On the large calendar that hung in the hallway of the Rozin family's apartment, the 20th of December, 2012 was marked in bold red. It was afternoon when the door opened and a 17-year-old boy entered. Sam Rosin was no longer a cute little boy, but a rebellious teenager who didn't bother to hide his displeasure at the sight of the familiar signs of packing all over the apatrment. He went up to the second floor and there he almost collided with his father who was running around in and out of rooms.
"Sam, I'm glad you're here!" Jonathan exclaimed without stopping. "Your suitcase is already in your room. Come on, start packing."
He disappeared into the bedroom, and Sam hurried after him. "What happened?" He demanded to know. "Why aren't you at work? Are we going somewhere?"
"You know we are. You remember what date it is tomorrow, don't you?"
"Yes," Sam grumbled. "And you remember that next week I have my ROTC interview, right?"
"So take your books with you and take the time to study," Jonathan said sharply. "Sam, we have no time for these arguments now!"
At the sound of the loud voices, Sam's younger brother and sister, 6-year-old Dina and 4-year-old Roy, came out of a room next door and rushed, yelling cheerfully, towards their older brother. Sam picked up his little brother in his arms and hugged him lovingly. "God, I can't believe I was your age when they took me to the Shelter for the first time," he murmured, putting the boy back on his feet., affectuinately rufling Dina's hair, tought she liked to pretens ahe was too old for such gestures of affection.
"What did you say?" Jonathan called out, disappearing in the bathroom.
"Nothing," Sam replied aloud. "What happened this time? What's the urgency? I thought we were only going tomorrow."
Daniel moved up the lockdown and I'd rather drive while it's still daylight." Jonathan left came out os bathroom, and when he saw Sam and the two little children in the doorway, he stopped suddenly. "Are you still here?" He asked. "Come on, I want everything ready before dinner. When you're done, go down to the kitchen and help your mother."
Sam took his brother and sister by the hand and led them out of the kitchen, muttering, "Come on, let's find you something to do."
At the dinner table, Sally and Jonathan tried to maintain an as normal as possible atmosphere, even a cheerful one, especially for Dina and Roy, who reacted to the news about the unexpected trip with mixed emotions. Sam followed the conversation silently and did not interfere.
Dina, who started 1st grade only a few months before, said in protest: "But Mom, what about..."
"I know, honey, but I've already spoken to your teacher and everything is okay," Sally said encouragingly. She was torn between the need to lie to the child and the fear of the day when she too would rebel and stop believing her lies. But was it really a lie, or just a white lie?
The winding uphill road looks completely different at daylight. Before the family car got on it, there were other cars behind it. But Jonathan took advantage of a second when the road was clear to make the turn. When the car reached the gate in the fence, it was almost sunset. This time too, he flashed the car headlights at a pre-agreed signal, and the gate opened quietly and lightly. After driving a few tens of meters more, the car stopped in front the large, familiar building. Jonathan drove the car inside and stopped it in the open elevator, which responded immediately to the push of a button and started going down until it stopped. This time, two people Jonathan and Sally did not know were waiting in the doorway, and one of them directed the car to its designated parking spot. When the car came to a full stop, the man approached the driver's window and said, "The Rozins? Follow me."
Sally and Jonathan got out of the car, holding the hands of the two children, who, despite their tiredness, looked wide-eyed at the scene with a mixture of apprehension and curiosity, and began to follow the man toward the large hall, with Sam lagging behind with a marked reluctance.
Again, about 200 people were waiting in the hall. Unlike Sam, Sally and Jonathan seemed quite happy to see some familiar faces, including Simi, who has not lost any of her cheerfulness, and Daniel, who was still the undisputed leader of the group. The passing years have left their marks on both of them. I wonder what they think of me, Jonathan thought as he exchanged handshakes with the two.
"Welcome!" Exclaimed Simi. "And this is Dina?"
The girl stared at her directly, defiantly, but did not respond.
Sally and Jonathan were obviously embarrassed by the girl's reaction, but Simi didn't mind at all and turned towards Roy. "Roy, right? You're look so much like your big brother."
The boy quickly huddled behind his mother, as if fearing a pushy aunt might try to pinch his cheeks or kiss him against his will, but then Simi gaze met Sam, who remained standing at some distance behind his family, and she exclaimed with sincere excitement: "Sam? Boy, aren't you all grown up!"
She walked briskly up to him and gave him a maternal bear hug. He did not object because he didn't want to hurt her feelings, and returned her hug, but even her genuine cheerfulmess failed to get more than a faint mumble out of his mouth. "Come on," she patted his shoulder. "We have a special place for you, with some guys your age. It's better than being in the same room with the old folk, isn't it?"
Sam didn't even bother to pretend he cared and followed her.
Jonathan was the first to break the awkward silence. "I'm sorry," he finally said. "He is getting to be that age when it's very hard to get him to listen to his parents..."
"You don't owe me any explanation, the main thing is that you're here," Daniel said. "And you already know the drill. Go ahead."
Dina and Roy fell asleep almost immediately in their bunks, though it was a little earlier than their usual bedtime. Sally went to the sitting area and sat down, suddenly feeling the entire burden of the last days' fatigue and strain. Jonathan hesitated for a moment, then went over and sat down next to her.
"What's wrong?" He finally asked, putting his arm around her shoulders.
"Nothing," she replied, then looked up at her husband. "I'm worried about Sam..."
"About Sam?" Jonathan exclaimed dismissively. "But he's fine, he's with guys his age now, and knowing him, he's already the life of the party at the Residence..."
"That's not what I mean," Sally said. "His behavior changed completely. You saw how hard it was to convince him to come with us this time. And it won't get any easier."
"Nonsense. He knows how important this is. He knows why we do it," Jonathan said with confidence he hardly felt.
"And he's growing up right in front of us," Sally continued. "And he's asking questions we can't answer..."
"Don't think about it now, okay?" He gave her a strong, encouraging hug. "We're all here, together, protected, and that's the main thing. It's always been the main thing. And Sam is a big, responsible boy." A mischievous gleam crept into his eyes. "And if you tell him I said that, I will deny it."
Sally burst into involuntary laughter. "Yes, I'm sure. Get going. Daniel is waiting for you. On the way back, go by the Junior quarters and make sure the party hasn't gone out of hand, okay? We'll talk tomorrow."
Jonathan gave his wife a light goodbye kiss and left the room.
This time too, two other people sat in the control room. Except for Daniel. Jonathan knew only one of them from a previous stay at the Shelter and they exchanged a brief greeting and a handshake. The other didn't bother to turn his head from the monitor in front of him. Daniel stood in his usual position between the two, his gaze on the central big screen. "Oh, Rosin," He said as he noticed Jonathan standing behind him and turned. "I see that you got the message about the early lockdown time. Everything okay?"
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"Yes, fine, thank you," Jonathan said. "May I ask what the reason for the change was this time?"
"We don't know what exactly will happen and when exactly," Daniel explained. "The Mayan calendar calculations were very accurate, but we have a problem with the time calculations."
"What do you mean?" Jonathan wondered.
"The Mayan Empire, at its hayday, streched over more than one time zone, and we don't know which one they based their calculations of the end of the calendar on, and if they even knew about time zones and daylight saving time or took them into account," Daniel explained. " There are currently time differences of two to four hours between us and what used to be the Mayan Empire .That's why we don't know when exactly the calendar will come to an end. We don't know what will happen when the calendar comes to an end. If a new cycle simply starts, why didn't the Mayans just say so? And how will the world come to an end? No researcher has definitive answers to those questions, and we should be prepared for any possibility."
Jonathan nodded. He knew all these things, of course, but he didn't expect such a detailed explanation from Daniel. "All right," he finally said. "So what now?"
At that moment, one of the alert systems was activated and Jonathan's heart missed a bit before he realized that it was the system announcing the approach of a vehicle to the gate in the fence.
"Great, just in time," Daniel said contentedly. "Half an hour to lockdown. Our last guests have arrived. Come with me."
He left the control room and Jonathan followed. "Anyone new?" He asked as casually as possible.
"What do you mean?" Daniel asked suspiciously.
"Nothing, when I was in the Hall before I saw a lot of new faces, but some of the veterans are not here. What happened to Jackie, for example?"
"He didn't make contact this time," Daniel replied with his characteristic abruptness.
"And Harry, the Police Officer?"
"He was killed in the 9/11 attacks."
"And Michael Kay?"
"A sudden call for Reserve duty. Now of all times, would you believe it? If that's not an ominous sign, I don't know what is. I told him not to try to get out of it. Now he's one of our contacts outside."
"And Martin? The cook?"
"He has Alzheimer's, he's in a nursing home." For the first time, Daniel's voice expressed some emotion. "I'm sorry for him, but his food is one of the only things I don't miss."
As he walked quickly, a thought crossed Jonathan's mind, that Martin was probably the closest thing to a friend Daniel had in the Shelter, if only because they were about the same age, and for the first time in years he had been exposed to a bit of personal information about the silent and introverted man, which somehow caused him uneasiness and he quickly changed the subject again. "And Max and Iris?"
"Iris died of cancer two years ago," Daniel said briefly. "But Max is here with the kids, remember them? They're in the Youth Quarters with your Sam."
Jonathan did not know how to respond to that, so he changed the subject. "Yes, my wife really wanted me to hop on the way back to make sure the party wasn't too wild," he said ironically, having difficulty concealing his relief when the two finally reached the car parking area and stopped at the elevator door. "So what's the big surprise?" He asked.
"How are you with ATV's?" Daniel replied with a question.
Jonathan shrugged. "I took the refresher course you recommended, but..."
Before Jonathan could complete the sentence, the elevator door opened and out came a flatbed truck carrying two state-of-the-art ATVs. The elevator went up. "Help them," Daniel instructed Jonathan. "Fifteen minutes to lockdown."
He started walking back to the control room. The truck driver, a stucky man, a little older than Jonathan, with tje appearence of somene used to spending a lot of time outdoors, joined Jonathan by the elevator after he parked the vehicle at its designated spot and said nothing. When the elevator reopened, another flatbed truck rolled out, carrying two more ATVs. Its driver also parked the vehicle and joined Jonathan and the other driver. "Danny Simon," he said, holding out his hand. "And that's my partner. Mickey Abbot. Are you the mechanic?"
"Yes, Jonathan Rosin," Jonathan replied, shaking the outstretched hand. "What happened?"
"One of my beasts broke down at the last minute and it was too late to replace it or fix it," Danny said, not bothering to hide his anger and frustration. "Some people just can't be trusted to go anywhere near an ATV. How long do we have?"
Jonathan glanced at his watch. "10 minutes. Do you want me to check the ATV's now?"
The two drivers exchanged glances. "No, it can wait for tomorrow morning," Danny said. "Come on, we don't want to miss the lockdown."
Sam's mood improved, albeit minimally, when he found some familiar faces in the Youth Quarters. The group consisted of about twenty boys and girls between the ages of 16 and 21. Not everyone was happy about being cut off from their social networks and cell phones, but the Quarters were equipped with a library of music CDs and movies and some stand-alone systems for viewing and listening. Books were also available - a rich library of digital books, but also some hard copies, mainly textbooks and reference books, for the kids who still wanted to spend some time studying. One of the boys, who introduced himself by the name of Teddy, was lying on one of the bunks, reading an old book that did not belong to the Shelter's limited library, which attracted Sam's attention. When the boy became aware of Sam's presence next to him, he put the book on his stomach and gave Sam a hostile look.
"I haven't read that one," Sam said matter of factly, trying to ease the tension. "They say it's good. Is it?"
Teddy stared at him directly, aggressively. "Or what, you will rat me out?"
"For what?" Sam responded dismissively. "Sneaking in a book without permission? Come on..."
Teddy didn't seem convinced. "I never got around to finishing it before we left home, and my parents say one of the first things to disappear from the world will be paper books...."
"Nonsense," Sam declared. "There are enough shelters for paper books. Some of them are even better shielded than this place."
"Oh, and that's what your parents say?" Teddy replied and his hostility turned into sarcasm.
Sam laughed. "My parents? Sometimes they act like they think I don't know how to look up things online by myself."
Teddy sat up slowly. "Yes? So what did you look up? And what did you find?"
"About the Mayans? Lots. And really, I don't get how they made the leap from their calendar ending on December 21st to the world coming to an end on that date. Don't you think it's absurd that millions of people are running off to atomic bomb shelters because of a prophecy of a people extinct for over a thousand years?"
"It's not because of an extinct people," Teddy explained. "And it's not a prophecy. Haven't you been listening to Daniel's lecture? Mostly the section about time zones and summer and winter time?"
"I was," Sam said. "My parents have been reciting it like a mantra."
"So?" Teddy retorted defiantly.
"Nothing, it's just that you're also reciting mantras," Sam said.
"But that's the whole point, isn't it?"
Sam didn't look convinced. "But still..."
"The Mayans were experts in astronomy," Teddy continued. "Their prediction methods were very accurate, and their calendar is still far more accurate than our modern Gregorian Caliendar. So if the calendar suddenly ends on December 21st, there's a very good reason for that. It's true that we don't know exactly if the world will just be destroyed or a new cycle will begin, and at what time exactly that will happen, but it's better to be prepared for anything, right? "
He seemed to make sense, and since Sam couldn't think of a more logical cause for contradicting him, he didn't reply. Instead, he said sarcastically, "OK, just don't forget to lend me the book when you're done."
Teddy seemed to be unsure for a moment whether to take him seriously, but Sam didn't wait for an answer. He put his backpack at the foot of his chosen bunk, pulled out a tablet computer, put on his headphones, laid down the bunk and started watching one of the movies that filled the device's memory. When Teddy turned his head for a moment, Sam was already deep in a world of his own. Even the pre-lockdown countdown couldn't make him take his headphones off.
Jonathan was on his way back to the Residence when he suddenly remembered his conversation with Sally. With a smile on his lips, he turned towards the Youth Quarters. Like the entire complex, this corridor was only lit by the emergency lights, but the sounds of the music could clearly be heard from a a distance. Jonathan opened the door. Despite the lack of lighting, the youngsters managed to convert a part of their quarters into a kind of a club. Dance music played on an improvised sound system. On one of the tables was set with snacks and drinks the youngsters have brought with them - someone even managed to sneak in a few cans of beer. Most of them danced. In the corners, couples or small groups sat playing different computer games. From his position by the door, Jonathan couldn't see Sam, but he finally noticed him sitting in one of the far corners with his new friend, Teddy. He carefully the door closed and returned to the Residence.
Despite all of Jonathan's efforts to keep quiet, Sally woke up as he tried to take his place in the crowded double bunk beside her. "Everything OK?" She asked sleepily.
"Yes, everything is fine, and Sam is having the time of his life," Jonathan replied. "Go back to sleep."
Sally, Jonathan and their children were among the last to walk into the "restaurant" the next morning. It was the turn of woman named Sarah to be in charge of the "restaurant" as Martin took some personal time off. Daniel, as was his custom, had an early breakfast and disappeared into the control room.
At the end of the meal, Sam volunteered to take his brother and sister to the Playpen - probably to take the opportunity to get off the table as quickly as possible - and Jonathan took the time to look around for Max. When he couldn't find him, he waved at Simi, who was in the middle of her usual round among the tables. And she came up and stopped next to him. "Yes, love?" she said, smiling.
"Where's Max?" He asked directly. "I heard about Iris and I wanted to express my condolences..."
Simi was anaphased. "Oh, he took a tray to his residence. He doesn't like to be disturbed, but I'm sure he'll be happy to see you."
Simi moved on to the next table, and Sally turned to her husband. "Did you know Iris passed away?" She asked in disbelief.
"Yes, Daniel told me last night. I'm sorry, I didn't want to wake you..."
"All right, let's go and see how he's doing," Sally got up, cutting him off.
During the ride home, the car was filled with sullen silence. Sally was driving, Jonathan was sitting next to her, and Sam was sitting in the back seat between his brother and sister who were strapped into their booster chairs. He was busy checking all the unanswered messages and missed calls he received during the stay in the Shelter, after getting his phone back. He was even indifferent to his brother and sister's attempt to start a conversation with him. Sally and Jonathan were well aware of what was going on in the back seat, but chose not to intervene and let time do its thing. It was near noon when the car approached a gas station by side of the road, and Jonathan made a decision. He turned toward the back seat and called out, "Hey, who's hungry? You want to stop and get a bite to eat?"
Dina and Roy reacted enthusiastically. Sam lifted his head from his phone only when the car pulled into the gas station and stopped in the parking lot. He helped his brother and sister get off their chairs and they jumped out and started running toward the convenience store. Sally and Jonathan followed, and Sam trailed behind them with obvious reluctance. He wasn't willing admit that he was very hungry too.