Stay Alive For Me (TordTom)

2

The distant sound of an explosion woke me out of my slumber. I sat up in an instant, looking out of the hole in the wall to see a plane flying away on the horizon. My heart raced as I quickly packed up everything I could in my bag. Food, water, weapons, clothing, matches, the pot I used to cook my meals. Not everything fit, but I took the necessities. As soon as my bag was full, I left the building I was in. If the bombers were coming back, I needed to get out of town quickly. I had no idea how far the bombed area was spread out. There probably wasn't much of a chance the next town over was completely intact, but I had to try. I couldn't be the only person left. There had to be others.

Stumbling out of the building, I found my footing and hastily made my way down the street, unfortunately being in full view of the destruction around me. Houses were completely demolished, I'd even go so far as to say they were obliterated. The once lovely garden in the backyard of someone's house was now a field of burnt trees and amber. The busy streets full of cars and people were now desolate and broken. Well on the bright side, there was no more traffic.

For the past weeks, I'd been travelling in the same direction, making my way to the closest town near here. It was still a very long journey, especially on foot. I passed building after building, most were just piles of crumbled wall and broken glass. Every house looked the same to me. I'd never been to this part of town before, so nothing held any significance to me. One thing I found curious, was that I hadn't run into anyone else. Not even a dead corpse. I was completely alone, in a town with over 20,000 people.

The day was long and tedious, my muscles growing weak and weary with every step as the sun was beginning to set. I had stopped a few times during my journey, eating food to keep my strength up and exploring possible hideouts. With my only source of light descending further and further, the need to find a hideout was growing. My eyes eventually set on a still intact building a few meters from where I was. There were a few floors, 4 from the looks of it. Holes in the walls, however concrete and sturdy. It seemed a room in there would be ideal for spending the night, maybe even a few more.

Most of the stairs were cracked, some parts broken off, but most were still intact. I made my way to the top floor, noticing the air clearing up slightly. The top floor seemed ideal, a large window smashed and broken, allowing me to start a fire if I needed to. A door to an apartment was at the top, its hinges broken and barely holding it together. I pushed past the door, entering a room covered in dust and shattered glass. Walking slowly around the area, my eyes darted about, taking in the scene of the living room. There was a couch which had been toppled over, numerous books on the floor next to a shelf, smashed pictures lying on the ground. I picked up a photo, seeing two girls smiling with their arms slung around each other. One had dark purple hair, a teal hoodie hugging her torso tightly, while the other had brown hair with red and blue streaks. The girls looked happy, no doubt laughing about something that had happened moments before the photo was taken. A smile crept onto my face, remembering a few pictures like this back in my old home. They were probably all destroyed by the explosions. Sighing, I placed the photo back on the ground, continuing to search for an ideal resting place.

It didn't take long for my exploring to lead me to a broken window, a clear view of my deserted town shown to me. Grey and black were the only colours I saw, spare for a few orange flickers of fire in the distance. My heart started pounding for the first time in three weeks. The sight of my hometown in such a devastating condition made me realize how bad the bombing really was. I recognized some buildings pretty far away, the most notable one being my old home. I could see my neighborhood, burned and broken. The times I spent walking down the street had burned a map in my mind, ironically speaking. I used to know every tree, house, even family that lived there. Although I didn't get out much, that neighborhood made me feel safe. Like I was invited to live there without being asked. Now it's been reduced to piles of rubble. No traces of anyone living.

I turned away from the window as my eyes started to tear up. Though I simply told myself it was the wind hitting my face. I turned my heel, realizing the sun was almost under. I had to make a fire before it was gone completely. My bag only had a few materials I could light, but I needed more. I frantically searched the room I was in, finding nothing useful for a fire. Eventually, I made it to the other side of the room, a hallway around the corner.

Picking up the pace, I got closer to the hallway, hoping for some kind of miracle room to appear and give me some firewood. Instead, as I turned the corner, I was met with a bullet flying mere centimeters from my head.