Project X16.

Chapter 4.

Sunlight woke him up like it always had. Patrick opened his eyes and stretched. He looked around his room, trying to recall the dream he had. Nothing came to, so he slowly crawled out of bed. Still groggy, he shuffled to the bathroom to do is morning contribution to the porcelain god. It was quiet in the house and he thought to himself that his mom probably had gone to work already. It was going to be another breakfast alone. He had grown used to them since his mom was single again.

Patrick went to the kitchen after throwing on some sweat pants and a t-shirt. He made himself a bowl of cheerios. He was eating and thinking what to do without Caleb able to play when he noticed his mom’s keys were still on the hook by the door. He finished the mouthful of cereal.

“Mom?” he called out. When there was no answer, he went to the window that overlooked the backyard and searched. His mother was not in the garden. He went to the garage and noticed she was not there either. There was no response from the basement when he called down the steps.

Patrick looked around for a note but didn’t find any. This was very strange, he thought to himself. Patrick only got static when he turned the TV on in the living room. The phone worked so he decided to call Caleb. By this time, Caleb could be with Maggie on their way to the mall. Regardless, Patrick rang him anyway. There was no answer to the rings. When the message machine played its recorded message, Patrick hung up.

Outside, no one walked down the street. There were no cars passing by. Some cars were stopped dead in the road with no drivers. This told Patrick that something was seriously wrong. He stepped outside and looked both ways down the street. He smelled smoke in the air and saw clouds of it in various areas. Has the world come to an end?

Patrick went to his room and put on socks and shoes. He put on his wristwatch and left for the kitchen. He left a hand written note to his mom, just in case she was somewhere close, out of earshot. Grabbing his set of keys, he looked around and made sure everything was set before he left to see why there was smoke coming from different parts of the neighborhood. He grabbed his bike after locking the front door and pedaled down towards the closest plume of black and gray swirls. The putrid odor of burning wood and other things grew stronger as he rode along.

Patrick noticed doors to houses were wide open. Cars were in odd places, not where someone would park. It was as if everyone just disappeared. Around the corner of the block, he hit his brakes. The bike slid hard on the concrete, leaving a long black streak. He set his feet on the ground. His mouth dropped and his eyes almost bulged. A black pod-like thing stuck out the side of a house. Immediately, he remembered he dreamt something about this. The black spots in the sky, the fires, people running in madness, and blue light.

Patrick pinched himself. Even though it hurt, he was sure he was still dreaming. No way could something like this ever happen. There had to be someone around, or he should be awake any second. Minutes later, he knew it was all real. He couldn’t wake up and no one answered his calls. He began to get very nervous and scared. He made sure he staid clear of all the wreckage. Riding around and seeing no one, Patrick decided to head down town to see if anyone was alive there.

A thought struck him and he changed his mind about getting into town. Heading back home, he kept his eyes open for anyone. When he got home, he checked for his mom and found she was still gone. Sadness pained his heart as he took the shining car keys from its tarnished hook. He missed her so much. He suddenly felt like the last person on earth. He hoped that he wasn’t.

Patrick climbed in his mom’s car, pulling the seat forward and putting the right key into the ignition. He reached above him and pressed the garage button and the door raised slowly. He started the engine and pressed the break pedal. Taking a deep breath, he moved the shifter to ‘R’ and slowly let off the break. The car started to slowly glide backward. Patrick looked behind him at the road and driveway as he backed up. Turning the wheel, he managed to get the car onto the road. He cracked a huge smile, proud of himself and moved the shifter to ‘D’ after coming to a stop. He let off the break again. The car lurched to the side, still in the angle he turned to get onto the road. He panicked a little but yanked the steering wheel in time, straightening the vehicle.

Now Patrick was the master of the road. He laughed and zoomed off. He noted his speed and slowed when he realized he might miss someone if he went too fast. He neared a gas station and decided to fill up the tank. It was merely just to see who was around rather than to refuel. He parked right up next to the door and laid down the horn. No one came around after several minutes of waiting. Patrick killed the engine and got out. The wind whipped across the concrete and whistled. It wrestled his hair as he made his way inside. Finding a shopping basket, he loaded it up with snacks and other supplies he thought he would need to trek around. He dropped the basket of items onto the passenger seat of the car and got back in.

He looked around one last time. Nothing seemed to be of interest to check out. He started the engine and drove slowly towards town. Halfway there, he pulled over. It suddenly hit him. The fears of being totally alone had come true. Would he see his mom ever again? Would he see anyone at all for that matter? Tears rolled down his cheeks, blurring his vision. He laid his head on the steering wheel and let it all go.

Patrick slammed the steering wheel with his hands. He frantically wiped at his eyes from the burning tears. He knew this was not helping. He told himself to stop crying like a baby. He gritted his teeth, trying to defeat the cowardice in him. Taking deep breaths and blinking through tears, he glanced around to see if someone was watching him. Slowly, he came to his senses and started coasting down the road again.

Trash and litter sailed across the asphalt as he went along. More mysterious pods were crashed down in piles of debris. Most of the roads he went down were nearly empty as he decided these would be best to scope the neighborhood. As more vacant suburbs crawled by, the fear if getting in trouble for driving a car at his age eased away. There would be no cop to pull him over. If there was, he had a perfect excuse.

Patrick thought of his mom’s place of work and decided he would try there and then head back to his house. He thought maybe she would be hiding out at her work. Perhaps she found a really great hiding place at home. He knew he couldn’t stop until he found someone.

To be continued…

Editors note:

Please feel free to contact Mickforhire at his e mail address to express your thoughts and comments on his first chapter. Its mickforhire@gmail.com

Thanks, Dwedno.