The Stevens house sat in the residential block just outside the hospital.
By the time Iyisha and Marybeth reached the porch, night had already settled in, but the place did not look like night.
Marybeth slowed beside her and stared out at the street.
"It's too bright," she said.
Iyisha followed her gaze.
The entire community was lit. Streetlights ran in a steady line down the road. Houses glowed from within, light spilling through windows and across the pavement. It stretched farther than she expected, block after block holding the same quiet brightness.
It felt strange seeing it like this.
Alive.
Susan had mentioned it earlier. Each house had its own solar panels, most of them salvaged from a solar power center nearby and set up one by one after the collapse.
Iyisha watched the light for a moment longer, catching the movement behind a few windows. People passing. Doors opening. Life continuing in small, steady ways.
"Come on," she said.
They were the last ones outside.
