Searching for Water in the Collapsed Grocery Store

Searching for Water in the Collapsed Grocery Store

I was at my local grocery store with my old high school friend Dave, but the power had been out for years and half the ceiling had collapsed. We had to carry heavy canvas bags and we were desperately looking for clean bottled water or canned beans, but all the shelves were covered in gray dust and dried weeds. It had that feeling that whatever happened to the city was permanent, like society had just completely wound down. Dave was complaining that he was going to be late for his shift at the warehouse, which made no sense because the jobs were all gone. Then my phone buzzed in my pocket with a calendar alert for a dentist appointment, and I felt this intense wave of panic because the battery was at one percent and I couldn't find my car keys in the overgrown parking lot.