Un Année Sans Lumiere

Ezra awoke from their rest in the abandoned car they'd thankfully found the night before. The shattered window provided little comfort from the unforgiving winds but inside was better than out, that was the lesson that had been imprinted into their mind after a year. A howl of wind reminded Ezra of an old friend and the cold subsided momentarily with warm memories of beach walks and games of fetch. These fleeting moments had kept Ezra going through the eclipse, the knowledge that there may be a future despite what the evidence suggested. They turned on the radio in their futile routine to maintain hope, every station played the same message on loop:

"The Epsilon V Eclipse is expected to cause an 'ice age' in the coming days. Scientists recommend staying inside, keep the heating on for as long as possible and speak to your loved ones. Until next time."

"Until next time". Those words looped in Ezra's mind. A year had passed and there still hadn't been a "next time", just the same monotonic voice and radio static. Ezra's search for life, for a reason to continue, kept reinforcing the idea that survival was, ultimately, futile. Tears stained the leather seats as they realised they were making the right decision and walked into the forest.

The trees whispered their dying breaths, the eternal winter was taunting them with life but they could not survive for much longer, not without light or heat. Ezra walked deeper into the forest, the faint light slowly fading as the forest enveloped them. That's when they saw him. The lifelessness in his eyes brought fear and sadness, unlike anything Ezra had felt for the past year. The creak of the branch holding his weight pierced the cold silence like a dagger to their ears. In his hand was a heart-shaped locket, a memory of the past that this lost soul had held onto until the end. Ezra carefully removed it from his hand and opened the small heart. A piece of paper fell out and a picture of a puppy stared at Ezra. They picked up the paper;

"Un année sans lumiere. A life not lived for others is not a life."

Ezra fell to their knees, their tears piercing the snow they rest on, clutching the icy locket in one hand and the heart-wrenching note in the other. Someone else had lost hope too and they realised there was no survival in a cold, isolating, endless winter. The words rang like the disorienting sounds of a firing squad echoing in the wind; "A life not lived for others is not a life". Hopeless, they stumbled to their feet and walked away from the hollowing scene, staring at the note desperately, praying for something to keep them going. That's when they noticed the ink soaking through the note from the other side:

"Take care of Rover for me"

That's when they realised the howl wasn't coming from the wind. They turned around and saw the graceful hound sat behind a tree, shivering and crying out for help. They sprinted over to him, holding him in their arms, feeling the cold skin pressed against their chest.

"Hey Rover, I'm Ezra, I'm so sorry for everything. I'm here now, don't worry, I'll worry for both of us now."

They lay there for a few minutes, feeling safe for the first time in memory, like the warm embrace of a mother after years of isolation and darkness. And then they walked away, a glimmer of hope for the future. The locket felt warmer than before, as though it was no longer a dark reminder of the past, but a warm reminder that there might be a future. They might not be alone in this life, despite the darkness and crushing feeling of loneliness. They placed it around their neck and it dangled near their heart.

"Until next time."