i want to run away from everything i know

because everything is a lie

i’ve been living a lie

betrayed

alone

depressed

not okay

i need to escape

take every drug too leave

to forget

my brain would be free

on a cloud of forgetfulness

the drug i need

to feel is

safe

Cora stepped outside closing her house door behind her. It was such a beautiful day as the sun sparkled down with its sunlight. The tall grass stretched on for miles as the warm breeze whipped her blonde hair around her face. She wore a pare of pale mom jeans and had a cropped black shirt with a red wind breaker. Cora got half way between her car and her house when she realized she had forgotten her phone, and ran back inside. Her mother was in the kitchen doing the dishes, “You’re going to be late Cora!”. She dashed up stairs quickly, “Ya I know but I forgot my phone”. Cora grabbed it and ran back down the stairs, out of the front door and down the road to her car. In the sky, a huge boom exsploded off in the distance. As she yanked her car door open something smacked onto the ground to the right of her. She looked down and was horrified. Part of leg sat in the grass with a bright red high highheel. She turned around looking up and saw the fiery contraption that burned as it fell faster and faster toward earth. It was so close she could feel the heat of the plane’s burning metal body, and smell the death from it. Wind, blood, and dust blew every which way from the fallen form as it smashed the ground. Cora stood frozen to the spot as it rained bodies. The smell of burning flesh and acid metal consumed her. Flecks of skin and burnt ash filtered down as the sun lit them like embers.

Cora tried to move but something made her stay and watch. She felt a pain come from her ear and as she looked blood dripped down onto her hand. Another blast of wind from the crashed plane woke her up from the type of hypnotism it put her in. The world moved in slow motion as she started to dash back to her house. Cora stumbled into the screen door and ran through the kitchen and into the living room and stopped. “What am I supposed to? Call 911?”. She was shaking so hard she looked like a trembling leaf. As her bloodied hand reached for the house phone, an awful noise started to begin. The roof started to convulse as she looked up. “Cora get out of there!” She barley herd someone yell to her from outside because all she could hear was a piece of the plane crashing right into the living room.

Cora opened her blue eyes as the late morning sunlight still glinted. Taking a shaky breath she looked around. Most of her roof was gone or had collapsed. Cora saw that her arm was stuck underneath a peice of heavy metal. She pulled at her it but it wouldn’t break free. “Hello? Is anyone out there?” she yelled but only silence answered her. Suddenly sound came from somewhere outside. A young girl appeared at what was left of the door way. She wore a drapy light dress that was covered with dirt and blood. There was a big scratch on her forehead. The little girl was holding a dirty torn stuffed animal. Cora had never seen her before. She spoke to her, “Hey. My name is Cora. Are you ok?”. The little girl said nothing. Cora looked back at her arm as she started to loose feelings in her fingers. She looked back at the girl, “Can u help me? I need u to get a piece of metal that is under my kitchen sink?”. She pointed with her left arm towards the kitchen. The little girl nodded and walked around the corner and came back with a crowbar. As she handed it to Cora, Cora wedged it under the metal. Taking her good arm she pushed onto the crowbar. The metal that was trapping her arm creaked and groaned but it slowly lifted just enough for Cora to pull her arm out. Cora scrambled away, grabbing the crowbar from the wreckage as it collapsed into a heap.

Cora looked at her arm. A huge gash dragged from her elbow down to her wrist, blood dribbled from every opening. She could almost see the bone. Cringing she got up, cradling it, and reached for an old first aid kit she had next to the front door. She tried to clean up her bloodied arm the best she could, but Cora knew it needed stitches. Wrapping it with everything that was in the first aid kit, Cora staggered to her feet. She looked over her shoulder to see the little girl peering at her from the doorway to what was left of the living room. Cora grabbed a dusty nickers off the near by table with her good hand. “Hey it’s ok. I’m not going to hurt you. Thank you for helping me escape the piece of plane. Here take this, you must be hungry.” The little girl edged closer to Cora, took the snickers and tore it open. As she ate Cora sat back down again. “Do u want me to fix that cut on your for head?” The little girl sat quiet for a minute then came closer to Cora as she went to work. Cora saw that the little girl had a dirty, pealing off name tag. “So your name is Ivy? I like the name Ivy.” Ivy nodded as she finished her snickers. “So how old are you Ivy? I’m 18 years old.” Ivy, saying nothing bent down and drew a six with her dirty finger.

Sighing Cora got up as she put the last bandage on Ivy’s forehead. “I’m going to get a wash cloth to wash all that dirt off you, stay here.” Cora walked into her kitchen and wetted a wash cloth. She turned around and Ivy was standing a little way aways from her. Cora bent down and looked into Ivy’s eyes. She saw shock and fear in her eyes.“It’s ok I will take care of you until we find your parents.” Ivy nodded as Cora wiped her face, and her small hands, and her dirty legs. As Cora put the dirty wash cloth into the sink, a clanging came from out side. Ivy ran and hid behind her legs. She grabbed the crowbar ready for attack.

A guy stepped into the morning sunlight shown from the broken house. His brown hair slightly dusty, shimmered in the sunlight.“Cora? Are you ok?” Cora let the crowbar drop. “Jay? Is that you?”. Jay walked closer to Cora. “Ya it’s me. I was driving to come tell you I saw one of your father’s cows got loose but a huge explosion happened and I hit a tree, I’m ok but I had to walk and that’s when....” He didn’t have to finish because Cora knew what he was gonna say. Cora turned and looked at Ivy. “It’s ok, Jay is a school friend.” Ivy just nodded as Jay said hi. Turning back she asked. “How bad is it outside?” Jay just shook his head as he started to go through her pantry. “We must get all the supplies we can and get out of here.”

Cora felt a jolt of fear run through her. “Jay, what do you mean? We just need to call 911 and they will help us.” Jay stopped rummaging and sighed. “Cora, on the way to your house I was listening to the news radio and well some kind of radar or nuclear explosion has happened whipping out almost all of man kind. It started in Russia, it already has hit New York and now is hitting Nevada. It affects cars, trains, and planes. Shutting them off like a light switch. Most electricity is dead, if we are lucky some places might still have it, but all the phones are dead.” Cora grasped the kitchen counter. All this was too much. Cora shuttered in a couple of breaths as Jay gathered supplies. Ivy just sat down next to her saying nothing. About ten minutes later Jay appeared with two backpacks, giving one to Cora. He looked at his watch, “We are what is left, everyones gone now. We need to stick together and find a safer place. Come on it’s time to go.”

Taking a strong deep breath she pulled herself together and put on one of the back packs. She stuffed the crowbar into one of the openings in the backpack and grabbed an old family photo, crumpling it into her back pocket. Ivy reached out for her hand and Cora took it. She looked at Jay and nodded. He led them out of the gloomy, crippling house and outside into the bright afternoon sunlight.

Pools of blood blistered in the sun as death lay everywhere. Smoke and burning skin still floated in the summer air. Hours had gone by as Cora nearly choked on the smell as Jay led Ivy and her to the highway. Her car wouldn’t start up, like Jay had said. It needed a jump start, but there was no other car to jump start it with. Cora thought back to when she had found her mom. She had died without any pain as flaming piece of metal had struck her in the head while she was in her garden. Cora really never knew her father, only that he lived in California. Sense Jay’s car broke down, they had to walk to his house sense him and Cora were neighbors. His family had died of the radiation that had hit their house. All the people that were on that plane were dead or dying and Cora now assumed that Ivy’s parents were dead. Cora trudged along with Ivy slightly lagging behind. Jay was a little aways a head of them. “Jay! We need to find a car. I don’t think Ivy and I can go any farther. My arm is killing me.” Cora’s arm had started to bleed more heavily and she knew she had to get to a hospital soon. Jay stopped and looked at her. “Ok, but the highway is just up a head and there will be plenty of cars.” He waited till they had caught up to him and they started off again.

i don't understand

something broke in my heart

the aching pain for love and to be wanted

was gone and nothing

was replaced

the empty feeling filled almost everything up

making things go

numb

then, a new source of

feelings took place

it was not a good thing

but very much a sad thing

that made me go bad

when i used to be good

i wish i could kiss him one more time

and for him to hold me in his arms

to make everything melt away

but that can’t happen

for all those good times are

forgotten by him

while i still remember

sad and heartbroken while

he lives another life

without me

i loved my best friend

but he broke my heart

said he didn’t feel the same

for as i wanted to be more

it hurt to look at him

i couldn’t bring myself to even talk to him

i missed being his

but he didn’t miss me

the price i paid for loving my best friend

was a price that i could never repay

our friendship would never be the same

because as i secretly hoped he would come back to me

he was already moving on

he said i was special

but he lied

i was just another piece in his game

that’s all it was

a game

he said i was the only one

but he cheated

i was just another one of his many players

ready to be executed

because this was

all just a game

that he had won

i saw you smile as i walked into the room

you lit up like the sun

for i was your light

you were just as happy to see me

as i was to see you

you wrapped me in your arms

we kissed

we hugged

we embraced

fingers intwined

the moment was ours

i gazed into your eyes and told you how much you ment to me

you were so thrilled you held me close

for no words could come out

both of us were absorbed in so much happiness

to forget to watch the clock that turned minutes into hours