After Oden disappeared, Della, I, and the rest of the survivors tried to do whatever we could to survive. We tried to move to the edge of town where all of the farmers lived. There was very little technology and civilization.
A lot of the farmers accepted the refugees with no fight. Della and I were planning on not accepting any housing of any sort and just setting up a tent but one of the farmers insisted. We ended up staying with one of the female farmers.
She was older, about 50, and had her brown hair in a ponytail, and had deep wrinkles. She introduced herself as Maya. We both got into the run down house. We looked around and saw that there weren't any separate rooms. It was a big space with a torn-up couch and bed, a kitchen and a bathroom that was covered by hanging bed sheets. There were candles to light up the room.
Maya stood with her hands on her hips. "It isn't much, but it works." She pointed at the couch. "You two can figure out which one of you sleeps there. I'm guessing it'll be you, your Great One, but I'm not forcing anything." She turned to me. "But if I also have a lot of extra bed sheets and blankets that you can use to make a pallet on the floor."
I nodded and bowed respectfully. "Thank you so much, Maya."
She shook her head and put her hand up. "No, don't bow. It's the least I could do. Your rank is high above mine."
I shook my head. "No, we're trying to change that! The way this world is run is just wrong! We want everyone to be treated as equals!"
She looked at me surprised. "Oh. Okay." She looked to the side and smiled. "Well, thank you. At least someone is trying."
I smiled. "I'm glad that you accept it."
Della bowed to her. "Thank you, Maya. Thank you so much!"
She nodded at her. "You are so welcome. I hope you succeed."
Maya went to the kitchen and lit one of the candles. "Do you want anything to eat?"
Della and I went over to the couch and sat down. Della responded for me. "Sure! We'll take whatever you choose."
Maya nodded and didn't turn around. Della grabbed my hand and looked at me. She spoke quieter so only I heard her. "I'm happy to be here with you, Cal."
I looked down at her marking. I never mentioned it to her, but I remembered her. She had snuck out to see the world when we were ten. I smiled at her and looked her in the eyes. "Me too, Della."
She smiled. I put my hand on her cheek and tilted my head. I felt myself blush. "You look so good with black eyes, y'know."
Her eyes widened in realization. "That was you?"
I nodded and smiled wider. "I missed you. After I saw you, I started being more lively than I was after the punishment."
She bit her lip in a smile and looked down at our hands. "I liked you so much, y'know. I actually watched you on the security cameras every day because of how different you were. You actually showed interest in everything. It was like a dream when I was able to see you in person."
I decided to tease her. "So you were stalking me?"
She looked up at me, eyes wide. "N-NO!"
I laughed. "I'm kidding, Della. I'm just teasing you."
She smiled again. "You suck!"
I leaned in and kissed her cheek. I heard Maya say something. "I knew you two had some tension."
I looked at her and smiled. "Yeah um... We don't exactly worry about what people think about us."
She smiled and turned back around. "I'm jealous. I was in love with someone when I was still in school. He was a different rank, though."
I kept holding Della's hand. Maya turned around again with a tray of plates. She was shaking her head. "I'm sorry, I'm ruining the mood. Let's eat."
She brought the plates over and put them on the coffee table in front of the couch, and next to the bed. Della and I got on the floor and in front of the table. Maya put her hands together in prayer and bowed quickly before grabbing a fork. Della and I watched as she did so.
The lower ranks usually did that to show their loyalty to the gods and Great Ones. We all started eating. My eyes widened when I tasted the food. I swallowed the first bite and looked at Maya with a smile. "Wow! This is really good for the low rank foods! You're really good at cooking."
Maya blushed and looked away. "Thanks. I try."
Della smiled. "It's a lot better than the low rank food that Cal cooked." She looked at me teasingly and I smiled. I don't want this to end. But inevitably, it will. And soon.