The Girl With The Heart Locket

She doesn’t remember who gave her the locket, or whose tiny childlike face was inside of it. Was it her face? She wished she could remember. She has spent so much time in this bunker with the other children. She vaguely remembers what her parents looked like, but after 17 years stuck in a bunker with the remaining surviving children, you long for freedom from the closed doors.

You would think the world would have ended because of aliens or world war three. You’d be wrong if you assume these reasons. It was a virus. Slow to start, most people didn’t even realize they were sick, until it was too late to find a vaccine.

For some strange reason the babies weren’t affected. Some adults managed to make it a few years in, but most died early on. And the survivors were busy trying to care for the children with no parents.

Ally has been in the bunker her whole life with the other children. Raising each other and surviving off the canned food from the military emergency store room in the basement of the bunker. The adults originally thought putting all the children into the shelter would prevent us from getting sick, however all it did was isolate the children; forcing them to grow up without sunlight, fresh air, fresh food, and freedom to do as you please. The only reason the children listened and stayed in the bunker was mainly because of fear. Fear of the unknown and fear of going against what the adults told us to do to survive. They repeatedly told us as they got sicker and sicker that we should not venture outside until all the reserves were used up. They were hoping the virus would have died off by the time they re-emerged into the world. Ally didn’t particularly agree with staying in the shelter , but she also didn’t want to be the only one to open the shelter and leave all the others behind. So she did her duty and waited till the reserves would eventually run out.

They have finally almost used up all their reserves, who would have thought they would have prepared enough food and water to last such a long time. But they were all safe and none of the children have even gotten a mild cold to date.

The children have been preparing their backpacks to open the hatch and explore the world on the other side. Their plan is to open the hatch and gather what is needed and then return to the shelter each night.

Ally runs up to the front and grabs the handle of the latched door, preparing to turn the handle and push this door to freedom. She turns it with as much force as she can muster, and the latch gives and the door swings open with an awful ‘creaaaak’.

Brilliant, blinding sunlight beams into the bunker, the world outside is like a dream come true, lush greens, various creatures grazing and enjoying themselves. It is exactly the way the adults had described it to them before they passed. It seems so silly to have lived in fear simply because we were told to, but it is time to move forward and see what she can find outside every day.

She looks down at her locket hanging from her neck, and smiles. She has just come back from her first day exploring with the others. It was amazing, mother earth has reclaimed everything. The lush greenery that has been untouched by humans for so long has become a creatures paradise and plants. For once the world seems a lot brighter and there is finally hope in her life for the future.