Burned

A bead of sweat slid down my nose slowly. I heard a resounding plop as it joined the growing puddle beneath me. I glanced over at the electric fan sitting in the corner of the room, the plug too warped from the heat to plug into the socket. God, I really wish I hadn’t left it by the window that day. 

Not that it mattered. It was dangerous to plug in electronics nowadays. Tile floors were usually so cooling, that’s why I tried laying on it. It did less than nothing. I don’t know what I expected though. I doubt even a glacier could help with this heat. Not that there were any of those left either.

I glanced out the window to peek at the ever-rising water that surrounded my home. You could barely see any of the city anymore, but a few lucky houses, like mine, peeked out from the water. It looked like the water was getting dangerously close to Martha’s house though. Poor old thing, she might have to relocate soon. If anybody even had the supplies to take her in.

It wouldn’t be long before I needed to move on too. I needed the boat for that, which meant I couldn’t spend all day lying on the floor trying to beat the heat. I sighed and used what strength I could to push myself off the floor. My exposed skin made a sticky, peeling sound as I stood up. 

I think everyone had pretty much gone nude by this point. Common decency be damned! It was too hot to worry about something so stupid. Not that the lack of clothes helped much either. Another bead of sweat dripped into the puddle where I had been laying. 

At this rate, I might not have enough fluid left to do anything without collapsing. I went to the sink for a quick drink of water. Everyone was on ration because of the ever-dwindling freshwater supply, but I would just take one drink. 

Or so I thought. Steam hissed from my faucet the moment I turned the handle. I scrambled to shut it off.

“Fuck!” I cried angrily.

I ran my hand through my sweat-soaked hair. Well, that was it then. We had officially reached the point where it was hot enough for water to steam in the pipes. It sounded bad, but maybe that would help us. If the ocean steamed enough, then it would rain. The rain would help to cool things down and we could get water that way. If the heat didn’t cook us all alive first.

There was no choice now. I had to finish the boat. I went to my living room to continue working on it. Originally, the gaping hole in my wall was out of desperation. The windows didn’t help anymore, the fans didn’t help, I needed more air. The resulting damage left a lot of debris, but the rising sea made getting rid of it a little impossible, so I just left it piled outside. I was grateful I didn’t trash it in the water like some other people did. Wood and metal were pretty scarce nowadays.

When the emergency alert first went out (before the heat became too intense and electronics started malfunctioning) they told us there was no hope. The temperature would keep rising and so would the sea level. Even if humanity could survive the heat, we would all drown. I was at a loss. I didn’t know what to do. Until I was lucky enough to see old Gary’s boat speeding across the sea one day. I had plenty of scraps, this house would be useless soon anyway, I might as well try.

A few other survivors seemed to have the same idea. Most of the houses left were pretty much skeletons at this point. I could see boats of various qualities and levels of completion surrounding me. I think mine was probably the most finished though. I just needed to do a final test on it.

I’d done a couple of test floats in the water, but I had yet to actually take it to sea. The truth was, I was scared to. Because if this boat somehow failed, if something went wrong and it sank, then I really did have no hope. But I was running out of time.

Steam from the pipes. We could only survive a heat like that for so long. I had to make sure everything was perfect though. There weren’t exactly supplies lying around in the middle of the sea if I needed to make a repair. 

I went to work on the final inspection of the boat. I made sure there wasn’t a single nail out of place, every crack was appropriately sealed, the cabin would allow what little airflow it could so I didn’t boil in the daytime. To row the boat during the day would be suicide, so I’d have to sleep during the day and move at night. I could only hope my rain theory was accurate. Otherwise, I’d be trapped without water too. Tonight would be the first real test.

My house to the supermarket uptown. It used to be such a common trip. Two or three times a week sometimes. But now? I may as well be going to the moon. If the boat could make it there and back without trouble, then I was sure I could make it.

As the sun began to set I pushed the boat into the water and climbed inside. I took a deep breath as I dragged my oars through the water. I’d taken a few test strokes here and there, but I’d never rowed this distance before. It was a good test for the boat and for me. I needed to know I’d be up to the task too.

The night was silent. The only sound for miles was the splashing of my oars. The further I got from my home, the more nervous I became. I knew if something failed now, I wouldn’t have the strength to make it back home. This could be my last night. I knew that. I also knew if I didn’t try, then my last night would be coming soon enough anyway.

My arms started aching. I couldn’t even remember the last time I worked this hard. I was so dehydrated by this point I could barely sweat. My head pounded and my vision was fuzzy. I had to make it though. I had to.

My arms were trembling. I worried I might accidentally drop one of the oars. Maybe I’d have to put in some kind of safety system in case something like this happened. It would probably only take a day to do. Better safe than stranded.

This thought was interrupted by a loud thud and my boat coming to a sudden halt. I looked up in wonder. What could I have possibly hit? It looked large and square. An old sign maybe, but for what? The answer came to me in the glow of moonlight. My heart raced as I read the words just barely visible above the water: Johnson’s Food Mart. I had made it.

As quickly as the beautiful words came they disappeared into blackness. I looked up only to be greeted by darkness in the sky. Where had the moon gone? Hope filled me cautiously. No. It couldn’t be. 

But it was. A loud rumble echoed from the sky. Cool drops began to splatter my face. First a few, but then a torrent quickly rained down on me. I laughed wildly. Rain!

I cupped my hands, they slowly filled with water. Relief filled my body as I sipped the liquid. My boat rocked gently in the storm but didn’t fail. I hear the thunder again, followed by the distant cheering of other survivors. I laid across the deck and spread my arms wide, letting the downpour soak me. I smiled as the raindrops dripped off my face and formed a puddle beneath me.