A Survivor's Journey

Chapter 3: Little slices of death

I awoke at dawn, sleeping on a cushion in what appeared to be the living room of the house. Felix and Ella were still asleep, as revealed by the door to the only room left intact still closed. I wondered what their relationship was. Perhaps they knew each other from before, either that or they've lost restraint due to the apocalypse.

I tidied up the cushions and blanket, placing them neatly on a high place. Sunshine peeked through the broken walls and windows, illuminating the room. I grabbed my bag. I had fixed it yesterday, adding a few more vines for strength. I exited through the kitchen.

Once outside, I immediately checked around for any sign of those machines. They seldom came out from Utopia, preferring to use the scouts they have instead, but I was still cautious.

Seeing no sign of either danger in the distance, I set my destination in mind and began. Thanks to the shoes I'd found inside, I was a bit less worried about the glass and rubble on the road.

'What happened yesterday?' The thought came naturally and intertwined with my knowledge before the apocalypse. The more I delved into the past, the more my conviction to enter the city just a few kilometers from here - Utopia- grew.

I scavenged around a few buildings towards my destination, finding nothing to compensate for my efforts. Everything around was either broken or empty. Continuing around the once familiar neighborhood, I reached a block I know well.

I stared at the decaying house in front of me, my hands reaching towards my ring. The plants I had grown here were long overgrown, twisting around the house in a need for more space. And the vines had grown sturdy enough to keep the house from falling apart.

'You're still alive... right?' Tears formed in the corner of my eyes before I wiped them off.

After taking a deep breath, I entered the house. The memories I shared with her resurfaced as the door creaked open. I took a step into our home, into the adventures I shared with her.

Even with the plants holding the walls, it seemed like just a bit of force could cause it to collapse. Cracks formed along the walls in networks, and dust and rubble blew off whenever a light wind passed. Nervous, I turned back, paused, then sighed and continued walking inside.

As I walked out of the living room and into the corridor, I passed by two empty guest rooms, which were supposed to be the kids' bedrooms. We never got around to having children.

Advancing further, I passed by the bathroom, then pushed open the door to our room. Lying on the bed was a very old newspaper.

"Locally scientist cr..." Was about all I could make out before the words turned blurry.

Looking around, I was surprised at the emptiness inside. There was no clothing, no belongings, not even any of the photo albums we had. The only thing that was off any value to me was a picture of us two on the wall.

"Were her ears always that small?" I chuckled to myself as I stared at the picture.

Interestingly, there were a few details that I remembered wrongly about her, one of which was her ears. The other was the lack of any piercings on her, which was weird because I always remembered her with earrings.

Snapped out of my stupor by the dust falling on my head, I continued exploring for what I mainly came for. After searching and rummaging through the room for a few minutes, I finally found the keys that I had been looking for.

I don't know whether they'll be any helpful, nor do I know I'd I survive long enough to use them, but I'd be prepared. Sighing, I left the crumbling building with a small picture of her.