LJ Idol Season 8: Week 36(C); Explode
"They came to me in my dreams. The people we left behind, I mean.”
"And what did they say?” Dr. Russell tilted her head, paper and pen in hand as she took notes.
"They didn’t say anything. Well not at first. My old best friend, Sarah, spoke to me though. She told me that I should never come up again, or else.”
"Or else what?”
"They’d eat me. She’d eat me.”
The doctor nodded as she took notes.
"It all started at 6:57, when the announcement was made to exit the shelter. Then my dad woke up and looked at me and we had the last of our rations while everyone celebrated outside. No one would listen to me anyway.” I chewed my fingernail for a brief second, too nervous to go into too much detail.
"What happened next?” She watched me carefully.
"They opened the doors anyway of course.” I shrugged my shoulders, “And they were there.”
"Mmm I see...” The doctor started writing something down again.
"My dreams come true, you know.” I stared at her as she stopped writing and looked up at me.
"I know.”
**********
"The supplies are running low, I’m not sure how much longer we can hold out for.” I sat by the door, listening to the conversation between my father and his supervisor.
"But has enough time passed? Can we be sure?”
"Five years? That should be plenty of time for the chemicals to have left the atmosphere. Originally the scientists said three years, we only decided to stay a few years longer because we had the supplies...” He paused for a moment, “And now we are running low.”
I briefly remembered the day of the explosion, though the science behind it made very little sense to me. The chemical plant my dad worked at had burst into flames. Being out on this island by ourselves, we couldn’t get off in time and no one ever came to save us.
The bunkers were conveniently there built into a network of caves the led below ground, and until recently, I never really wondered why they came pre-stocked with food and everything else we needed for five years of survival.
My dad wouldn’t answer my questions, saying that it really didn’t matter anyway. Just that we were safe. Though others, such as my friend, were not.
"Mallory is having dreams again...” My ears perked up at the mention of my name.
"Yes? And so what’s that supposed to mean? We starve because a little girl who’s had a few dreams coincidentally come true in the past is telling us to stay here?” Supervisor Perkins' voice rose and the sounds of his fists hitting the table made me jump, "That’s bullshit, Tom, and you know it. We can’t let everyone down here starve to death because of her ridiculous dreams!”
I couldn’t step in and remind him that the very dreams I had saved our lives, giving us enough warning to seek shelter before the explosion hit. I didn’t need to remind him of the time I dreamt of my mom’s drowning death days before it happened. Or how I could tell him that his daughter had cancer weeks before she was diagnosed....
None of that mattered because we needed food and we needed it soon. Even I knew that.
"Let’s just think about this before we go any further, Jack...”
"No, my decision is final. We exit the shelter at 8:00 am tomorrow morning. I will send out the notice.”
"But what about the others... The ones we left behind?”
"They’re dead. Just like they’re supposed to be.”
I heard a door slam and I ran toward my bed, covering myself up and pretending to be asleep as dad entered the room and prepared for bed. Being cramped quarters, I normally woke up when he came in from his shuffling around, but tonight... I just pretended to sleep until I saw the sun rise outside.
I was too scared to dream.
The sound of an alarm startled me as it sounded through the bunkers.
"Good morning!” The voice of Mr. Perkins rang out loud and clear over the loud speakers, “I have wonderful news to report. As your appointed leader, I am happy to announce that in just over an hour, we will be heading back above to our homes.”
Everything started clicking into place and the heavy weight of dread settled down upon my shoulders. I glanced at the clock, 6:57 am.
"Hi sunshine,” My dad’s voice startled me, but fell right on cue with my dreams, "How about some breakfast? Might as well feast upon our rations to celebrate our last day down here, right?”
Knowing my dad the way I do, I could see the effort he was putting into being extra chipper. I nodded my head, my stomach churning but not from hunger.
I could hear clamoring outside our main door, people celebrating and others crying tears of joy, "We’re going home! At last!”
We were doomed. And not a single person would listen to me.
*********
People crowded each other as they stood on the stairs that led from our underground shelter to the world above, trying to be the first ones out to feel the sunshine on their skins once again. The sun lamps never did replace the feeling of the actual sun.
"I can’t wait to make chocolate chip cookies again, that’s what I missed the most!” Marla stood beside me, hands clasped together, just waiting to exit as soon as she could, “Though it’s not worth getting trampled to get there, is it? I guess we’ll all get out there sooner or later anyway.”
She huddled near the back of the crowd with me, but just as in my dream I knew that the moment the heavy latch was raised and the door opened, she would lunge forward with the rest of the crazed mob. She would be torn apart along with the rest of them too.
I had to do something.
"We can’t do this!” I shouted, but no one heard me over their own excited clamoring and the count down going on. Only 2 minutes left until the hatch opened.
I beat against the metal wall of one of the apartments, loudly, and screamed at the top of my lungs, "We are all going to die!”
That shut them up. All eyes turned toward me, Mr. Perkins looked down on me with his fists clenched at his side.
"Everybody relax. The girl is disturbed. Somebody please take control of her before she does something stupid!”
A large man in uniform stepped forward and pulled my hands behind my back, covering my mouth with his sweaty hand. I bit him, but ended up getting a backhand across my cheek before he silenced me again, "Enough of that or I’ll tranquilize you!”
My dad moved forward, “Keep my daughter back here. Safe.”
"I’ll keep her toward the back, away from the mob. Don’t worry.”
My dad nodded and met my eyes, knowing the mob was the least of our worries. Understanding that he had a duty to uphold, he made his way to the front again to help unlock the door.
Seconds remained on the countdown clock, 10...9....8....
The crowd chanted as the commander started unlocking the first group of locks...
5...4...3...
I closed my eyes, not wanting to see what was waiting on the other side of the door.
2....1....
I heard the heavy door lurch open, the rusty hinges squealing for few seconds before it finally opened up and the mob surged forward.
Screams. Shrill screams followed, At first I had hoped it was merely people being trampled in the commotion, The man holding me must have thought the same thing. I opened my eyes only after he let me go.
Gun in hand, the man headed for the doorway, up the stairs and above ground.
Caught up in the moment where my dream became reality, I stumbled to the doorway and looked at the scene outside. Though I’d seen it all before, it still took a moment to comprehend that the carnage before my eyes was real this time.
All around me, my old neighbors, our old friends, tore apart the members of the corporation who’d abandoned them all those years ago. Muscles bulging and bodies distorted beyond human limits, I only recognized them by their faces.
Bodies littered the ground in front of me, the dirt and grass soaked in blood. Marla’s body laid in front of me, her torso split apart with her ribs protruding and her legs completely torn from her body.
My eyes frantically scanned the area searching for my dad, but I saw no sign of him, living or dead. I could hear shrieking and gunshots in the distance, but the only sight before me was of death and destruction.
Suddenly, I noticed her. Sarah was standing off to my side, watching me carefully. Our eyes met before she spoke, "I tried to warn you...”
"They wouldn't listen to me!” I screamed.
Her hulking body rushed toward me, saliva spilling from her lips. And she wasn't alone, others had followed her.
I had no other choice.
Pulling the heavy door closed, I latched it behind me as quickly as I could. Once all the locks were in place, I fell against it. I could hear nothing but silence all around me and I realized... I was the only one who’d not rushed outside blindly.
I didn’t know much about what had happened all those years ago or what my dad had been working on when the plant exploded...
But now, as I sat by myself in our underground shelter, I wasn’t sure I wanted to know.