☄️random excerpt

The Abandoned Memories

The pair traversed past the disfigured hills and cracked roads on their vehicle, before finally at their destination. Or rather, the place where it all began for the two of them. Ryota hands a pair of padded gloves to Shota, 'Did you tuck in the bottom of your trousers?' The other raised one of his legs and knocked at the exposed leather of his boots with his knuckles. He took the gloves from his partner and unlocked the car door, 'Here goes nothing.' With a small thud, landing on to solid ground below.

Ryota took a small backpack and an oxygen tank, just in case this area had anything unusual going on, after all, it's been abandoned since forever ago. Longer than the time these two were separated from each other. Even longer than all those years they know each other. 

They surveyed the damaged neighbourhood they found themselves in, structures that seemed both familiar and foreign, an uncanny sight to behold.  A beep from the communicator jolted the men, they manoeuvred themselves to a corner and then tapped open the call. 

'You guys are nearby. Why?' Hikaru demanded. His brows furrowed. 'What are you guys doing out on your own?' He sighed and shifted his weight, holding the rifle in his other hand, faint sounds of gunfire could be heard behind him, but muffled as if far far away. 

'We're just gonna see if we can find clues on where our families went, it's not gonna take long. I swear. In and out, really quickly.' Shota silently apologised for lying about the second half. To be honest, he just selfishly wants this moment forever. But in this destroyed world, forget forever, waking up tomorrow is a whole privilege on its own.

Hikaru's brows soften, but still worried nonetheless. 'Call me if anything happens ok?' And the line went dark, signalling the hardworking man diving back to his work on the frontlines. 

'Do you remember the owl pillars in front of the park? Those.' 

Ryota looked to where Shota pointed to, and in that direction, were two stone poles, loosely resembling pillars with owls carved onto their tallest point. While one remained standing, though slightly skewered, standing on its own after all that had happened. The other was somehow snapped in half, with the owl half buried beneath all the mud, soil and debris. 

Shota went up to it and ran his hand on the pillar, although dusty, it was cool and smooth to the touch. Just like all those years ago. 

'Only my pillar fell. Yours didn't.' 

Translucent memories of the two of them each hugging a respective pillar and claiming it as their own, crowning themselves the kings of the small park, and terrorizing all the other children on the playground. Which technically was only Shota, Ryota walked behind him and patched things up with everyone. And when our little yankee had his fun, he would complain bout anything that wasn't going his way. Like wanting to eat both flavours at the lunch line, and whenever this happens, what happens next would always be...

'You can have mine.' Ryota's concern. And always willing to give up his belongings just to cater to Shota's pickiness. He would always want to put Shota first. He had always been a kind and considerate child, quiet and observant to changes around him, treating his sisters and his parents with all the love he could give, and the love that he didn't give them, all went to one person. And for that one person, he is willing. Whether climbing the tallest mountain or walking through the fires of hell. 

Shota felt a floodgate of memories pouring in as the small boy running after him had somehow grown up into a fine gentleman. He felt as though he was lost in a crowded but you're only tall enough to see pass the knees of adults, and the person who had always held onto his hand had let go. 

'You can have mine.' Ryota repeats again, seeing as Shota is lost in thought. 

The other laughed and shrugged. 'Whatever. It's not like we're children anymore.' He walked straight ahead, retracing their footsteps from his memories of where the houses would be. Only to come face to face with two big piles of rubble. A corner of the walls still stands, and a section of the roof collapsed down, but still a whole intact piece. There was nothing specific suggesting that these were their homes once upon a time ago. Except-

'The apple tree.' Ryota followed him into the remains of their garden and walked up to the tree. The sapling that used to be the height of their little sisters is now as tall as grown men stacked on top of each other. Red and green apples, although unbeknownst if affected by the mutation, and therefore dangerous, hangs there temptingly. Blushing red. 

Kneeling down to where Ryota was staring at Shota handed him a thin piece of debris. Without a word, they started digging. Right under the apple tree they planted with their parents and watered with their sisters, they buried something important, in that same spot, where they would meet every morning before setting off to school together. 

Coming out of the dirt was an old cookie tin, there was a dent on the bottom rim from when Shota dropped it. 

'I didn't drop it! My sister bumped into me.' Feeling Royta's stare, he retorted. And cranked open the lid. An unfamiliar piece of paper stared back at him. Handing the tin to his partner, his furrowed brows showed that he didn't put that there either. 

Ryota took the note out and unfolded it, inside was a nostalgic handwriting, *We're going to Base no. 26 to see if we can get help, we'll find you, don't worry.* His mother wrote, in her usual flowery handwriting. He traced the words over and over again, trying to imagine her when she wrote it, and yet, his fingers trembled as he struggled to remember her face, his family, all of them, their voices and faces, just like the words on the note has faded with time. What if-

An arm plopped down on his shoulders. 'We'll find them. I'll go with you.' And as sudden as that was, Shota grabbed the note, and shoved it back into the box, closing it with a snap. 'Let's go.' And took off, big strides, clutching the tin box tightly by his chest. 

Ryota followed down a vaguely familiar path, climbing through deserted backyards and broken fences and uprooted trees. Pushing open a familiar gate, they find themselves in an old abandoned amusement park, which resembles a small carnival fair rather than a theme park, they were opened a few years ago just as the boys were old enough to go on rides, but one day, as unexpected as the day of the Big Panic, it shut down without much of an explanation.  Just as he expected, Shota walked over to the swing carousel, placing the tin box carefully on a bench nearby, he sat himself down on one of them. Picking a swing close to him, Ryota sat down, carefully, looking up at the attached parts, seeing if they were still sturdy. 

Next to him, Shota swung his legs as he flew higher and higher, maybe it was just a trick of the light, but Ryota swore he saw the ghost of a young boy, pale under daylight, his laughter as bright as beams from the sun, a time when all was well and the world was void of corruption and destruction. The boy, the same person he was the closest to and yet furthest from, still looked as dazzling as he did for as long as he could remember. There was a single name, that was deeply intertwined into his past, present and future. Kept at a safe distance, just a little out of reach but never out of sight. 

And as Ryota sunk deeper into his treasured memories, the ground shook violently underneath them, a small explosion ripped off another chunk of the sun, the freed comet ran of in a blazing trail. Grotesque sounds of mutated monsters screeched close to the carnival. 'Let's go,' In a flash, Shota was all ready with the tin box tucked firmly in his arms. 

They exchanged a knowing look and turned towards the remains of the carnival they once promised their sisters to one day return to, and bowed to it. And then, the men, who've grown astray from boyhood in the midst of all the destruction, took off, making their return to the temporary safety they now call 'home'.