling him with him, Junhui initiated their struggle away from the water. The wind was howling around them, trying to tear them apart, but the two found the strength to hold on to each other. Relentless rain changing to hail, stinging their faces and leaving cuts in some places.
Junhui clenched his jaw, determined to let nothing separate the two of them. They continued moving forwards, but it wasn't fast enough and soon they were wading through water that was waist high, waves pounding at their backs. The water receded before each wave, causing Joshua to stumble. A particularly strong undertow caught Joshua, pulling him off his feet and dropping him face first in the water. Junhui caught him and pulled him upright, the water making it easier on his ankle.
Junhui turned as the wave receded, a stark realization hitting him. They weren't going to survive. Junhui stopped.
"J-Jun," Joshua stuttered, trying to find his breath. "What's going to happen to us?"
"Nothing. We're going to be fine," Junhui replied, though it sounded like he was trying to convince himself as well.
Looking around frantically, Junhui spotted a sturdy oak tree a few yards away from them. "Climb," he demanded, dragging Joshua over and half throwing him into the bottommost branches. Joshua looked at him in shock.
"I said climb!"
Joshua started moving.
The branches were slippery and the going was slow, but foot by foot the two made it slowly upwards.
Joshua looked down when the branches began to thin, mind going blank as he saw the lower half of Jun's body get battered by each wave.
"Keep going!" Junhui yelled. He lifted his hand to try and boost Joshua, but at that moment a wave hit, making him lose his grip with his other hand.
As if in slow motion, Joshua saw Junhui start to fall. His muscles were frozen, he couldn't move. The only thought racing through his head was one word. No. over and over it played in his head as Junhui seemingly fell slowly into the dark water, his eyes wide. "No no no no no!" He thought as Junhui splashed into the water, arms open as if to try to grab Joshua's hand.
"Junhui!" He shouted, voice cracking. "Junhui! Junhui!"
Joshua waited, looking down into the water, searching for any sign of life. Junhui was nowhere to be found.
Joshua was brought back to his senses by the water lapping at his ankles. Junhui gave his life to get him to safety. He would live for him. He would keep going. It's what Junhui wanted.
Joshua grabbed the next branch, hauling himself up, ignoring the pain in his heart. He couldn't afford to be sad. He'd have time to mourn later. But he had to keep moving. He had to live. For Junhui.
For Junhui.
He'd live.