The World Ends In 27 Days

The office was already several blocks behind them. Returning to ask Hanchuan about the dress code would add between sixteen and twenty-three minutes, depending upon traffic and how long it took to reach his floor.

She didn’t know whether they had enough time.

Zeyu had said they did.

Then he had qualified the statement.

Enough time, but not an unlimited amount.

"What do you think about red?" he asked. "No, Hanchuan would hate red. Or maybe he wouldn’t. I don’t know. Dark blue would suit you. Black is always safe. Green could work if we find the right shade. Do you have a favorite color?"

Zhiyi’s fingernails pressed into her palm.

She was still answering how long it had been since she bought a formal dress.

Five years was probably the most accurate response if selection established sufficient participation in the purchase.

But Zeyu might ask why she hadn’t chosen the more recent dress.

That answer required explaining her stepmother’s involvement.

Which could lead to questions about her family.

She didn’t know how much Hanchuan had told his friends or what information she was permitted to provide.

The answer became unstable again.

Zeyu turned onto the main road. "This is the prototype I mentioned yesterday. The production model won’t be released until next spring, but this one has the revised suspension and the new battery-management system. It still has an overheating problem under sustained load. Not a dangerous one. It just limits output until the temperature drops. Do you think we could modify it for extreme heat?"

Yes.

That question had an answer. Zhiyi’s attention caught on it for a brief second, but then, the first question remained open in front of it.

She couldn’t reach the vehicle modifications without completing the dress.

Five years.

Probably five.

She drew a careful breath and opened her mouth.

"Actually, don’t answer that," Zeyu said. "This car is too low for the flood anyway. We’d be wasting time. I’m still working on the mobile base. Do you think the sleeping compartments should be stacked or arranged along one side?"

The answer she had almost given had nowhere to go so Zhiyi swallowed it.

Her right hand closed over her left, hiding the crescent marks forming beneath her nails.

"Stacked saves space," Zeyu continued, "but Qinghe says it’ll be difficult to move an injured person into an upper bunk. We could make the top ones fold away. How much kitchen space do we need? Hanchuan wants independent ventilation for the medical module, which means we lose part of the rear wall. Shichen thinks we should add a second internal door in case the first one jams."

Zhiyi tried to hold the questions in order.

How long since she bought a formal dress?

Formal shoes.

Shoe size.

Heels.

Pierced ears.

Earrings.

Movement against her neck.

Hair.

People touching her hair.

Dancing.

Ability to dance.

Capacity in which she was attending.

Red.

Favorite color.

Vehicle modifications.

Sleeping compartments.

Kitchen dimensions.

Ventilation.

Internal doors.

"What about bathrooms?" Zeyu asked. "One takes less space, but everyone sharing it for several years sounds like a faster route to murder than the apocalypse. Two would require separate tanks unless we connect the plumbing. Do you think the medical module needs its own water supply? Qinghe says yes. Hanchuan agrees. I think everyone agrees, so I don’t know why I’m asking."

Zhiyi didn’t know either.

Her breathing had become too shallow for the four-second count.

She tried again.

In.

One—

"And here we are," he announced as the car turned beneath the awning before Zhiyi noticed the building.

Zeyu parked and looked at her. "You didn’t say a single word for the entire drive," he said with a soft chuckle.

Zhiyi’s lips parted. Five years. Just two words, she could say two words. Just open her mouth... now.

"No need to apologize," he said before she could actually force out the answer. "Hanchuan said you were quiet. Like I said before, I’m perfectly capable of carrying a conversation by myself."

He opened his door and stepped out.

Zhiyi remained in the passenger seat for 2.4 seconds after he disappeared.

The first question still hadn’t been answered.

Now they had arrived somewhere new, where new people would ask new questions before she had been permitted to finish the old ones.

Her fingers trembled beneath her right hand.

The passenger door lifted and Zeyu leaned down and smiled at her. "Ready?" he asked, his voice and expression soft as he looked at her.

She really wasn’t.

But that was yet another question that she didn’t seem to be able to get out.

She must look like such an idiot. Her step sisters were right. She shouldn’t be seen in public. She thought she had managed to improve , but now she considered that the only reason why she was better was because Hanchuan was there to make it better.

But she was an adult.

She could do this.

She had to do this.

Zhiyi looked at the hand he offered her. Then, after a second, she placed her fingers on it and let him pull her from the car without answering.

Taking a deep breath, she raised her head, took in as deep of a breath as her lungs would allow, and nodded her head.

The boutique occupied the ground floor of a narrow stone building. Three dresses stood in the front windows, positioned far enough apart that each had its own pool of light. None of them had visible prices.

A woman in a black suit met them inside the entrance. "Mr. Song. Welcome. We weren’t expecting you until eleven," she said, her black hair pulled back into a tight bun.

"What can I say?" Zeyu purred with a bright smile on his face. "I drive quickly."

"So I’ve heard."

The woman smiled at Zhiyi. Her gaze moved from Zhiyi’s face to her clothes and back again with practiced discretion.

"And this must be Miss Qiao."

Zhiyi should respond to the introduction, but she couldn’t make her voice work.

"Yes," Zeyu interjected, making sure that he was answering for her. "And we need a dress for tonight."

"Of course. We’ve prepared the private salon. May I ask what kind of event you’ll be attending, Miss Qiao?"