Various Short Stories/Poems I Wrote For School

The Second American Civil War

Fires everywhere, gunshots in the background. Everything has gone to shit. No matter where you look, everything is just a remnant of its former self. How did we get here? What went wrong? How am I still alive? I want to say it started in 2020, but that would be wrong. That was just where it became its most prominent. Well, it used to be anyway.

During these past 5 years, police brutality has skyrocketed and guess who the primary victims are. That's right, black folks. I have no qualms against them. They're human just like the rest of us and deserve human rights just like the rest of us, but...

An explosion just went off in the background because another black man threw a grenade at a group of police officers. I wish this was the only thing wrong with the world but if we look over there, we can see another problem. Behind this building lies an ongoing feminist rally. When this second civil war, it wasn't just black people against the police and white people. Women, tired of being underpaid and underappreciated with many men degrading them combined with various cases of rapists getting minimal penalties, decided to take a stand for themselves at the beginning of this war. Some of them take a more peaceful approach to addressing these issues. And there's a tear gas canister landing in the middle of it. And where did she get that machine gun?

I run from the building before more blood is shed. While those are two factions, they're not the only ones. There are several smaller factions, like various minority groups and economic classes, going to war against each other. When one thing exploded out of proportion, everything else collapsed and here we find ourselves in this hellscape we call America. Every injustice, every wrong, everything wrong with the country exploded all at once sparking the second American Civil War.

These injustices are real, but at this point there's not a country left. Just an inferno of fire and violence. It doesn't help that the president locked himself up in the White House. I'm one of the people who didn't join a faction. Heck, I'm just trying to get some exercise. People believe the apocalypse would be caused by nukes, but no. Humans are the real monsters. Humanity as a whole is a violent species, hardcoded into our DNA. We unite against what we perceive as singular extraordinarily evil entities. But what happens if there is not a singular entity to blame but a vast majority of people to blame? This. This is what happens.

Buildings are on fire, car alarms and police sirens in the background. Various bloody battles everywhere. It's a mad house I tell you. A mad house. I keep walking trying to get back to what is as close to home as I can get. Alas, on my way there I run into Black folks. Like I said, no disrespect towards them, but I'm white so therefore on their hitlist.

The big guy with a grenade in his hand asks, "Where do you think you're going?"

"Nowhere. Just...home. I guess," I answer downtrodden.

"Well then. Tell me, why should I let you go home? Do you know how many of us were killed while you Whites walk away? Give me a reason why I shouldn't off you right now," says the defacto leader.

"I never supported those who murdered you guys in cold blood. Look, everything has gone to shit. Just let me pass and I won't harm any of you."

The guy steps aside and I walk. All their guns aimed at me. This is normal. Nobody trusts anybody outside their own faction. In case you're wondering, I am armed. Nobody in their right mind would go out unarmed nowadays. I'm still looking for a bulletproof vest in order to further protect myself, but those are so scare due to demand that I don't even know where to get one. Money is practically obsolete these days and everyone loots one another to survive. I walk past them all and they walk away. These were some of the more reasonable people. If I was in a big group, I would be shot or blown up. In the end, there's nothing left of America. No glory, no law, just anarchy. I arrive back home which is just a multi-level mall parking lot. These structures are quite sturdy and it does the job but man do I miss the good old days where the only thing I had to worry about was what I could afford rather than where can I find something remotely edible. I sometimes had to resort to eating rats for dinner. That's how bad it is. I sit back and get ready for another ratburger.