She held a tray in her dainty hands . “ Food ,” she asked , her musical voice ringing in the small compartment . I eyed her dubiously , as I did to all people I didn ’ t know , but there was nothing even remotely unsettling about her . The warm eyes and kind smile won me over in an instant and my hand darted out , plucked a cookie off the tray and shoved the cookie unceremoniously into my mouth . She offered me a sweet smile . I offered her my back as I turned into myself , trying to hide that I was choking on the cookie . It tasted like sawdust . “ We ’ ll have arrived in the Western Hemisphere , also known as ‘ The USA ’, in two hours , darling ,” she whispered . “ Ok ,” I barely make a sound but hoped she heard me . She lingered by the doorway and I willed her to leave as if it would actually make a difference .
“ Are you alright , darling ?” she inquired . I didn ’ t answer . She left .
2 HOURS 55 MINUTES
I fell out of the SunTrain along with a mere handful of others and landed on the grounds of what was formerly known as the United States of America . I grunted and pushed myself up off the ground and was sorely disappointed by what I saw ahead of me . A barren wasteland stretched out for miles beyond me . Every hundred yards a collapsed house dotted the horizon . Cows grazed on what little grass there was and trees swayed slightly in the cold , harsh wind . I was unimpressed with the USA . After hauling myself up , I began the march further West . I looked down at the ground and watched one foot move in front of the other over the uneven ground . It was oddly fascinating watching your feet move , one in front of the other . The more attention you focused on them the more important they seemed to be . But I guess that it ’ s like that for anything . For hours I watched my feet , one in front of the other , one in front of the other , one in front of the other . It was a reliable , rhythmic , constant pattern , I trusted it . When I glanced back up I was shocked to see that the sun was starting to set and a house was coming into view . I froze . I suppose this wasteland wasn ’ t so barren .
Was that really it ?
The house ? I knew it was in America , I just didn ’ t know where , I didn ’ t know it would be so close to the shore . My plan wasn ’ t thought out and was pulled together at the last minute . I went in knowing that there was a house . Where ? No clue . What it looked like ? No clue . Who owned it ? No clue . That it existed ? Well yeah but it was just a rumour . But it had to be the house , it couldn ’ t be anything else . It couldn ’ t be anything else . Hope gripped me and I started to move . Slowly at first , recovering from the sudden shock , but as the full impact of what I was seeing hit me , I sped up , first simply jogging , but then moving so quickly the world blurred around me . My feet flew and I was reminded of the days I would run through the streets of China , searching for new experiences . Now I ran to my newest and final experience . Death . I yelped as my foot caught on something . The last thing I saw as I plunged forward was the earth , and a single wildflower .
24 MINUTES BEFORE
Moaning , I rolled over , my head pulsing . My thoughts were incoherent and didn ’ t make sense to me . I crawled forwards for a little while , my eyes sealed shut , my hands seeing on their behalf . My fingers trailed over small crevices in the earth , and enclosed around slim blades of grass . The soil was grainy and as my palms scraped across it and I imagined thousands of microorganisms living in the soil getting on with their uneventful lives , completely unbothered by my existence . I think that went for most people , they weren ’ t bothered by my existence , didn ’ t care much . That was what bothered me , infuriated me , that in the long run nothing mattered and that we were born only to live forever and come to terms with the fact that ultimately , we were significantly insignificant . In the Days of Mortality you were born to die . Now , we weren ’ t even born to die . We were born … and then what ? Well ladies and gentlemen , then we get to live forever . Yay ! Go crazy ! I reprimanded myself for my strange thoughts and how I was increasingly talking to myself . I tore my eyes from the ground and looked up , and at the sight of the house it all came rushing back . I gasped ,