Chapter 27: Catering

Chapter 27: Chapter 27: Catering

"Sounds good, lets get through this night first. We should also start planning on going on real supply hunts. With the little time we had to prepare, we didn’t really secure much." Erik said. He knew the importance of preparation.

"Penny, do you think we could also give Ben and Aunt Lucy some of the spring water?" Kai asked as he popped a grape in his mouth.

"I don’t see why not. If they are going to join our team, we should be fair to them." Penelope said, reaching for one of the grapes in Kai’s bowl.

"What time did you say Mr. Remington would arrive?" Erik said.

"Well I told him to be here by no later than 7:15pm. During tonight, we will all go in to a deep slumber. It is best for all of us to be in the same household. I was considering giving him spring water as well..." Penelope said pensively.

"Penelope, just keep in mind that your safety should always come first. Do not randomly trust others without knowing their characters. With the apocalypse coming, people’s true colors will be shown" Kai said.

Both Penelope and Erik turned to look at him. They couldn’t believe something so profound could come out of this ’special’ brother of theirs. It wasn’t that Kai was an idiot. It was just that he never wanted to put too much thought into other’s train of thought. Because of this, he was often perceived as the naive one among the three siblings. ℯ

Just when they thought that he had finally made an effort to decipher humanity, he said "Well, that’s what happened in the novels anyways".

Penelope:....well, okay then

Erik:.... Never mind

"He’s right P, we should observe him for now. If he proves himself to be loyal, then you could consider forming a contract with him." Erik chimed in. He was still confused as to why Penelope wanted him to join the team. Even though he seemed to have a similar dream to Penelope, that shouldn’t have warrant him joining the group. He felt that there must have been more than what Penelope was sharing.

Penelope herself didn’t understand why she wanted him to join their group. All she knew was that she felt an odd connection with him when he warned her. It was a weird pull and she felt she would regret it if she didn’t act fast. She was always a woman of reason, and also decisive. She wouldn’t dwell on things she didn’t understand. Time would tell.

As the trio were lost in their own thought, Aunt Mary walked in stating "Kai, Erik, the catering company is outside the front gate. Go ahead and let them in, they will be setting up for the banquet in the left fields. The second catering company should be arriving at 5pm exactly to set up in the hall. I told them we would be having a banquet of over 300 people. This should give us enough servings for a few weeks if we eat sparingly."

Penelope felt that her aunt was worrying for nothing. They had the space. This was their greatest advantage. Once they started farming and breeding the animals, didn’t that mean that they would have an endless supply of food at their disposal?

"Okay mom." Both said as they proceeded on with their task.

Aunt Mary and Penny sat on the couch, turning on the television and waited for everything to be set up. Right before 5pm, Penny sent a message to Killian.

PW: Killian, don’t forget to be here before 7:15pm.

KW: Yes, I’ll be there by 7pm.

PW: Communication will stop in a few minutes, drive safe.

Aunt Mary noticed that Penelope was busy and stood up. As she was walking away she caught a glimpse of her messages and a smile bloomed on her face.

If only Erik and Kai could settle down as well. The apocalypse was coming but as a mother, who didn’t want to see their children settle down before their deaths.

"Dear, what is this boy Killian like?" she asked.

"Well, he’s a total work-a-holic. He’s a lot like big brother. He’s not much of a talker, but he is pretty funny. He’s also extremely handsome, I remember most of the woman at our job would indirectly flirt with him. However, he had a girlfriend at that time and would just ignore their advances." Penelope said as she put a finger on her lips, trying to think. Killian was the only person who she had very little memory of. She wasn’t sure why that was, but she wasn’t going to lose sleep over it.

Aunt Mary smiled through-out the conversation. She could tell that Penelope had no romantic feelings for this boy. It seemed all three of her children were blockheads in the love department.

"Aunt, tomorrow we are planning on going a few supply runs. Aside from our essentials, is there anything you would like for us to bring back?" Penny said.

"Hmm...What time will you three be heading out and where?"

"Well, we are going to our construction manufactory and then the jewelry district. I was thinking we could also go to Blossoms mall as well. I don’t feel at ease with the few supplies we have prepared"

"Dear, don’t put too much pressure on yourself. That’s why you have brothers, let them think about these things." She said as she hugged Penelope.

She felt that her Penny was going to mentally exhaust herself if she kept stressing about these things.

Just as they were talking, the television cut off all connection. When Penelope looked at her phone, it was already 5pm. She couldn’t help but feel nervous.

Regardless of the amount of preparations they did, this was a new experience to her. She couldn’t help but worry that she could die again. What about the happy family she inherited? She didn’t want to lose them either. Could they truly survive this calamity? If they died, would she reincarnate all over again? Could they meet again and be family?

Just when her thoughts were spiraling, she felt someone give her a hug. She turned and saw her Aunt Mary looking at her with worry.

Aunt Mary noticed that Penelope’s breathing had gotten quicker and heavier. It almost sounded like she was heaving. She turned to look at Penelope and noticed that something was wrong with expression. Penelope’s worry was written all over her face. She couldn’t help but reach out and try to sooth her.

The second catering company happened to arrive at their front door and rang the doorbell. Aunt Mary let go of Penelope and walked to open the door. She was letting the catering people in when she saw Aunt Lucy and Ben walking to the front door. She greeted them and let Penelope guide the catering company towards the dining hall.

"Sister Lucy, ben. I’m glad you made it. Quick, come in." She said as she stepped aside to let them enter.

"Aunt Mary, how are you? Where are Kai and the other?" Ben asked enthusiastically.

"They are helping the caterers set up the food for the banquet." She said, smiling at him.

"A banquet? I thought it would just be us. Are you expecting more guest?" Aunt Lucy said to Aunt Mary.

"It’s a long story, we’ll update you once everyone is out of our hair." She said as she winked at her.