Children.
   Children ran in the beautiful day, playing and laughing. Some rode on their bikes, skateboards, or even their rollerblades. They did not care. They did not care how ridiculous they looked or how people looked at them. No one cared. They were children. They laughed, danced, and played. Those were children and children had fun. The sunlight blinded their views as they ran down the empty streets, passing their neighbors and houses, but they didn't care. They just wanted to have fun.
   Laughter.
   Smiles.
   Children would always want to stay young and have fun.
   Maybe this was their last day though. Maybe this was their last day to stay young and have fun. They didn't see it coming. No one did. Was it years? Days? Weeks? How long was it since the children last had fun?
   No one knows for there was no one to ask.
   I stood over a pile of pictures and albums. One of the pictures was a picture of children running and laughing. One of the children was me. I was smiling and laughing along with my friends that are now dead. Dead. There is no way to ask them the question for they are dead. A picture frame lied off to the side with cracked glass. The picture contained a family of four - two males and two females. They seem so happy. The sun shined and the sand was glowing. Must have been a summer vacation. Wonder where they at? They are gone. They didn't see it coming either. It happened so fast and they had no place to hide.
   The floor was cracked and dirty. The shelves were thrown to the ground and all of the albums were scattered across the floor, and I just sat there staring at the dirty pictures. My gloves were covered in dirt and dust. Why so much dust? Why so much dirt? My black suit was covered in dirt and dust that fell from the ceiling and flew in the air.
   What happened to this beautiful city? What happened to Chicago? It was so fast. So sudden. No one saw it coming. No one survived the catastrophe. Everyone's gone. There is no one to turn to for answers. Why? How did this happen? A nuclear bomb fell out of the sky and turned the city into ashes. There is nothing left from this beautiful city of Chicago but dust, ashes, and ruins. Nothing.
   A few days after the drop, the government ordered for a quarantine to be set in Chicago. No one is allowed to enter or leave, if there were any survivors. No one. Now I'm in here wearing this quarantine suit, breathing in fresh air instead of the toxic one. I'm just standing here in my old house where my family used to live and the neighborhood where my friends used to live. There was not a single person in sight. Staring at these pictures brings back memories.
   Laughter.
   Smiles.
   You were still able to hear the childish laughter in the distance, but there were no children in sight. How can you hear them when there are none? Quick flashbacks here and there. Memories swarmed in my head.
   The house was destroyed and I'm standing here in this living room with no wall and roof slanted. The sun shined through that broken wall and birds were heard in the distance. How is that possible? How did this happen? I want to know why. Are we to blame for this?
   How did we come to war?

o o o o o

   I can't move. The sun is shining on me. How? How is this possible? There are no ashes falling out of the sky. Not a single one. There are no clouds. No rain. No fire. Oh, the fire! There is no fire! Nothing will burn me now! I’m safe! Am I? I’m not sure. I need water. My throat is burning on fire and not a single drop will save me. I remember history class. No water will help you after a nuclear weapon was dropped. Not a single drop! I can’t move. I can’t turn, but I know that the world I’m in is nothing but hell. Ashes everywhere! I’m still alive! How? How is this possible? This is the end! The end of mankind!
   What’s this?
   What is this sound that I hear?
   Footsteps, maybe?
  Something blocked my view and I couldn’t see. A shadow. A shadow blinded me and I couldn’t see. My eyes were slowly closing. I tried. I tried to keep them open. I tried, I tried. Try is not enough though. This is the end. My eyes are closing and this is the end. My time has come.
  Hell found us.