Samantha Diaz
Creative Writing
Period 5
October 11, 2015
The Water Apocalypse
Would you believe me if I told you each year, the earth gets closer to the sun? I didn’t
believe it either, till all these important scientists made a press conference and said all these
fancy intelligent words confirming their theory. We didn’t notice any change right away. It
wasn’t like one day it was freezing cold and the next it was a hundred degrees. Slowly over the
years, people began to notice that the summers were longer, winters were no longer cold, and
the ice caps in the Arctic began melting. Then, the Polar Bears went extinct. The ice melted and
they couldn’t swim long distances to find food. People began to panic when the coldest
temperature in the Northeast all year was seventy-five degrees. Now, I wasn’t complaining. They
started keeping the pools open all year round which was a real treat for me. But soon, people
started getting angry. Not only did we have to deal with the heat that resulted in loss of power,
but the heat that resulted in the scarcity of our water supply. Yes, our water became as valuable
as gold had been.
We all sat in my room, because it’s the coolest room in the house. I was reading Catcher
in the Rye, my favorite book, and my sister was coloring in her princess coloring book. My
mother stared out the window like she’s been doing every day, as if she was waiting for someone
to come and get us. After this whole apocalypse thing happened, my whole neighborhood
evacuated. I sometimes wonder where they all disappeared to. We would have left too, if we had
someplace to go.
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I walked to the kitchen to get something to drink. We kept our water locked up in a safe
under the sink in case someone tried to rob us. I entered the combo on the Master Lock, but
when I opened up the safe, it was empty. When our safe was empty we usually stacked the rest
of our water in the back of the basement so I grabbed my flashlight from the shelf and headed
downstairs. I walked over to where we usually kept the water, but there were only four bottles
left.
I sat in the basement for a little while, wondering how I was going to tell my mother that
our water will run out by the end of the day. She probably won’t say anything, she’ll just stare at
me like what I said was unimportant. I got up from the basement floor, brushed my hands on my
jeans, and walked up the dark, narrow stairs.
“Mom, we only have four water bottles left,” I stated, wasting no time to fluff up the
truth. She looked at me, then at my sister, then back outside the window.
“Before things got bad, I remember Johnny from next door telling me there was a
warehouse up North where they kept a bunch of water for people. He circled it on the map before
he left. I bet that’s where all the neighbors went. If we leave now we can get there by later
tonight,” I didn’t wait for a reply. I grabbed my duffle bag and shoved a couple of t-shirts and
pants inside. I went to kitchen and trook the remainder of our food cans. I grabbed another bag
for my mother and sister, making sure to pack light. I knew this warehouse was up North, on the
border of New York, I just didn’t know how we would get there.
We left the house at noon, I made sure to bring my compass since I didn’t know which
way was North. We walked in the middle of the road. Not a single family was left, not a single
car was in sight. Even if people did come, I think I would be able to tell. Now, our neighborhood
had a cold feel to it. It felt empty. Whenever you spoke, your voice would echo across the
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houses, like in a movie. The lawns in front of each house had grown a considerable amount,
enough to reach up to my knees. And the toys were left abandoned in the front lawn, along with
suitcases at the top of the driveway that didn’t fit inside the car.
I grabbed my sister, Lily, and kept my mother close.
“Danny? Where are we going?” she asked, looking up at me with her large brown eyes.
“Where going to another home,” I told her, “a place with lots and lots of water.” She
smiled up at me and held her stuffed rabbit tight in her arms. At the pace we were walking, we’d
end up reaching the warehouse next week.
We had been walking for an hour when I noticed a car on the side of the road. It can’t be.
I quickly ran up to it, and checked to see if the door was unlocked. When the door clicked open, I
frantically checked for the car keys, to which I found lying on the passenger seat. Please, please
work. I had never heard a more beautiful sound than the sound of the car roaring to life on that
quiet afternoon.
We had been driving for a while now. We saw a few people here and there; some
stragglers walking alongside the road and some families driving someplace, just like us. Some
would bang on our car windows, screaming to let them come with us, saying they knew where
the water was. But I knew better; if I let them come, it meant less water for my family.
“Hey ma, how are you feeling?” She didn’t look good. My mom wasn’t much of a talker,
but she hadn’t said one word the entire trip. Her lips were pale and cracked, and her hazel eyes
were blank. Her face was sunken inward and she held on to her stomach. I decided to stop the car
so we could all take a break and have a drink of water.
As soon as my mom walked out the side of the car, she collapsed. Oh no.
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“Mom! Mom, are you okay?” Lily and I ran to her side. She must have passed out from
exhaustion. I knew we had an extra water bottle, so I poured some on a cloth and placed it on her
forehead. When she woke up, the first thing that came out of her mouth was vomit. I knew this
wasn’t good. She was losing all of the fluids inside of her. I held her in my arms as she drank an
entire water bottle. Please, God, don’t take her yet. I don’t want her to leave. Lily sat in the
grass, watching with tears in her eyes.
“It’s ok Lily. Mommy just has a tummy ache, she will be better soon. Why don’t you go
find mommy a blanket?” We had to keep moving, I knew we were close to the warehouse. We
had been driving all day, and if we waste any more time, my mom isn’t going to get better.
I carried her in my arms to the car and strapped Lily in her car seat. I turned the key to the
car, but I didn’t get the glorious rumble. The car was dead.
“Shit,” I mumbled. This can’t be happening right now. I kept trying. We’re going to have
to walk. I turned the key over and over again, praying that the car would just turn on. I looked
around, but there weren’t any more cars in sight. I took out the map I had been keeping in the
front compartment and tried to calculate how much more we had.
“Guys, we have to walk. The car isn’t working. But don’t worry, it’s not much further.” I
walked to the back of the car and knew that we couldn’t bring the duffle bags. My mom was
deteriorating quickly and she wouldn’t be able to walk. So we walked away, the last of our
memories behind us in the car. I held onto my mother and we walked through the middle of the
road, feeling like we were the only people left on this barren planet.
After an hour, my mother collapsed again.
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I don’t know how much more I can do this for. My head is spinning, and somehow my
mother is getting heavier with each step I take. But I can’t stop now. I know we’re almost there I
can feel it. Lily. I can’t leave Lily.
“Danny? Danny?” Lily tugged on my sleeve. “Is that where we’re going? “She asked
through a yawn.
I squinted through the thinning light and the fog that layered the air. Buildings came into
view, scattered in the distance. Yes!
“Mom, mom wake up. We’re almost there! You gotta stay awake, I can see the
buildings.” My speed increased and my hope we revived. We’re safe. We’re safe.
“Lily, we’re going to be safe now. We’re going to have lots of water, and a place to sleep.
And mommy is going to get better!”
“And there’s going to be kids there? That I can play with?” she smiled, and now I found
it hard to keep up with her skipping. Her blonde curls swung back and forth.
“Maybe! But we’re going to be better now. It’s going to get better.”
We reached a big brown building, with a banner hanging from the top. In big red letter
“SAFE HOUSE” was spelled out, on all sides of the building. We started to run. The excitement
building up inside could no longer be contained. My mother’s eyes fluttered, but she couldn’t
keep them open for long. Mom don’t worry, you’ll get better now. Just hold on.
We walked in through the front of the building. Where is everyone? I expected groups of
people as soon as we walked in. I expected to see lights and hear laughter. I expected more than
what we saw. It was silent, there were no lights and sleeping bags and chairs were scattered on
the floor, abandoned. We walked up a flight of stairs, and opened a pair of double doors at the
top.
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“Danny, I bet they’re in here. Maybe they’re hiding. I think they’re trying to surprise us,”
Lily whispered. I hope.
I opened the double doors, and my stomach dropped. No. Empty cases of water bottles
filled the room. No. A piece of paper was taped to the one closest to the door.
“Gone to find more water.” No.
I looked down at my mother, a part of me hoping for her to give me advice. Lily’s eyes
dropped, and she sat on the floor.
“Take care of Lily,” my mom’s silent whisper echoed loudly.
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