Say goodbye, Say so long

Chapter 2: Say goodbye, Say so long

                The two woke up early before the sun had even risen above the horizon. It was still dark outside, the vegetation collecting sprinkles of dew from the previous storm. The humid atmosphere was completely intoxicating, weighing down like a stifling blanket. There should have been birds accompanying this scene along with small animals frolicking about, but those days have longs since passed.

                They stand in front of a poorly dug grave, marked by a single branch jutting out from the ground acting as a makeshift tombstone. Back in the days or normalcy such a sight would be insulting and pitiful but now it is an act more valuable then gold. For now the two have passed mourning, it is time for them to move on like they always have. They boy slings his arm around the other’s shoulders and after a pause begins to speak, “Are you going to be alright?” She nods hesitantly but replies in a firm tone, “Yeah.” He doesn’t inquire further for the past as they have learned is better left behind. It is clear to the both of them that there is pain that has not yet been confronted. There had been true love between the deceased and the living girl. If the world hadn’t gone to hell, there wasn’t a doubt in the other’s head that the unofficial couple would be happily married, most likely with several children to add to the family too.

                “Let’s go Cressidia”

She sighs, she doesn’t want to leave yet but deep down she knows she must. In this world, staying in one place too long leads to death. The shadows are never far. Their food source, humans have become scarce. This caused each shadow to be more watching, waiting to catch any human it could find and feast upon. What are the shadows? If humanity knew maybe they would have stood a fighting chance. They only appear as an entity of evil and it is impossible to fight, leaving only one option to run. Cressidia runs her hand through her poorly kept light brown hair caked with dried mud and bits of whatever else she’s slept in through in this ordeal. Her eyes should have been a pretty coco but any traces of beauty were under minded by the incredibly tired look painted across her face. With dark eye bags and subtle pink-ribboned scars she too has become “rubble” in a sense. She covers her face with hard calloused hands, fingernails chipped and brittle. This was her own way of going into deep thought, unbothered by the circumstances she was so cruelly thrust into. No matter what she felt there obviously was only one choice of action that would be logical.

                “Alright,” she finally replied.

They begin to walk away, now determined to bury all feelings and only look ahead. This is a marvelous plan in theory. There is no room for error, no room for accidents, and there is definitely no room for feelings, not in this world at least. As they walked, the small tomb growing smaller Cressidia couldn’t help but to glance back. It was to be a final glance, a final goodbye, a final farewell. The way a funeral is supposed to be, not a rushed attempt to hold on to old human traditions. She felt her heart shatter into murderous pieces of shrapnel all over again as she realized how little there was left. She had herself and one friend. She could not even hold on to her memories for it would do nothing but hinder her in the future. Cressidia realize she was no longer living, just simply surviving. If it meant to become inhumane to remain, was it all worth it?

 

It was a curious thing but she never felt her heart return back together again.