Earth Abides

I'm kind of in denial of the whole leaving thing.

- Well, we're gonna be back. - Okay.

Wait! You can't go yet.

We gotta do our secret handshake.

We don't have a secret handshake.

That's how secret it is.

- Bye! - Love you!

Let me stay too. Ish.

Please?

Where am I supposed to go, man?

You'll need this out there.

I love that my favorite place

is your favorite place.

The library is the only place

that I can see how people used to live.

There's always a debt.

There's not always forgiveness.

Who's sick?

Joey.

He has a slight fever.

Just a little bug.

M-mom?

Dad?

- Joey? Joey? - Joey? Joe!

Whatever it is, it is moving fast,

a-and it is infecting

even those who survived the first time.

Heather!

Oh, I knew you'd come back to us.

Where's Raif?

He's gone.

Could you start from the beginning?

I loved him.

From the moment I saw him, at six.

That's where it starts.

He loved you.

Like Dad said, we drove north.

We didn't see another living person.

We found a beautiful beach,

and for a long time, it seemed we'd never leave.

We knew we'd already broken our promise

to return home before it got cold,

but it felt like we both kept making promises

to each other every day.

We also knew we didn't come out into the world

to be just as alone as in San Lupo,

- so we went looking. - Yeah.

Every town along the coast was the same.

Empty.

Unpeopled.

Well, what did you expect?

Every town had something

that had been left behind,

it seemed, for us.

Whaa!

This place is so cool.

I wonder what they made here.

I think it was like a lumber mill.

Echo!

Hey!

Woo!

Oh!

We didn't know what the numbers meant.

- Interesting. - Why?

But we knew the arrows were directions we couldn't ignore.

We saw it painted on rocks and sidewalks.

You're pretty cool.

Hey! I'm driving.

No, you're not.

But no matter where we drove,

the arrows kept pointing us nowhere.

Our search for people had taken us

much further than we'd planned,

so we decided to settle in one spot.

This is so much better than I dreamed it would be.

But we knew this was our last stop

before coming home.

We were planning

on coming home.

Are you hungry?

Raif!

What?

Taxus brevifolia.

One of the few things I learned

in school before Joey did.

Uh, taxes. Uh, sorry, what?

The Pacific yew tree,

one of the most healing trees known to humans.

Mm.

Every part of this magical tree can heal.

From open wounds to nasty coughs.

Oh, really? We should get some

of that for Molly, then.

I'm gonna go see if there's more.

Cut it through here.

- From here? - Yeah.

Raif?

Wait!

Are you okay?

I saw someone.

What? You saw someone?

Somebody's here?

We need to keep an eye out.

We should sleep in shifts tonight.

Food. Now.

Or I will.

Tell us everything.

There's enough food to share!

You don't have to hold him like that. Please.

Share? It's take or die!

No, we were looking for others.

Ah! No!

Others? There are no others.

Stop!

No! Gaah!

Ah!

I didn't want to.

He shouldn't have tried to fight.

Raif?

Let's just get you safe, okay?

Yeah. Yeah. I need you to be okay.

Okay? Just tell me you'll be okay.

I won't be.

I don't know what to do!

Say my name.

Please?

Heather.

Heather.

Heather.

No.

No! Please, stay with me. Please.

Please, stay with me.

Please!

The Jeep broke down.

It took me endless weeks to walk home.

Raif walked back with me.

I swear.

He.

He walked me home.

It's okay. It's okay.

You okay?

Yeah.

Heather bo-beather.

That's right.

Although Dad hasn't called me that in ages.

How come.

I never got a nickname?

You have one. "Jo Jo."

Oh. Right.

I forgot.

My brain is kind of fuzzy.

That's okay.

It deserves a break after all these years of hard work.

Dad thinks I'm gonna die.

Don't say that.

He's out getting you medicine right now.

No. I see it in his eyes.

He doesn't look at me the same way.

It's almost like,

like I'm already gone.

He wants you back,

jumping off cliffs and scampering up trees.

That's what his face is saying, "Hurry up. Get well."

"Get well."

That's it.

Keep saying that.

Hey, kiddo. I'm all over this.

Dad, you're back.

Yup, a little shopping spree in the city,

and you're gonna be all good.

It's okay, Jo Jo.

Dad, you're going to scare him.

What's that supposed to mean?

You're scaring me.

I'm giving him my immunity.

I gave Molly everything from the yew tree.

She's making medicine right now.

And what if that doesn't work?

I don't know, but it's too late for immunity.

You know that.

I have to save him.

I have to save all of you.

That's not your job.

Of course it is!

That one's for you, Raif,

and this is for your sister

who's still with me.

Just rest, Evie.

I'm here.

Molly!

- Ish? - Heather said you were trying...

Yes, from a yew tree. I won't know for a day or two.

He doesn't have that time. He's on fire.

Okay.

Molly!

Okay! Okay! Let me think.

He needs an ice bath right now.

Come on.

Sorry to bother. I know Evie's sick too.

Maurine and I have been taking shifts over there.