The Apocalypse Survival Manual (Three Days Before Doomsday, I Stockpiled Billions) novel Chapter 409

Chapter 409

They spent the rest of the night tangled together beneath the sheets.

When Nicole opened her eyes again, the sun was already high.

She stretched and winced. “Ah…”

Her head felt heavy, slow to catch up. The space beside her was empty.

Then it came back to her. Zeph had class this morning.

She checked her watch. It was past 10 a.m.

Nicole got out of bed and nearly stumbled.

Jesus. That man’s stamina should be illegal.

Then she looked up and froze. Four condoms hung neatly on the wall hook.

Nicole nearly choked.

Did he think they were living in the seventies? Who the hell reused condoms? What if something went wrong?

That wasn’t something she was willing to gamble. She yanked them down and tossed them straight into the trash.

After washing up, she realized Poppy wasn’t home. Zeph must’ve taken her to class.

It was almost lunchtime. Nicole pulled food from storage and made sure to include a chicken soup. She had just set everything out when the siblings came back.

After days of drinking nutritious soup, Poppy looked much better. “Nicole, I’m back!”

“Go wash your hands. Time to eat.”

“Poppy,” Zeph said, stopping her. “From now on, Nicole is your sister-in-law.”

Poppy blinked and looked between them in confusion.

“Nicole and I have made it official. She’s my wife now,” Zeph explained.

Made it official?

Poppy tilted her head. She didn’t fully understand what had changed, but she nodded anyway and said with a sweet smile, “Okay.”

Nicole flushed. “L-Let’s eat.”

Poppy washed her hands and hurried to the table. “Nicole, I went to class today. Lots of people asked if I’m better.”

She dug into her pocket and pulled out a friendship bracelet. “Miles gave me this.”

Miles Sinclair. The boy who kept mice.

“And Holly tried to sneak me a piece of candy, but I didn’t take it.”

Poppy had learned what candy meant now. Sometimes it meant survival. She had plenty of it, but Holly Merrick had held on to that piece for months, convinced it was too precious to eat.

Nicole nodded. “Good. We don’t give our things away, and we don’t take from others either.”

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Two bowls of the nourishing chicken soup later, Nicole finally felt some strength return.

Zeph looked completely unaffected, which irritated her a little, though he had always been good at hiding it.

She pushed a plate of food toward him. “Eat more. You’ve burned a lot of calories.”

Zeph raised an eyebrow and slid the ribs toward her. “You too.”

Nicole pressed her lips together as warmth crept up her neck…

After lunch, Poppy took it upon herself to handle the chores, with Cola getting in the way more than helping.

Nicole dragged herself back to the bedroom and dropped onto the bed.

Zeph followed, then paused when he noticed the missing condoms. After a quick search, he found them in the trash.

He had cleared out hundreds from the pharmacy. Even that might not be enough.

He sat beside her and nudged her shoulder. “How many do you have?”

Nicole felt awkward, but she still pulled out what remained of her stash.

Zeph did the math. For the long term, it still wasn’t enough.

Nicole stared at him, speechless, then pulled him into the storage space and showed him Felix’s cabinets.

This time, Zeph’s expression finally shifted.

Now, it was enough.

Nicole was exhausted, but with him there, she couldn’t fall asleep. She rolled onto her side. “How are your trainees?”

“They’re doing fine. Everyone knows they need to learn how to survive now. They’re taking it seriously.”

Zeph kept his standards high.

“I picked a few with good form and quick instincts. They’ll help teach the others. It’s quicker that way, and it takes some of the pressure off me.”

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