When the World Ends, She Begins novel Chapter 44

That day, Olivia overheard the girl from the eighth floor suggest raiding the apartment upstairs—the one where a single woman lived alone.

Maybe because Olivia was also surviving alone as a woman, she felt a strange connection. A little sympathy and a little understanding. So later that night, when nobody was watching, she slipped a note under Natalie's door.

Natalie gave a small nod, like she had expected this all along.

The truth was, she had guessed it might be Olivia. That was the only reason she even opened the door today.

That night, nearly every neighbor had shown up to attack her. But when Natalie scanned their faces through the peephole, Olivia wasn't among them. Which made her wonder, Was she the mysterious "note hero"?

The same note hero who had warned her once before in her past life.

That slip of paper had been the only kindness Natalie ever received back then.

Now, with two lifetimes tying them together, Natalie's hard expression softened a little.

"Thank you for warning me that night," she said. "What medicine do you need?"

Olivia froze. She hadn't expected that one small act of kindness from weeks ago would save her life now.

"I need antibiotics. Any kind—cephalexin, azithromycin, whatever you have. And ... something that helps clear blood after a miscarriage. If you don't have that, any medicine that helps the body recover would work."

Natalie narrowed her eyes. "You know how to use them?"

"Yes. I'm a doctor. Not an OB, but I know the basics."

A doctor?

Natalie thought of that note—the messy handwriting, the lines and squiggles that looked like a rushed prescription.

It made sense now.

"Wait here." Natalie shut the door and went into her storage space.

She pulled out three boxes of antibiotics, two boxes of herbal supplements, a bag of brown sugar, and a gallon jug of clean water.

If she was going to help, she might as well do it right. There's no way Olivia should be taking medicine with dirty water.

Natalie opened the door again and handed everything over.

Olivia stared, eyes wide. She had hoped—at best—for a few pills. She never expected Natalie to give her extra food and water, too.

In a time when antibiotics were worth more than gold, this was beyond kindness.

Her eyes filled with tears. "Thank you."

She lifted her head, voice firm despite her weakness. "If I survive this, I swear I'll repay you."

Natalie watched her leave, her mind drifting. If only I had trusted that note in my last life ... If only I had been more careful around Braxton and Tiffany. Would things have turned out differently?

Not just for healing. Many herbs kept the body strong, boosted immunity, or balanced the system. And if she had extra, she could trade them.

In the future, as disasters piled up, medicine would only get rarer. Pills would run out. But herbs? If she grew them, she'd have a steady supply forever.

The more she thought about it, the more excited she got.

Natalie dug out a small test plot about 3,000 square feet. It was clumsy work as she'd never farmed before. The shovel felt heavy, her hands unsteady.

But she learned quickly. Each swing got smoother.

If the first plot worked, she could expand later.

She was so full of energy that she didn't even notice the time passing. She was still digging when suddenly—she and Lucky were kicked out of the storage space.

...

An hour gone, just like that.

Good things take time.

Natalie smiled to herself. Even if she couldn't enter, she could still control tools with her mind and keep working inside the mansion's grounds.