Hours have passed and I'm still lying on couch, slightly less tense then I previously was. I stumble to get up, my legs like rubber from the hours of sitting. I drag my legs up the stairs and head to the washroom. I see a pale face in the mirror, with tears streaking my face. After a few moments I look in the top drawer and find the stash of makeup my mom and I share. My fingers glide over the pile, resting over my moms favorite lipstick. I pick it up, not thinking as I take off the cap. My hand goes up to my face as I move the smooth colour over my lips. It's a deep red, redder than blood. People have said that we look very similar, my mom and I. I've never really noticed it before, but now I do. I have the same jaw, the same forehead, the same lips, but I have my dads eyes. Bright blue like the sky.
Going out of the bathroom I turn to go to my parents room. I don't know why I decide to do this, it's usually locked anyway. My parents can be so secretive sometimes. When I get to the door my hand goes up to the door knob. As I turn the handle, the door opens. I didn't think it would open, It must be my lucky day!
The room is a soft grey and is bigger than mine. On the back wall there is a large bookshelf that covers most of the grey area. There washroom is to the right and their bed lies under a window to the left. I feel a strong urge to go to the bookshelf, it's almost as if it was pulling me closer. The books that rest there are covered in dust and look ancient. There's one that catches my eye. It's the only book that has no dust on it. I go to grab it, but as I start to pull it out, the bookshelf starts to move. It slides to the side effortlessly, revealing a steep stairway leading to darkness.
My legs move without me thinking, before I realize what I'm doing, I'm at the bottom. As I look up, I see a small string that is attached to the roof. I think it leads to a light. When I pull on the string my theory is proven when a golden light fills the area. It looks like I'm in a dark cavern. The stone floor is damp and the air is chilled. There is a small desk at the back of the space. On the desk is some old papers and a boxy computer. To the left there is three white lab coats hanging on the wall as well as a gas mask. Painted on the right wall there is a big worn out symbol. I focus my gaze to that wall. There's a faded blue triangle painted on the wall with a microscope in the center of it. I slowly move towards the symbol, studying it. There is faint writing on the bottom of the symbol that I can't totally make out. Vitalis? At least that's what it looks like. The symbol must be a logo to some company. I've never seen this logo anywhere and I sure haven't heard of this name before. So many questions flood my mind, why is there a secret room in my house, and what does this symbol mean?
Walking away from the symbol, I go to that small desk in the back corner of the small space. Everything is covered with an inch of dust that makes me cough when I blow it off the computer. I find the power button at the back of the machine. The screen changes from black to blue when I hit the button. An icon comes up that has a spinning wheel and a message that reads, "please wait." It takes forever for the computer to load, but when it does, the screen opens to a bunch of files all titled with different numbers. I try to ignore how much dust their is on the mouse when I click on the first file. It's a picture of my parents. They're standing in front of an enormous building. As I look closer at the picture, I notice a familiar logo on the building. It's the same one painted on the wall.
I look through more and more files, finding information my parents never told me. That building is a lab of some sorts, it seems like their focus is chemical analysis. They also have some power plants or were thinking of creating them since I find drafts for them in files on this computer. The most shocking thing I find in these files, are that my parents worked at this lab. They've never told me anything about were they worked, so I was left to guess. I never thought that they would work there, though.
When I have looked through all the files, I decide that it would be a good idea to leave this room. Just as I'm about to walk up the stairs, a thought floats into my mind, there was a gas mask hanging be those suits. Would it actually work? I take it anyway, who knows what will happen in the future.
When I walk into the living room the T.V. catches my eye. It's still on from the last time I was watching it. "Breaking news!" The TV says, "We have just found that there are places where the gases did not contaminate the air. People are being rescued from their houses and taken to these places right as we speak. Now, you may be asking where these places are, and my answer to that is the dense forests of northern Canada. Scientists have found several air cavities that do not contain any pollution from the gas. The forests will save humanity!"
"It took scientist six days to figure that out?" I say under my breath. What were they doing the rest of the time? Sleeping?
I wonder how long it will take for rescuers to get to me? Should I wait for them to get here? I have a gas mask now, so maybe... Maybe I can meet them halfway.
I run up to my room, swinging the door open, and rummage through my closet to find a decent looking backpack. With the backpack over my shoulder, I head downstairs to the kitchen. Once I'm in the kitchen, I open a drawer and find the stash of granola bars. After grabbing a handful of them and shoving them in my bag, I go find a water bottle. I looked through almost every cupboard and drawer before I finally found what I was looking for. I fill the bottle up and close it off. I can't believe I'm actually doing this.
After putting the bottle in my backpack and zip it up, I get the gas mask and slowly put it over my face. It smells strongly of stale leather and rubber. Throwing my backpack over my shoulder, I take my time walking to the front door. I know this is it when I reach the door, hovering my hand above the handle. My heart is pounding, but I don't care. I'm going outside.
The sun is blinding and the hot air wraps around me. I probably should have waited until the temperature lowered before leaving, but it's too late now. After closing the door, I tighten the gas mask around my face and fix the position of my pack so it fits comfortably on my shoulder. I barely realize that I'm actually outside with poisonous gas in the air. Every step that I take down my street fills me with a sense of freedom I never knew existed. I'm content knowing that I made it, I'm finally free.
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I don't think I will be adding more to this book so I will call it completed. This might change in the future, but for now, this is the end!
-Em
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When Will It End? (Updated)
Science FictionHannah was seventeen when it happened. The gas took everything she loved. Ripped it out of her hands. Now she has to find her own way. There's no one to save her now... It's been almost six days since poisonous gas spread through our world. With n...
