Trace

Part One

Chapter 1

"And what a b-e-a-utiful day we are having today here in Metropolis, the sun is shining, the flowers are blooming, a perfect day for loving mothers and hard working fathers to take their beautiful children out to the park..." The old tv crowed, portraying a cartoon image of a woman and man out in a lush green park, the woman sat on a checkered white and red picnic cloth, a woven basket to the side of her. The man was to the side of here on the grass, playing catch with his son, while the young girl practiced sowing with her mother. Each of them had large smiles across their faces. The picture was rather blurry, and the colours seemed.. rather damp..

The video continued to play, portraying the "father" going to work while the "mother" went home to care for the house and prepare food. The two children washed up and changed into an old fashioned outfit, ready for school. The boy putting on brand new trainers, the girl putting a large red bow in her hair. They collected their lunches from their mother and skipped to the bus stop.

As the yellow bus pulled in, a large smile made from the bumper, the children walked in and payed the bus driver, sitting down politely while eagerly looking in their brown paper bags at their food. The show played on in a rather upbeat manner on "the perfect way to behave" at school, the children always being polite and waiting their turn, doing their work, no fighting or arguments. The show was rather dull in general, the same show playing each day on repeat. There wasn't much to differentiate from on the tv, or the radio. No matter which channel you turned to it would always be some type of the cartoon, showing different "adventures" they would have in school and on trips, all with the same old meaning. Perfection. Politeness, punctuality. There was always happy smiles, overexadurating how good everything  was. "And remember children, your father and mother work very hard to make you perfect too. If you are good and follow in Tim and Tina's example, you two will be perfect, just like us." The two children were holding hands and waving at the screen with the same overexadurated smile, the tv then cutting off and the screen going blank.