The Last Hope

Chapter I, The Last Before Chaos

I

As I woke up, I was thinking that today would be like any other normal day. I had no Idea that it was going to be my last normal day in a long time. I sat up groggily in my bed, which had a frame made from a few wooden boards nailed together, and I knew I had to go to school. But, being young, I did not really want to. The building itself was a decrepit old factory building from before the war of 2020. It had been hit by a bomb that was not nuclear, like the others we had discussed in school. We had learned about the war a few years ago, and that the old building was a manufacturer of computers. Our history teacher, Mrs. Hill, said that they were all destroyed in the blast.

After thinking for a moment about random things, I got up and got dressed in my school uniform, like I usually do. I was not naive, however, and knowing what kind of crazy world I lived in, I grabbed my knife and put it in my right pocket. My reasoning was that you never know when someone might try to hurt you. With the reassuring weight of my knife and everything I needed for school, I decided I was ready.

I walked downstairs to the usual sights. My mother was working at the stove, making what smelled like heaven. I saw her reach up to one of the cabinets, and grab down the container of salt, and then pepper. She turned around, and said, "Good morning honey! How did you sleep?" While rubbing my eyes and yawning, I replied, "I guess I slept good." "Alex," My mother replied with an annoyed sigh, "you know that we use 'well' there, not 'good'." I looked to my right, and saw my dad sitting at the hand-made oak wood table. He had a cup of something in his hand; my guess was coffee. He took a sip, and with a little cringe, said, "Wow! Still way too hot!"

I walked over to the fruit basket on the counter next to the oven and grabbed an orange. I reached up to grab the juicer from the cabinet above my head, but I couldn't reach. I asked my dad, "Could you get the juicer for me dad? I can't quite reach." He set down his mug. "Sure thing, Alex." My dad had always been a cheerful guy. He could be strict at times, when he had to be, but mostly he was awesome. He had stubble on his face, and a watch he got from his grandfather. He reached up and easily grabbed the juicer for me, and then as an added bonus, got me the knife we use for cutting fruits. I walked over with him back to the table, and sat down next to him. It was comforting, being in a room with my family. I looked around, taking it all in, and set to work splitting my orange into two even pieces.

By the time I finished I had a plate full of steaming eggs, a few slices of bacon, and an empty glass in front of me.I began pressing all the juice out of the fruit, then poured out every drop into my glass. I took the fork from my plate and began eating slowly, still not fully awake. With an undertone of worry, Mom said, "Eat faster, Alexander, or you could be late for school again." She always used my full first name when she was being serious. I always knew I should listen when she did that. I picked up the pace a little, and paused occasionally to take a swig of my freshly made orange juice. I made short work of the bacon, which we bought at the market. We of course bought some things from the market, but mostly we just grew our own food. I quickly drank the rest of my drink and wiped of my face with one of the cloth napkins on the table. I got up from the table and said, "Thanks for breakfast, guys! See you after school!" With that I turned, grabbed my bag, and jogged out the door.

On the way to school, I saw my friend John and ran up to him.

"Hey, John! Ready for school?"

"Yeah... You know me, always ready for learning!"