One drab November morning, I woke up to an empty world. The sky was a murky stew of grays, and the remains of shattered vehicles littered the otherwise empty streets. From them, billows of smoke rose, which combined with the dense autumn fog to create an eerily dark and still atmosphere, untroubled and untouched by human movement.

BY BATOR TOTH

One drab November morning, I woke up to an empty world.

The sky was a murky stew of grays, and the remains of shattered vehicles littered the otherwise empty streets. From them, billows of smoke rose, which combined with the dense autumn fog to create an eerily dark and still atmosphere, untroubled and untouched by human movement.

There were no functioning devices or parents around to hassle me.

The power was out, too. Everything had gone quiet.

That was until an aggressive pounding sounded through the front door. I stood by my living room window, mind racing, yet completely unsure of what to do. Then came his voice, and suddenly my body was ice.

“Charlotte, it’s me. If you’re in there, please, open the door.”

Never in a million years did I think I’d hear that voice again. Peering around the curtains of the window, I saw the person I thought I’d build a life with. I had tried so hard to forget those bushy eyebrows and that galaxy of freckles. But this time, he was different. Once beaming with confidence, the boy on my doorstep was now ridden with fear and desperation. I could see it in the way his eyes darted back and forth, and I could hear it in his trembling voice when he asked to come in a second time. “Charlotte, please,” he pleaded. “I need you.”

The next thing I knew, my fingers were turning the lock and he immediately pushed his way inside. I barely had time to dodge the door as it swung open, and with the same haste, he slammed it shut and locked it again from the inside.

“What the hell?” I exclaimed, but his wild eyes refused to meet mine. Instead, he ran to the nearest window and began searching for something in the smog. Only when he was certain of its emptiness did he turn to face me. Gazing into the ebony eyes of my former lover made me forget how to speak, and the sudden lack of thoughts made my head start to spin.

“Charlotte,” he said.

“Tobias,” I managed to utter, attempting to subtly straighten out my inky hair and frail posture. I couldn’t believe my ex had to see me like this, first thing in the morning. “What’s going on?”

He shook his head, clumps of ruffled red hair stirring with the movement. He looked as if he had been tugging at it. “Everyone’s gone.”

“I can see that,” I said. “But where are they?”

“I don’t know. I woke up and everything was deserted. But we can’t stay here for long. You need to pack some supplies and we need get going.”

Again, I found myself baffled and unsure of what to do. I couldn’t even ask why we had to leave because Tobias had already begun raiding the kitchen cabinets for packaged food and bottled water, which he shoved into his backpack. My mouth was so agape by now: He could have fit a universe in there.

“H-hey!” I stammered. “You’re not taking anything until you tell me what’s happening.”

He stopped packing and gave me a look of annoyance, as if it was a nuisance having to explain why I had to evacuate my own home. “We’re not alone here,” he began to mutter. “There’s someone...or something out there. Whatever it is, I think it's following me.”

“So you decide to lead it here?” I blurt out.

Just then, a heavy gust of wind thrust against the trees outside, sending branches clattering on the windows and making us both jump.

“Look, I don’t like this,” Tobias said, and again there was that pleading tone in his voice. “You need me and I need you. Please, please. Pack a bag and let’s get out of here.”

So I did just that, not even stopping to ask where we were going. Within minutes, I had on a heavy coat, a heavy backpack and a heavy heart, and with that I followed my ex-boyfriend out the door and into the abyss that was once our home.

After a while, the silence around us became deafening. I vainly tried focusing on the cawing of crows in the trees above, who stared back at me with their beady eyes. Yet somehow the silence Tobias gave me was louder, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that he knew where we were going.

Then suddenly he stopped. “Did you see that?” he asked.

I looked around. The only extraordinary thing I could see among the rows of houses was a deflated bouncy castle sitting in one of the yards, with children’s toys such as dolls, scooters and rubber balls scattered around it.

I was about to tell him he was being ridiculous when one of the balls popped. The sudden burst of sound was like a gunshot, sending a flash of adrenaline through my veins and blinding my sight with sheer panic. But before I could react, Tobias' hand was in mine and I was being pulled away.

We broke into a sprint — and thinking we had someone on our tails — we ran fast. We didn’t stop after turning the corner, and we didn’t stop after turning two others. We were running out of streets to run through, and soon enough, we found ourselves in the vast field of nothingness that bordered the city. My lungs were on fire and my wobbly legs begged to give out, but somehow I mustered the strength to take a look behind us.

“I think we lost—”

“There! The forest!” Tobias shouted over me, referring to the dark web of trees that loomed in the distance. Dashing through the field, countless crows whipped by my face as they fled the tall grass, creating a flurry of blackness that obstructed my vision. One latched onto my hair with its claws, screeching relentlessly into my ear like an alarm before I swatted it off. Another must have crashed into my hip, throwing me off my feet, and I couldn't help but cry out as my face was grated on something sharp jutting from the ground.

Lying there in a ball, I squeezed my eyes shut, afraid a crow would gouge them out. But the ruthless sound of thrashing wings steadily faded away, leaving only the sound of my panting in its absence. Slowly and cautiously, I opened my eyes and saw that the overcast sky was now veiled by a dismal netting of twisting trees and branches. At least we had made it into the forest.

Tobias' face came into view, his eyebrows furrowed with concern. “Are you all right?” he asked, offering his hand to help me stand.

“I’m fine,” I replied, grabbing hold of it. He used his tall frame to hoist me up, taking my waist in his other hand for additional support. For an awkward moment, we were standing a little too close for comfort, before he released his hold and I backed away. After using my sleeve to gently dab my tender cheek, I pulled it away to find it dotted with blood.

“What exactly is your plan here?” I asked.

“I know of a hideout deeper in these woods. It’s well hidden, so we’ll be safer there.”

“For the time being,” I added.

He smiled. “Of course.”

With such reassurance, we began our journey to Tobias' secret sanctuary. As we walked, I began to actually admire the serenity the world had fallen under in the absence of people. The air was raw but invigorating, and there was nothing to be heard except for our footsteps softly crunching the fallen leaves. I looked at Tobias, and I could tell by the twinkle in his eyes that he felt the same. We were in our own little world.

A certain tree caught my eye. Half of it seemed to be missing, and its charred, rigid tip gave me the impression that it had been struck by lightning. After what felt like half an hour later, I saw it again. “I think we’re going in circles,” I said.

“I’ve been here many times,” Tobias replied. “I know where I’m going.”

“But we’ve passed this tree before,” I insisted. “Look, the one that’s all burnt and crooked.”

Tobias didn’t look at the tree. “Don’t start doubting me now, Charlotte. It’s in your head.”

Looking back on it, the tree behind us looked slightly different from the last. This one had traces of bark on it, whereas I recalled the last one being bare. I decided my hunger was probably starting to get to me, so I suggested we stop for a while to eat. Tobias agreed, and we sat down on a nearby log. He unzipped his backpack and eagerly reached for a bag of Doritos.

“Is that really a good choice for right now?” I asked.

He flipped the bag around. “Yes, it is. Two grams of protein per serving.”

“Whatever,” I said, taking out my bowl of ready-made caesar salad, to which Tobias immediately scowled.

“Next time you find yourself in a crisis, maybe don’t pack something so perishable. Your salad is probably teeming with mold by now.”

“You didn’t give me a lot of time to think, did you?” I retorted. “You barely gave me five minutes to pack before you rushed me out of the house.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. Would you have liked time to do your makeup too? I’m sure you wanted to look good for the stranger following us around.”

“Yeah, yeah,” I rolled my eyes. “The stranger.”

“What are you getting at?”

I hesitated, but despite my efforts the question managed to escape my mouth. “Is there really something out there, or am I just being scared into doing as you say?”

Tobias recoiled. “You know what, Charlotte? If you think so low of me, you’re more than welcome to go off on your own.”

“Don’t get so defensive. It wouldn’t be the first lie you’ve told.”

“I’m serious! Just leave. I don’t need you.”

But I couldn’t leave, because my legs were frozen and refused to budge. Even if there was no threat out there, could I face that emptiness alone? The thought of being abandoned like that was paralyzing. So, instead, I picked sheepishly at my salad, realizing it really had gone bad. The leaves of lettuce had become flaccid and withered, with dull shades of green that matched the mold sprouting on the forest logs. Ever so subtly, I secured the lid and returned the salad to my backpack, careful to hide my disbelief. Tobias was right about some things, it seemed.

After he finished munching on his chips, we agreed to resume the journey. We were heading up an incline, and every step caused the pendant hanging around my neck to oscillate between my breastbone and the inside of my shirt. Each time the cold metal kissed my skin, a hammer came down against my conscience like a gong being struck, sending ripples of worry and angst bouncing between the walls of my skull. I began to wonder where my parents were, if they were okay, and when, if ever, I’d see them again. I knew that asking such questions was futile, so before I began cycling through dead-end theories and hypotheticals, I untucked the pendant and held it in my hands to stop it from dangling beneath my layers of clothes.

I examined the article of jewellry, with all of its intricate details and exuberance. Six tear-shaped pink opals, held together by eighteen carats of rose gold, made up the two wings of a butterfly. Three of them were placed on each side, starting with the two longer ones on top and ending with two stubby ones at the bottom, all mesmerizingly identical to the gem on the opposite wing. I recalled picking it out with my father a few days short of my fifteenth birthday, because he wanted to make up for missing it due to another business trip abroad. I had initially gravitated towards a pendant with a crescent-shaped moon: its icy undertones drawing me in like the actual moon draws in the tide. But Father insisted on the butterfly due to its feminine elegance, and I had no choice but to comply. Butterflies always seemed feeble and itinerant to me, aimlessly drifting away at the slightest brush of wind. Looking up at Tobias walking ahead, I began to understand why Father thought it suited me.

My life had always been lived according to the needs and wants of those around me, and not once did I stop to consider who I was or what I wanted to do. When Father told me I was to be fragile and elegant, I let it be so. When Tobias told me I needed his help and protection, I let it be so. Time and time again, I was tossed around by the merciless influence of those around me, like a butterfly lost in a hurricane.

All this made it so easy for me to believe Tobias when he told me I had no one else left in this world except for him. But was that really the truth, or was it merely something I was made to believe?

“We’re here,” Tobias announced, and I put the pendant away. The incline reached its peak at the top of a grassy hill, where a dingy, rotting cabin sat waiting in a small clearing of trees.

It might have been the grin on Tobias' face as he pushed against the old door, or the putrid smell of decay that hit me thereafter, but something about the place sent chills down my spine and alarm bells started to sound in my head.

A crow descended from the sky and perched itself on the branch of a nearby tree, cocking its head as it watched me intently. Slowly, I set my foot on the wooden porch leading up to the entrance of the cabin, testing how the slimy wood would bear my weight. A silly precaution, because Tobias already stood on it, holding the door open for me. “Are you coming?” he asked.

Lifting my other foot off the earth, I glanced beyond him and into the gaping darkness of the cabin, which seemed to want to swallow me whole. The windows were boarded, but the boards were ancient and poorly placed, allowing for slivers of light to reveal clues about the interior. What I saw, with a bit of squinting, was a single, large room, completely bare except for scraps of garbage littering the floor and a mysterious dark lump in the corner. I immediately stepped off the platform. If I was a butterfly, then this was surely my cage.

“What’s the matter?” Tobias asked.

“I’m not going in there,” I said, my voice stern.

Sighing, he let go of the door to take a step towards me, and I flinched as it snapped shut.

“Charlotte, come on. This isn’t ideal, but it’s not safe elsewhere. We’re being followed, remember?”

I shuddered as another gust of wind came crashing through the trees, but that was nothing compared to the cold I felt as Tobias grabbed my hand. He began pulling me towards him, towards the cabin, and the crow nearby went berserk.

I resisted, which caused Tobias to pull harder. “Let go!” I yelled, but at that point Tobias' other hand was wrapped around my wrist, and he was tugging furiously with the force of both arms. It was when that black figure swooped down in between us, squawking vigorously and flapping its massive wings, that Tobias suddenly released his frigid grip and sent me flying backwards.

I landed on my side, crushing my hand under the weight of my body and tearing open the same gash on my cheek. Grimacing from the pain shooting up my arm, I managed to sit up and wipe away the blood oozing from my face.

Red.

Red like the few leaves left on the trees clinging on for dear life. Red like the fury on Tobias' face as he grabbed the crow and bashed it against the cabin floor repeatedly until it stopped squawking.

Red like the flags I had ignored all along.

“That damn crow got you again,” he said in between heavy breaths. I looked at the dark bundle of feathers laying on the floor, motionless.

“No, Tobias,” I grumbled. “You did.”

Painfully shrugging on my backpack, I got up to leave.

“Where do you think you’re going?” he called after me. “Hey! You can’t just leave!”

I ignored his screams and kept walking down the slope that took me back, deeper into the forest.

“You don’t know what’s out there! You need me, Charlotte.”

At this I turned around, noticing how insignificant he looked from afar. True, I didn’t have a clue about what was out there, where everyone went, or where to go from there. One thing was clear, however: I’d never get the answers I wanted from Tobias. That was okay with me, because I would rather navigate this scary world alone than be trapped with someone I didn’t trust. Perhaps soon I’d find I wasn’t as alone as I thought.

Continuing my way back down, the frantic shouts from behind me were eventually drowned out by a continuous breeze that weaved its way through the forest. The trees seemed to sigh as they released the last of their beautiful creations into the air and let them flutter gracefully around me. I, too, sighed as I closed my eyes and filled my lungs with crisp, autumn air, holding it in for a few seconds even though it stung. Finally, I released it back into the atmosphere, creating a small breeze of my own. Opening my eyes again, I found myself blinking away tears.

The world was so beautiful now that I finally let go.

Bator Toth’s short story, A World for Two placed fifth in our writing contest. Toth is a student at M.M. Robinson High School in Burlington, Ontario.