White
Everything was white. An endless plain of endless white, white that stretched out as far as the eye could see.
Pain.
Searing, white hot pain, pain that coursed through my veins, burned through my body, overwhelmed my body.
Then came the water.
One moment I was there, next the very ground was swept away from under my feet, swept away as the sheer force of the water came crashing in. I was submerged, completely underwater. I screamed, screamed my lungs out, but all that came were soundless bubbles.
The white, the pain, the water, it was everywhere. It was everything. It was all
I saw a young child ripped away from her mother's desperate hands to be hurled into the destruction. I saw a man and a woman, holding onto each other for dear life, arms encircling each other protectively against the water. They were thrown against a building that had been wrenched off its foundations, never to be seen again.
I saw my people, my home, everything. In the white, pain, water. No. Please, no! Why? Why me? Why now? No, please, please, please, it's been too long, far too long. Too long since I let my guard down, why now, why me? Why?
My lungs screamed for air, screamed louder than the roundabout thoughts in my head. But wave after wave I was pushed further into the abyss, into the darkness. And wave after wave, the screaming increases, because wave after wave my people were dying, drowning, screaming in drones. And I'm screaming, drowning, dying with them. And I'm dying alone. Alone... alone in the whiteness...
Strong arms wrap around me, and suddenly I'm blinking the salty water from my eyes, my chest heaving and body sprawled against the wet sand. I look up and my savior, and he winks.
"Yo, Japan! You all right there? We're here to save you! Hang in there, kay?"
I'm speechless. America is grinning at me, blue eyes shining in determination, his hand outstretched to me. I hesitantly take it, and he pulls me up. I stumble forwards, but someone is there to catch me. He smiles at me and pulls me forward into a hug.
"Stay strong, okay Japan? We're here for you, aru. We're here,"
I look up from China-nii's embrace, and I see a wave, but not one of destructive water. I see a wave of smiles, of determination, of love. They're all approaching me, coming to pat me on the back, to offer me reassurance.
"You all right, Japan?"
"Stay strong, okay?"
"We love you, Japan! Keep fighting!"
"We're here for you, Japan!"
"We're here for you!"
My eyes fill with tears, tears of gratitude, of joy. They're all here. My friends, my family, everyone. Everyone is here. I'm not alone. They're here for me. They're here.
"Everyone..." I sniff, and the tears roll down my cheeks. "T-thank you. Thank you!"
Everyone is here. They're here for me. It's not going to be okay, no, but together, we can fight on. We can overcome this. Because we're all here. We're all together. And I'm not alright, but I'll stay strong, and I'll fight on.
Over the horizon, the sun rises. I cast a look at its burning passion reflecting over the land, and I smile. And I laugh. Because the sun will rise again.
Thank you.
In memory of all those lost in the Japan tsunamis 11-03-11. Stay strong, Japan! Stay strong!
Pray for Japan