Page 8 of One Impossible Moment
When he reached the store, he pushed the door open and exhaled slowly.The shelves had been restocked.Every can was lined up so the label faced the aisle.Every bag of flour was tightly sealed.Every crate of produce was fresh from a garden that didn't exist in Everstill.
No one knew how the supplies came.There were no trucks.No deliveries.No people hauling boxes through the door.
The supplies were just...there.He wasn't sure how often they came, but they never went without food.
For the town of Everstill, it was as if the world reset itself while they slept.
Finn grabbed a pack of coffee grounds and set it on the counter.Moe walked out of the back room with Levi.The two split with Levi going to the cash register and removing a notebook.
"That it?"Levi swept his long hair back, picked up a pen, and clicked the top.
"Yeah."
Levi wrote down the information.There was no money in Everstill.The bank was empty.Unlike the food and supplies that showed up, money hadn't dropped out of the sky.
For as long as he remembered, Copper had those who worked in the store keep a tally of everything each person took home.For the sole purpose of making rationing easier if supplies ran out.But the food always showed up.The soap, toilet paper, and personal items were always available.
When electrical problems arose, Rex had the experience to fix them.The supplies he needed would arrive just like the groceries.Brett managed the gas station.While there were a few motorcycles in use, there were no cars, but there were lawn mowers, generators, and chainsaws.
Every man had a job.It was what made life bearable and kept the town running.
Moe stepped around him."Did you see anyone deliver the goods?"
"Nope.Last night was the same as always," Finn said.
Despite everyone wanting to know who supplied the town, none of the men could stay awake or keep watch out the window.In fact, at night, he forgot all about the questions that came up during the day.
Moe grunted."Doesn't make it less strange because there's no evidence about how everything shows up."
Finn picked up the can and stepped back outside.The sun was rising now, casting long shadows across the street.Boone and Vaughn were already out front of the old courthouse, pushing rusted lawnmowers across the patchy grass.
Boone lifted a hand in greeting."Morning."
Finn nodded."You two drew the short straw today?"
"Grass keeps growing," Vaughn said, wiping sweat from his brow."Copper keeps bitching about it needing cut."
Finn didn't say what they were all thinking.The grass never got a chance to grow because they mowed it every day.
The food showed up, the gas station had premium unleaded, and the houses never fell apart.The world here existed to keep them alive.
Existing.But not living.
Finn walked home, opened the coffee, and made a cup.Then he strolled back outside and peered at the road.
The asphalt stretched out in front of him, straight and narrow, disappearing into a ripple of heat.A fucking mirage.
Taking his drink, he followed the road and stopped at the line where an inch-wide crack ran all the way across the street.
The place where the world bent.
He studied the air, the wind, and how the light shifted if he stared long enough.He had been doing this every day since the girl arrived.Before that, he accepted the rules of this place.Now, he wanted answers.
He crouched, pressing his palm to the asphalt.It was warmed by the sun.
He stood again, scanning the horizon.There were no clouds.The wind was calm.The road looked like any other road in any other town.
Except every man brought to Everstill knew there was nothing normal about living here.
