ONE
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"Cost of admission is a blood test," Doctor Edwin Jenner spoke as he led Emily down into the lab, weaving down endless and winding corridors, passing various empty rooms with expensive and systematic machines all locked away. Emily took note of the back of his lab coat and the way it hung from his body, as if it was too big for him. "But I guess when the world is like this it's not that much to ask for."

She'd heard about the CDC being a busy environment with the scientists busy and working within each room, even after the outbreak occurred, and she'd expected the building to be thriving. Yet it wasn't.

Quiet. Lifeless. Dead.

The place was dead.

"That's okay," Emily said, following after him. He stopped outside a door, and brought out a plastic identification card in which he swiped in the machine next to it. A loud buzz sounded and the door was unlocked. "I'm not too bad with needles."

Edwin Jenner motioned for Emily to enter the room. She stepped inside, instantly feeling nauseous as the scent of bleach filled her senses. The room was a bright white, with all white furniture inside, and one window, shielded with a blind, that offered a small view of the corridor. Jenner offered her a seat at the small table. He closed the door, and once she was sat down, he took the other seat.

"Have you been experiencing any of the known symptoms?" he asked, to which Emily shook her head. "Sickness, hot sweats, hallucinations?"

Emily shook her head again. Jenner nodded, and opened his desk drawer where he brought out the equipment he needed. He placed the needles gently upon the table in front of Emily and offered a reassuring smile when he saw her face become pale and insipid.

"I thought you said you weren't bad with needles?" Jenner smirked. Emily took a deep breath and smiled.

"I'm not," Emily reassured. She closed her eyes and reopened them after a moment. "It's just… I thought this place would be…"

"Busy? Full?" Jenner asked. Emily nodded. "Yes, me too. But circumstances unfortunately changed, and things were worse than first expected. But that's okay. You're here. That's something."

Jenner took Emily's blood in silence, and offered her a cotton ball for her arm. She took it with a small thank you, and sat back in the chair. She looked around at the room. Folders were stacked on the desks, with pieces of paper placed upon the surface. Antibacterial hand gel sat half full next to the computer. Photographs of children were placed neatly on the sideboard underneath the window, with cards offering birthday wishes placed next to them. She furrowed her brow at how strange it felt knowing that whoever had sat at the desk, whose photographs and cards written to them would remain there, as if waiting for them to return to be looked at or packed away.

"Do you find it weird?" Emily asked him. She turned to look at Jenner, only to find Jenner had been watching her as she took in all the small details the room had to offer. "Do you find it weird that everyone's lives here just… stopped?"

"Always," Jenner said. "Even now, when I walk down the corridors or walk into the rooms and see documents half written or someone's coat on the back of their chair, I still think I'm working late. That everyone's gone home, that maybe I should too. Then it hits me. No one is going to return for that coat. No one is going to finish the documents and hand them in."

"Have you thought about leaving?" Emily asked. Her interest was genuine, and she couldn't help but want to know about him and his decision to stay when his colleagues chose to leave.

"Every day."

"What makes you stay here?" asked Emily. She saw his face falter and wondered if she'd asked too many questions.

"Fear, mostly."

The room was bigger than what she had expected. The bed was a single with a standard nightstand and lamp on top. The floor was carpeted and a small couch sat on the back wall and a small radio sat atop the coffee table. An en-suite bathroom was attached to the room, with a shower, toilet and sink filling up a small room. Emily looked around and instantly felt at home. It wasn't much but it was enough, and she was grateful there was some place for her to rest. She didn't expect just how much the day would tire her out.

"It's not much," Jenner said, motioning towards the small amount of furniture in the room. "But there is hot water."

"You're kidding?!" Emily turned around in shock. Jenner chuckled. He shook his head with a smile. "You have no idea how long it's been since I've had hot water on my body."

"Well, enjoy," he said. "I'll leave you to get some rest. Dinner is at six if you're interested."

"Thank you," Emily said. "I mean it. Thank you."

Edwin Jenner nodded before leaving the room, closing the door behind him. Emily took a moment to look around the room with a small smile on her face. She showered first, relishing as the hot water cascaded down her body and engulfing her bump in warmth. She smiled against the water splashing down on her face.

Tears began to fall but she was grateful that the water droplets disguised them.

Jenner was alone in his office. He turned the camera on and took a deep breath.

"It's currently… day sixty-three," he began. "It is Edwin Jenner, again. I'm guessing you'd already know that and are getting bored by me introducing myself again."

He chuckled as he checked the documents to his right. His eyes flicked over the information. He continued. "We had a surprise today. A survivor. A woman called Emily. As soon as I met her, I could tell from her eyes just how terrified she was. I think we all are. If there's anyone else out there," he looked back at the camera. "I took her blood today. I wanted to test my theory that we're all infected. It's something that I've been wondering about for a while. There's only so much blood I can take from myself, and having someone new here, someone who has been outside, it could give me the answers I need."

He glanced at his watch. It was nearly six in the evening, and he knew he had to make dinner soon. The grumbling of his stomach was his indicator.

"There's something else about her," he began after a moment. "She's pregnant. She didn't confide that information with me when we met, and I wonder if she knows that she's expecting. Do I bring it up to her? She must know."

He took a moment. "I'm signing off now. Goodnight and god bless."

Dinner had consisted of only Jenner eating alone for weeks that it was weird for him to be sat at the table with another person. He didn't realise just how different it was to actually have dinner with someone, to talk with another person whilst eating, and enjoying another person's company. He would often talk to himself, and he realised as he spoke to Emily just how lonely he had truly been.

"It's strange eating with another person," he said, honestly. Emily nodded and offered a small smile. She understood. It had been so long since she'd last seen an actual living person that she wondered just how long it would take for her to become mad.

"I know," Emily agreed. "You realise just how much you took people for granted. The telling of a bad joke, the hello to colleagues every morning, the small thank you to strangers who held the door for you. All those things… we'll never get back."

Jenner nodded, his mind wandering as he remembered all those small moments. He'd not thought about that.

"I looked over your blood work earlier," Jenner began. "And you're pregnant."

The fork travelling to Emily's mouth stopped in mid-air. She lowered it to her plate and glanced over at Jenner who was watching her. She nodded. "I was going to tell you. I just didn't know when."

"It's okay," Jenner said, reassuringly. "The blood never lies. How far along are you?"

"Just under three months," Emily said, smiling. "I'm three months next week."

"That's fantastic," Jenner smiled. "Congratulations."

"Thank you," Emily said, gratefully. There was happiness when she spoke about it, but there was also sadness. It was going to be hard. It was hard with a new baby even when the dead weren't an issue. And they were now. She knew the dangers. She understood that it was dangerous when the world fell silent, and yet, a whole new life had opened up for her. Even in death, there was life.

A week later, and Edwin Jenner and Emily had gotten into a routine. Breakfast was cooked together at seven in the morning and consisted of oatmeal. It was simple and bland, and usually it helped settle Emily's stomach. Jenner would then leave to go to his office to work, and Emily would find refuge in the staff room where large couches adorned the room and board games and books were stacked on every bookcase. She would read for a couple of hours, often dozing off. Lunch would be cooked together and consisted of rice and beans, and then most often than not, a board game would be played, until it was time to eat again. Bed time soon beckoned them, often Emily first and Jenner would remain in his office until the early hours of the morning.

The day had been normal. Emily was more tired than the other days, and she'd gone for a nap instead of playing a board game. She couldn't believe just how tired she was beginning to get.

But something was different today. She woke from her nap and made her way to the lounge area where Jenner usually was. When he wasn't there, she turned around and made her way towards his office. And that was when she heard it.

Voices coming from speaker. The security camera showed a group of people. They were standing around, with some turned to watch the dead making their way towards them. Some were huddled together. And a man was staring up at the camera, his eyes staring into hers. She knew he was unable to see her but she couldn't help but feel as though he could. He was talking and she was able to hear the urgency in his voice. The pleading.

"Don't open the door," Jenner's voice came from behind her. "They'll move on."

Emily turned to look at him. She turned back to look at the screen. "They have children with them."

"And they'll move on."

"They're going to get killed if we don't open the doors for them," Emily said, her heart racing and fear prickling at her scalp.

"They shouldn't have come here."

"Jenner, you have to open the door."

"We're not going to do that," Jenner said. "They'll move on. They're going to have to."

"Please… just open the door. We deserve a chance. Please…"

Emily stared into the man's eyes. The urgency, the sadness, all spoke volumes. Her heart began to rattle against her chest and she took a deep breath.

"Our children, they're going to die if you don't open the doors. They need this. It's for them."

Emily pressed the button to open the door. Jenner cursed.

"You don't know what you've done… you don't know what you've done," Jenner said, but Emily couldn't hear him anymore. Her eyes were looking at the people looking into the bright light, with them all unaware of her watching them. She understood it was the right thing to do. There was no way of standing by a decision to leaving fate decide what came next for them.

Emily couldn't stand by and let that happen.