Rebirth Before the End: The World Restarts With Us

"Noooooo!"

Kaelira Draven bolted upright in bed, sweat trickling down her forehead. Her eyes were clouded with confusion and despair. Her muddled consciousness was jolted by the scene before her. Was this her apartment from before the apocalypse?

"Ding-dong, ding-dong."

The sound of incoming text messages prompted her to reach for the smartphone on her nightstand. September 14, 2029, 9:32 AM.

Over a dozen unread messages, all about the impending arrival of a powerful hurricane, "Kaloone," expected to make landfall on the coast in the wee hours of the 19th. The storm was predicted to be a Category 5, bringing heavy rainfall that would last for several days. Kaelira was bewildered. Hadn't she perished in the chaotic apocalypse? Could her unwillingness to die have plunged her back into this nightmare on the brink of death?

"Ding-dong." Another alert, this time timestamped 9:37 AM.

Kaelira pinched her arm hard. The sharp pain served as a reminder: this was no dream; she had truly been given a second chance. She had returned to five days before the hurricane that marked the start of the apocalypse. Or more accurately, four and a half days.

Kaelira wasn't overjoyed. Instead, she felt an overwhelming sense of dread. Hurricanes, torrential rains, floods, extreme cold and heat, earthquakes-each challenge was a descent into hell. Was there anything worth starting over for?

But since she had returned, was she supposed to just wait for death? Absolutely not!

She splashed cold water on her face. Looking into the mirror, she saw a young, beautiful reflection. Her face was glowing, untouched by the desperate struggle of the apocalypse. Everything seemed so perfect.

Her gaze fell on the pendant around her neck. She had found it in the hospital when she was abandoned at birth. Later, Marcus Reed took it from her to give to the school beauty, Tessa Fane.

Three years into the apocalypse, Tessa still looked pristine and radiant, her clothes spotless, her skin rosy. It was as if she still lived in the prosperous world before the disaster.

Once, Kaelira had been so hungry she fainted. In her peripheral vision, she saw Tessa take an ice cream from the pendant and start to lick it.

As if inspired, Kaelira took a knife, sliced her finger, and let a drop of blood fall onto the pendant. The pendant emitted a bright light. When Kaelira opened her eyes again, she found herself in a sparsely furnished apartment with no doors. The apartment had a front yard that could accommodate two vehicles, a spacious living area, two bedrooms, a kitchen, and an expansive garden with enough land to replicate a family home's backyard.

A holographic timer floated in the living room: 05:56:13.

Kaelira quickly tested Arcadia's preservation capabilities. She realized the timer only counted down when people entered, but as long as she was outside, the preserved supplies remained unaffected.

Her second chance felt like a double-edged sword. With the hurricane looming and other disasters sure to follow, Kaelira resolved to prepare differently this time.

In her previous life, Kaelira lived for only three years. She had no idea what other disasters awaited her, so she used her phone to search for types of natural disasters. After reading the dense list of possible disasters, she felt like she could die on the spot. Surviving was going to be incredibly difficult.

Pushing aside unnecessary emotions, she started to make a list of supplies. For her medical supplies, she wanted to stock up on essentials for surviving a world without hospitals-antibiotics, painkillers, antiseptics, and a small stash of emergency surgical tools and portable medical devices. These items would be priceless once the healthcare system collapsed.

Kaelira grew up in an orphanage, and although the orphanage seemed peaceful on the surface, there were intense power struggles behind the scenes. This environment gradually shaped her selfish, self-preserving character.

Inherently insecure, she started picking up scraps and doing odd jobs in elementary school. By high school, she was tutoring and even cleaning toilets-as long as she was paid. She ranked highly in her exams, and as a sophomore in medical school, she was still tutoring five high school students, charging $600 per session.

Kaelira was a money hoarder. She sold insurance, organized events, and she dared to do anything as long as it was not illegal. After a decade, she had saved $500K in the bank, planning to make a down payment on a house after graduation. Now, all those plans were meaningless.

In the afternoon, she was supposed to have professional classes, and in the evening, she was supposed to tutor. But none of that matters now.

Kaelira sent a message to the parents, saying that she was ill and hospitalized, unable to tutor for a considerable period. She asked if they could find a replacement and settle the tutoring fees.

The tuition was settled every two weeks, and the parents were all well off. Among them, two sent $1,000 as a get-well gift, totaling $10K in income.

Kaelira didn't forget to remind them about the impending hurricane and to stock up on food and emergency medications.

Her list of needed medications filled three full pages. Many of the drugs were not only expensive but also not available in pharmacies.

Kaelira sent a picture of the list to her childhood friend, Fynn, who worked for a pharmaceutical company. A new rich client needs these urgently, and they need to be delivered tomorrow. Can you give me a discounted price?

Fynn replied immediately, [Sure thing.]

Within five minutes, he called, "Kael, this medication list is weird. Are you sure serious?"

"The money has been transferred. The medication has to be ready by tomorrow."

Without wasting any more time, she hung up the phone and transferred $60K [Tell me if it's not enough.]

The list of supplies was long. Kaelira picked up her keys and headed out, her gaze falling on the limited edition, brand new Air Jordans on the table. She felt like slamming her head against the door.

She had always been practical. But when she met Marcus, it was as if she was under a spell. To win him over, she gave up her dorm and rented an expensive apartment in a school district, even queuing up at the crack of dawn at a specialty store to buy him Air Jordans. She never spent more than $350 on her own shoes, but she didn't hesitate to spend over $9K on a limited edition pair for him. And what did she get in return?

He took her gifts and the pendant, neither accepting nor rejecting her confession of love. Worse, during the hurricane, he took Tessa to eat all of her stockpiled food.

Three years into the apocalypse, he didn't lift a finger to help her. When she was attacked and slaughtered, he just watched coldly. If she had known this would happen, she would have given those Air Jordans to a dog rather than give them to him.

This time, she wanted to see how Marcus and Tessa would fare without her stockpiled food and Arcadia.

The powerful hurricane raged for half a month, followed by three months of torrential rain. The entire city was submerged.

Kaelira, living on the 18th floor, wasn't submerged, but she was living in dire straits nonetheless.

She left her apartment complex and had a hearty breakfast at a roadside diner. Without wasting a moment, she rented a cargo van and headed straight to the Air Jordan store. The store clerk was surprised at her request to return the shoes. After all, this was a limited edition pair that countless customers were vying for.

After receiving a refund of over $9,200, she could use this money to stock up on enough rice, flour, and oil to last for two or three years. Who needed a man?

Kaelira also realized the need for stronger reinforcements. Her first stop was the hardware store. She ordered stainless steel doors with triple deadbolts, knowing these reinforcements would withstand battering forces. But Kaelira knew better than to rely on electricity-powered security.

She picked up manual deadbolt reinforcements, steel brackets, and a set of collapsible window bars that could be latched and unlatched without power. For the balcony, she bought barbed wire to string along the perimeter; they cost over $7,000.

To save time, Kaelira had measured the dimensions before heading out. The shop owner was worried about the measurements, but when they heard which neighborhood and apartment building she lived in, they readily agreed. They had done plenty of business in that area and were confident they could deliver. "If you're in a hurry, we can have it installed in four days."

Across the street was a glass shop, where Kaelira chose the thickest bulletproof glass, priced at 600 dollars per square foot, with the installation slated as the same time as the door installation.

Would they come banging and smashing? Well, in this lifetime, she wouldn't let anyone barge in and bully her.

She clenched her fists and muttered, "This time, it's my rules."