Are We Dead Now?

Sixteen

Summer break is almost over and I ain't having it, so here's more story. There'll most likely be a second book after this one, so the end is near guys.

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Three and a half months later....

Rin huffed as he climbed the snow covered hill.

He had no idea where they were in Japan. The map had been lost the day the radiation storm swept through Kyoto for the first time and acid rained down on them. It destroyed nearly everything. Those who didn't get melted by the rain outside got Radiation Poisoning. That meant most of the kids, too. It was heart breaking and Rin hated remembering it. Rin had only been there for two weeks and then he'd watched it all get destroyed. The Safe Haven at Today's Ryokan was gone. In it's place, a few broken people and one child left: Sachi Shima, now Sachi Okumura.

People were scrambling everywhere. It took them too long to realize that the rain was killing them, along with the toxic orange clouds. Rin had run out into the rain after making sure Suguro and his mother were safe. He did what he could, but he couldn't be everywhere at once.

People who were safe ran outside to grab those who weren't and ended up dying anyways. The children had been playing in the meadow. Rin bolted to them as quick as he could, dodging around melting people. Juzo and Mamushi were out there, ushering the kids inside, but they didn't understand. The children refused, not realizing they'd die if they stayed out there. The only one Rin could save was Sachi. He wrapped her in his coat. He'd grabbed Mamushi, because that was what Juzo would've wanted, and hoped Juzo was able to save the other kids.

He failed. Juzo died out in the rain when it reached him and the kids, along with Yumi. Jun, Ten, Kensuke, Rukusuke, and Mamushi all died of radiation poisoning later, suffering from bad acid burns. Before she'd died, Mamushi had made Rin promise to protect Sachi and raise her to be strong. Rin had cried for an hour next to her corpse, holding the orphaned baby Sachi against his chest and trying to soothe her cries.

Bon had come to comfort him and make him eat something.

Renzou lost his mother, sisters, sister-in-law, and his oldest brother that day. The only Shimas' left were him, Kinzou, and Sachi.

The Ryokan was destroyed. The only thing that wasn't destroyed was the kitchen and a bathroom, which had solid walls, doors, and foundation. Everything else was melted easily before the acid rain let up and the irs he clouds carried on to terrorize the rest of Kyoto.

Rin had to watch all these people, who had survived a whole year in the Apocalypse in this wonderful safe place, get wiped out all at once.

He wasn't one to cry often or lose his shit, but this was way too much strain. He'd built walls, but they were made of broken stone and ductape. Rin was not made to be like Yukio. Yukio was strong, calculating, smart, and always suspicious of new things. He didn't trust people so easily.

Rin did. Rin wore his heart on his sleeve. His walls crumbled the more time he'd spent with Bon and Shima and Konekomeru and all the people at the Ryokan. He'd gotten too soft, dropped his guard. He'd forgotten not to get too attached. He'd let himself forget that this was the Apocalypse and nothing good could stay forever.

Rin had gotten into the kitchen where the only survivors were, given Sachi to Shima, fallen to his knees to curl in on himself in a corner, and sobbed without caring that everyone could see him losing it. Bon immediately sat and wrapped strong, secure arms around him. Shima was standing there staring at Sachi with disbelief. He looked at Mamushi, who was silently crying in a corner.

Things only got worse as most of the survivors died.

Now, months later, it was Winter. The remaining survivors were Rin, Bon, Renzou, Kinzou, Konekomeru, Sachi, and Torako.