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Crack psst!
Crack psst!
Crack psst!
The sound that had not been heard in the FAYZ for months was heard once again. Pop-tops were popped, and Sam, Dekka, and Toto drank deep.
“Oh,” Dekka said.
“So good,” Toto said.
“It’s . . . It’s like life is all right again. Like the universe has finally decided to smile at us,” Sam said with a huge smile.
Burp.
“Oh, yeah,” Dekka said. “Soda burp.”
The three of them were grinning. “Jack!” Sam yelled.
“I’m busy!” he called back.
“Get over here. Now!”
Jack came running like he was expecting trouble. A grinning Sam held a can out for him.
“Is that . . . ?”
“It is,” Sam assured him.
Crack psst!
Burp.
Jack started crying then, sobbing and drinking and burping and laughing.
“You going crazy on us, Jack?” Dekka asked.
“It’s just . . .” He couldn’t seem to find the words.
Sam put his arm around Jack’s shoulders. “Yeah, dude. It’s too much, isn’t it? I mean too much like the world before.”
“I eat rats,” Jack said through his tears.
“We all eat rats,” Dekka said. “And glad to get a good juicy one, too.”
“True,” Toto muttered with some concern. “They eat rats. They didn’t mention rats before, Spidey.”
The sun was well past noon. Sam said, “We need to check the last containers. Then get moving. Just because we’re living large doesn’t mean people at home are.”
“We don’t need to find water, we have Pepsi!” Jack said.
“Which is great,” Sam said. “Might last a few days. If we could get it back to town.”
That sobered Jack. He nodded briskly and said, “Yes, you’re right. Sorry. I was just . . . I don’t know. For a few minutes there it was like maybe it was all over.”
Just to do something different they went to the boxcar. The instant they rolled back the door they were assailed by a sickly sweet smell.
The boxcar had been full of oranges. But this was only obvious because of the perky labels on the flats. The oranges themselves had long since rotted in the heat. A sticky liquid covered the floor of the car. Some of the crates sprouted fantastic growths of furry mold.
