In the After

fingers through my short hair. “I shouldn’t have left you alone so soon.”
    “It’s okay.” I didn’t mention that we’d gotten along fine the past few years without her. “Rice is really nice. He was a good tour guide.”
    “Tonight it will be just us girls.” She smiled at us. There was a knock at the door and she corrected herself. “I mean, just us girls and Adam.”
    My mother went to the door and collected a toddler from a woman wearing purple. “Thank you, Stephanie,” she said, shutting the door and carrying the little boy into the living room. “Come meet your brother, Amy.” She carefully placed Adam on the floor and watched me expectantly, waiting.
    “Oh, okay.” I sat on the floor and smiled faintly at my mother. I took a deep breath.
    “Adam, say hello,” my mother prompted.
    “Hello, Amy,” he said loudly, his voice surprisingly husky for a child.
    “Hello, Adam.” I watched as his chubby hands grabbed a teddy bear and then ran it over with the toy truck. “I’m your sister.”
    “I know. Mommy shows me your picture.” He looked up at me. “You’re pretty.”
    I relaxed a little and smiled, amused. “Thank you.”
    He stood jerkily and fell toward me. He landed against my chest and I could feel his breath on my cheek. He put his arms around my neck and rested his head on my shoulder.
    I couldn’t help it. In one clumsy motion, the little boy had inserted himself into my heart.

    That evening we talked and watched old movies and ate homemade snacks. It almost felt like Before, except my mother never did any of those things with me Before. She was always working. I half expected her to head back to the lab. She did whip out her computer during one of the movies and occasionally took calls on her earpiece, but mostly she was all mine. Baby loved “girls’ night,” and played trucks with Adam happily.
    Rice stopped by at one point to drop off the shoes that Baby left in the cafeteria. She took them and beamed at him happily. Thank you .
    “What about for Amy?” my mother asked him. “She told me the shoes I picked out for her were too small.”
    “I’ve been meaning to ask you for some normal clothes.” I tugged at my red jumpsuit. “Rice explained the color-coded thing was only for kids younger than seventeen.”
    “Honey, what are you talking about? Your birthday isn’t until August.”
    I paused. Could I be wrong? I never really kept careful track of time in the After; I was only vaguely aware of the passage of seasons.
    “What month is it?” I was afraid to ask.
    “It’s May,” Rice informed me, his voice kind.
    “So, that means . . .”
    “You’re sixteen.” My mother said gently. “You have four more months before you class out. Then you’ll be assigned a job.”
    “Oh.” I paused. Everything in New Hope was wrong. “Can I study whatever I want?” I blurted, sounding desperate. I wanted to go back to the subjects I loved. I wanted to feel normal again.
    “Not exactly. I know you were always good at English and you love literature. You can study those subjects, but you’ll still have to take basic medicine and everyday science, unless you qualify for advanced study.” She smiled. “I know it’s confusing, but we have a whole system worked out. If you’re put in advanced study you’re exempt, which means you don’t have to take a part-time job.”
    “And if I don’t qualify?” I asked.
    “Then you’re nonexempt and you’ll have to go on work rotation,” my mother explained. “An assignment will be made for you, but you can request something you’d prefer, like working at the library or maybe helping with the small children.”
    I could live with that. I liked to learn and I wasn’t afraid of work. “Maybe I can help with the new post-aps that you all bring in.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “Well, you know I didn’t have a very good experience. I mean, you stick some crazy survivors in a room and throw someone young like Rice into the mix. Did you think that was a good idea?” I was still traumatized from yesterday, from everything. I turned to Rice. “No offense.”
    “That isn’t common practice, Amy.” My mother smiled tightly. I knew that smile. It was her “things are not going according to plan” smile. I often got that smile Before. “It would be good to get your input about your experience, though. It’s not a bad idea to change procedures that aren’t working.”
    She looked at Rice and continued,