REBORN ONE YEAR BEFORE THEY APOCALYPSE
819 Words
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Chapter 2 – Reborn One Year Before the Apocalypse
Aria gasped sharply and bolted upright.
Sunlight streamed through her bedroom window, warm and golden, a stark contrast to the frozen world she remembered. Her heart thumped violently in her chest as she looked around. Everything was familiar. Her old posters on the wall, her books on the shelf, the small potted plant on the windowsill.
She touched her face. Warm. Alive. Her limbs moved without pain.
Her phone on the bedside table displayed the date: April 17, one year before the Ice Apocalypse.
A cold shiver ran down her spine, but not from the weather.
She was alive. Again.
Memories of her previous life came flooding back—the blizzards, the starvation, the betrayal by Sophia and Jason, the agonizing final moments before death. Every image, every sensation, every mistake replayed like a broken recording.
Aria pressed her hands against her face, trembling.
“No… this isn’t a dream.” she whispered.
“It can’t be.”
But it was. She had been given a second chance—a rebirth, a gift from fate.
Her mind raced. Only one year to prepare. Twelve months to survive a disaster she already knew would devastate the world.
She sat on the edge of her bed and opened her notebook. The first page was blank. She stared at it, heart hammering, and then began to write furiously:
SURVIVAL PLAN
• Secure a remote property far from cities
• Build an underground bunker reinforced for long-term survival
• Stock food, water, and supplies for multiple people for years
• Prepare generators, heaters, and solar panels
• Collect weapons, tools, and medical equipment
• Recruit trustworthy allies
Her pen shook in her hands as she added the most important name first: Lily Carter.
Her best friend. The one person she could trust to believe her.
She grabbed her phone and dialed Lily. The familiar ringtone made her stomach twist with a mixture of hope and fear.
“Hello?” Lily answered, groggy.
“Lily… it’s me,” Aria said, her voice trembling. “Listen… something terrible is coming.”
There was silence on the other side. Then Lily’s voice, still sleepy, but concerned.
“What do you mean, Aria?”
“I… I can’t explain everything right now, but the world… it’s going to freeze. People will die. Cities… everything will collapse. I need you to trust me. Please.”
There was a pause, and then a soft breath.
“I believe you,” Lily whispered.
Aria exhaled. Relief and anxiety battled inside her chest. Time was already running out.
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Planning Every Second
The rest of the day was spent meticulously mapping everything Aria needed. She reviewed her memories of the apocalypse, noting every detail she had learned through suffering.
• Supplies: She needed enough food for herself and a small group for at least ten years, but with only a year to prepare, she would have to buy gradually and secretly.
• Bunker: It had to be reinforced. A hidden underground base with steel doors, insulated walls, generators, and water purification.
• Security: Cameras, alarms, and escape routes. Betrayal had nearly killed her last time. Trust was limited.
• Allies: Lily was essential. Anyone else would be carefully vetted. Aria would need more people for survival, but only if she could fully trust them.
By evening, Aria had drawn detailed bunker plans. Every room, every storage area, every access hatch. She had even mapped out the generator room and hydroponic farming areas.
Then she stood by the window, looking at the quiet streets below. The world seemed peaceful, unaware of the storm that was coming in less than a year.
A pang of urgency tightened her chest.
“I don’t have ten years like last time,” she muttered.
“I have one. Twelve months. I can’t waste a single day.”
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First Steps to Survival
Aria decided to start immediately. She logged into her accounts and quietly began transferring savings. She had learned in her previous life that money alone couldn’t save her—but it could buy time.
By the next morning, she had begun contacting land agents, construction companies, and suppliers. Each phone call was carefully scripted. Questions were answered cautiously.
She also began purchasing small amounts of food and survival gear from multiple stores, avoiding suspicion. Dried beans, rice, canned meat, water containers, tools—everything she could secretly stockpile before people started noticing.
That night, she finally allowed herself a moment of reflection.
She thought of Jason and Sophia. The betrayal still burned in her memory, but it fueled her determination.
This time, she would survive.
No one would betray her and get away with it.
No one.
Aria took one last look at her notebook, filled now with careful plans, lists, and calculations.
The storm was coming.
But this time, she would be ready.
- Writer
