18 Floors Above the Apocalypse novel Chapter 287

The hustle and bustle began as everyone started preparing for the Christmas feast.

After lunch, during a lull, Angela and the others toured two glasshouses, filled with chickens, ducks, geese, quails, sweet potatoes, regular potatoes, vegetables, and a rooftop herb garden.

"Angela, in the future, we should also get a villa here. We can be neighbors with Stella and Jasper, and have chickens, ducks, cows, and sheep, all of it."

Cody, not to be outdone, declared to his girlfriend, “Kitty, I'll work hard too.”

Stella almost laughed but managed to hold it back, “Do you guys want chicks or ducklings? You can take some home after dinner.”

“No, thanks.” Angela said, “We all have jobs. We don’t have time to raise them. When we finally get our own villa, we can ask you then.”

Everyone continued preparing the feast, with a hearty chicken broth, spicy duck, sausage stir-fry with bell peppers, and two baskets of vegetables.

Just as they were about to sit down for dinner, there was barking outside. It was the mastiff, who had come pulling a small cart. In the cart was a lamb leg and ten pounds of fresh beef, still smelling of blood.

Cooper’s eyes lit up at the sight.

Within the cart was also a card with flamboyant handwriting: Miss, Merry Christmas.

Stella didn’t know how to feel. Bran was really getting into this.

The mastiff looked at her with drooling anticipation.

She was not gonna send things in return, as she knew he still had tricks up his sleeve.

Stella took out a knife and cut a large chunk of meat for the dog. After getting approval from Cooper, the dog gulped it down.

The fresh meat was taken inside, cut into several plates of beef and lamb rolls, with the leftovers stored in the fridge.

At five in the evening, the feast began. It was delicious, a taste they hadn't had in four years, and it felt like their souls were ascending.

Each had a bowl of chicken soup, and they all felt warm.

Cody was constantly looking after his girlfriend, "Kitty, this is your hometown dish, try it."

Kitty's eyes lit up. She didn't expect Stella's cooking skills to be so good. Even she, who was born and raised in the area, couldn't compete. She finally understood why Cody and the others spoke of Stella with such admiration. Stella really was an interesting person.

As they ate and chatted, Stella brought out a bottle of wine, “This is a bottle we found in an office building a while back, never had the heart to drink it. Merry Christmas, guys.”

“Stella, I want some too.”

“You can only have a small sip.”

“Woof!”

“You too, only a small sip.”

After finishing the main dishes, they started with stew—adding various ingredients into the pot. Since Stella couldn’t take out the preserved stew spices, she had prepared a homemade version. The taste was very good, not much different from the big brands.

They all ate until they were sweating.

As they chatted, Angela brought up buying a house, “The third phase is complete, and we plan to buy a house and settle down.”

Their memories of the base weren't very pleasant. Whether in the past or now, they felt Griffith was more suitable for them, and they wanted to settle down here. However, the houses in the third phase were more expensive than the first and second phases, the prices were simply skyrocketing.

Swan Hill and Griffith were merging, and the future would be a back-to-back management model. Both scientific research and security would be much better than other cities.

The earthquake warning was timely, many survivors lived, and survivors from other cities were pouring in. So housing prices were climbing.

The eternal night was coming, followed by smog and acid rain. Renting a house always had the risk of being evicted; if they had the ability to buy, they should try.

Stella was very supportive, “That's a good thing. You should do it as soon as possible.”