Infinity

Chapter 11: Automatic

Jake and Rose ran for their lives. Not wanting to be caught by the Dublekas again, they ran. They ran even though all of the muscles in their bodies begged them to stop. They ran even though their legs were numb. They didn't stop running until morning came.

Jake and Rose were by the coastline, where the ocean was seen. They guessed that they were almost out of Florida, by Louisiana. Soon Jake's legs collapsed, and he fell onto the sand. Rose stopped too, also collapsing onto the sand next to him.

"You can't go no more?" Rose asked, panting from shortness of breath and tiredness. Jake nodded, too tired and out of breath to speak. "So am I." She paused to take another large breath. "We'll stay here until tomorrow morning, and then we'll continue walking in the same direction. We just need to get away from Florida. We have to clear our heads and have a clean slate. With our heads clear, we'll be able to focus better on the Dublekas and make a better plan."

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea," Jake groaned. "Ugh, I just want to rest. My legs are sore from running. Not to mention I'm covered in scratches and bruises. I didn't realize the Dublekas were that strong."

"Me neither," Rose sighed. "I felt kind of innocent about the Dublekas, knowing pretty much nothing about them." Jake chuckled, nodding. He stared at the ocean and the rising sun's rays reflecting on it. "It's kind of weird, isn't it?" Jake looked back at Rose.

"What is?" Jake asked.

"Well... just the fact that... we're on a dangerous mission to save the world from evil aliens," Rose sighed. "But a few days ago, we were living our normal lives... just being us. Everything can change in such little time."

"Yep, I know what that feels like," Jake sighed, tears brimming his eyes. "My life seemed to change in a minute. I lost everything... my family and friends." He had been thinking about it a lot the past couple days. "One minute, my mom, dad, siblings, and best friends were alive. The next minute, the Dublekas murdered them all. All of them... they're all gone." Jake sighed and stared at the ground. Rose patted Jake on the shoulder, attempting to comfort him.

"One of your friends is still alive," Rose whispered. Jake looked up and stared at her. "Me... I mean, I'm your friend, right?" Jake smiled and nodded.

"And you're my friend too," Jake mumbled, smiling at her. Rose smiled back, her smile reaching her eyes. When he saw that smile, his grin became wider. It was the first smile of hers he saw that had truly reached her eyes, and it gave him a huge sense of happiness.

"Jake... talking about how one minute your friends and family were alive and the next minute they weren't..." Rose started. Jake looked down and nodded sadly. "That's going to happen to more and more people if we let the Dublekas get away with this. If we don't stop them in time, all humans will disappear before our eyes."

"Yeah..." Jake sighed, agreeing. "These Dublekas are terrible things. It's up to us to save the Earth and the people on it. They're unknowingly counting on us." He paused for a moment. "We're automatic. This mission is what makes us automatic. We're automatically heroes for being the unexpected chosen ones to save the world. It's who we are and what we feel... we are the ones to save the world, and we feel like we need to. It's up in the air... the fact that we're going to save the world and are the chosen ones... because nobody will know we saved them... or that they ever were saved! And if we have to die to save the world... then we'll be taken up and lifted high to watch the world live in peace for eternity. We'll be everlasting in the sky, proud to watch the world be happy once again. And that all will be because we're automatic, and nothing can stop us."

"Wow... that was deep," Rose gasped, lost at words. Jake laughed, scratching the back of his head. "But I definitely agree. I don't care if I die saving the world... as long as everyone else is safe and sound."

"Me too," Jake added. "I wish there were more people like us that cared about the Earth and the humanity on it. Back when I was a really little kid, I thought everyone was nice, cared, and respected each other. As I got older, and I observed the world around me more precisely, I saw things like murders, robberies, fights, and more. I realized how cruel this world can be and how cruel society can be to itself. I realized how much people can not care about the other people who are effected by their actions. I realized how much this world had people who didn't have a place in their heart for humanity."

"Sometimes, I don't understand our world..." Rose groaned. Jake scooted closer to Rose and threw his arm around her. They stared at the sunrise for a few minutes, admiring the beauty. In their minds, they were comparing the beauty of the sunrise to the beauty of the person next to them. Rose eventually rested her head on Jake's shoulder, and he rested his head on her's. Out of nowhere, Jake groaned, "Ok, I'm really hungry."

"So am I," Rose agreed. "Since you're the one who got the worse beating by the Dublekas, I'll go and get breakfast for us." Rose stood up and started walking towards a town close by the coast. After a minute, she turned around to see Jake slowly walking towards her. "What are you doing?"

"I'm not letting you go alone," Jake sighed with a smile. "We'll stay in that town up there for the day. We'll hang out, have dinner, and find a place to sleep. We can continue walking to Louisiana or somewhere else tomorrow." Rose smiled as she and Jake continued walking up the beach towards the small Florida town.