The Day The World Ended | ONC 2024 LONGLISTER

4| first kill

Shards of glass mixed with cordial and blood flew everywhere. Simon tackled Mellie to the ground as the bullet flew past them and found its home in the wall behind them. Someone was shouting in the distance. Simon quickly pushed himself to his feet, pulling the frightened girl along with him. Novah looked like she was going to throw up, splattered with blood and still holding onto the broken glass bottle.

The two men lunged at them over the body of their fallen friend. Simon grabbed Novah's hand, making her drop the bottle and tried to duck past the flying fists of the two men. The people outside had decided to mind their own business and had started to wander away, moving like zombies through the rubble.

 A fist hit Simon in the cheek. His vision went white for a moment but he quickly shook off the pain, pushing the two girls towards the exit. Novah had broken out of the trance, pulling Mellie along with her. Simon grabbed the collar of one man, throwing him at the other one with all his strength. They collapsed to the ground in a cursing heap, which gave Simon, Novah and Mellie enough time to stumble out of the store into the open air. They sprinted across the wasteland, pushing past the wandering humans.

"I killed him." Novah staggered to a stop, staring at her blood-splattered hands.

Simon grabbed a hold of her shoulders and shook her rough enough for her to look at him.

"Yes, you did. And you'd have to do it a lot more times if you want to survive. You killed it to save us. That would have killed all of us if you didn't act fast. So, what you did was not wrong. Do you understand?" He shook her shoulders again.

Her dark eyes cleared, her jaw tightening. She nodded.

Simon straightened, looking at both Novah and Mellie. "You two will have to fight for yourselves. I won't be able to be with you always. We don't know what the future will hold."

"Okay," Mellie's voice was small as she wiped the remainder of her tears. A few strands of her blonde hair stuck to her cheeks.

"We have to go now. Before they find us again." Simon said looking over at the direction they came from.

"I lost my bag," Mellie muttered, eyes glued to her shoes.

"That's fine," Simon reassured the girl. "We still have Novah's one. And I also have some stuff." He patted his pockets where he had stuffed two lighters and a few protein bars.

"What do we do now?" Novah asked, her dark eyes fixed on the road ahead. "Where do we go?"

Simon sighed. The night was slowly approaching, prompting the air to cool down sluggishly. They had to find someplace they could spend the night. People were coming to their senses fast. The man Novah killed won't be the only one. And Novah won't be the only person to kill someone either. This was just the beginning.

He looked at the two teenagers. He had to protect them now. He was not delusional to think he could go back to his family or that the world would go back to normal in a day or two. There was no time to grieve. There was no time for tears. It was time for him to use his cadet training in school. 

The world as they knew it no longer existed. Now it was time for the survival of the fittest.

***

"What happens next, Simon?" Novah asked from her place.

They had found sanctuary under a bridge that had miraculously survived. It still looked like it might collapse if someone poked it too hard but they were close enough to the road to run if anything were to happen. A river gently flowed from across where they sat. They had started a small fire from a heap of dried leaves and newspapers. Mellie was fast asleep despite the uncomfortable ground. Novah sat cross-legged, staring into the fire and hugging her backpack.