Evolution

Chapter 5

Chapter 5

It’s funny how some things are simply hard to admit to yourself. For me the journey out of New York was both the easiest and hardest part. This is partly because of the still intact humanity craving comfort and familiarity. So I had to break down and admit, I was scared.

More than that, I had to live in silent agony knowing I was just a boy thrust into manhood. A scared little boy experiencing things he never had a chance to experience properly. All of this while wielding a golf iron and traveling with people I barely knew. When we left the safety of the Earth Ship I had no idea what would happen. We walked for many miles on edge at the slightest sound.

We would step on glass and cringe, waiting for some unknown heinous creature to rear its ugly head and make a light snack out of our merry band of survivors. Alex tried to act tough, but a few times I saw tears threatening a downpour. She walked in silence mostly, clinging to her hatchet so tight that the whites of her knuckles became semi permanent. Boomer  mostly bopped along either completely unafraid or genuinely in good spirits. Either way, I wished at that point I could crawl in the mans skull and know what he knows, Perceive his reality instead of my own.

We knew the only time we could truly let our guard down enough to sleep was at night, the safety of darkness where the plants ability to grow and feast diminished. Were  we completely safe? Not in the “I am going to sing and make smores around a campfire” capacity. But what other choice do we have?

Alex was the first to admit defeat, stopping suddenly and sitting on the blacktop staring at the tide of broken cars and chaos. She slumped her head and starting crying. Tiny wails followed by gasps for breath.

“I can’t anymore, I-I just can’t I’m so tired” she sobbed

I was at a loss, still very much socially awkward from all the solo nights in the railcar, I was completely unsure of what to do. Was this one of those “there there Alex, it will be alright” type of moments. I mean, when you know its not alright Is that the same as lying? Instead I just sat beside her unable to speak. As I listen to her sobs of torture, I guess I finally understood the dire situation we were truly in.

Like a warm washcloth placed upon the soaked forehead during flu season, a warm soothing feeling washed over me. I cried.

I did more than cry I wailed, I let it all out, one tear at a time, one sniffle at a time I relieved many months of anxiety and fear. I covered my red puffy eyes and threw my arm around Alex, the human contact unleashed a fresh wave of sobs.

Boomer sat. He squatted in front of us and tried to do what he could, trying to remove Alex’s hands from her face and randomly rubbing my hair. He made silly faces and tried smiling through her fingers but to no avail, nothing was going to stop our much needed breakdown.

Almost nothing. In the distance the echo of our sorrow did not go unheard. We seen the vines slowly crawling towards us and the scurrying of tiny pod rats. God I hate pod rats! I stare at the crudely stitched cut and recall the terror in the subway. I recalled... Podradiles!

That thought slammed deep into my brain like a brick dropped through the windshield of a new Porche from a two story balcony. It shattered all feelings of sorrow and kick started our survival instincts. I clung to my golf club with a sense of purpose. Alex stood frozen in terror like a unsuspecting deer in a trance from the beams of an oncoming car. Boomer ran.

That sight didn’t register at first. Boomer, the biggest of us all ran? Then I saw what startled him so. Baboons. Large green nasty Baboons with sharp fangs coming fast in large groups. I felt sick. I grabbed Alex’s hand and took off running, more dragging her than leading her across the highway. Boomer was nowhere to be seen. I screamed his name over and over but the sound of my own voice would not be carried in the winds of chaos.