Chapter one

How had we gotten here? Where had everyone else gone? Isn't it impossible? How are WE the last ones? How could this have happened? These thoughts raced through Millie's head as she looked around trying to find anyone else besides Haden to help her. This must be some really organized joke right?... I mean… it's not just us left… right… it's not just me and him…Millie was about to break down when Haden just had to show up.
"You ok? Isn't this cool? We're the only ones left! No one to tell us what to do! There is no one to stop us!" Haden said in his normal spunky voice everyone was so used to hearing. (note: WAS)
"HOW can you think of such a thing?! Because were the only ones left that means we have to do everything for ourselves! We have to find food, shelter, water, EVERYTHING! Not only do we have to worry about that, but there is so much more to worry about!" Millie said anxiously. She hadn't even been on a Girl Scout trip before and didn't know how to survive anywhere but in the city. How did we even get here?! It's like we just woke up here all alone… we've been out here for weeks… how did we get out here… where do we go… Millie had had it. She started crying. She missed everything she knew and was gone now…
Haden looked at her with a new expression neither of them knew he had. He looked concerned for her.
"Look, we're going to get through this. We'll find someone else I'm sure. But you need to lighten up. Enjoy this place. Look past everything that you see as bad, find the beauty out here."
That voice…those words… it sounded like something she had heard before… but where?... Millie thought about it for a short while then figured it was nothing. She just sat there for awhile looking around. Trees were everywhere. What was so special about trees? She listened. She could hear water. WATER?!
"I hear water! Let's find it and see if it's clean to drink!" Millie said quickly and stood up like lighting.
"I heard it a while back; you're just now hearing it?" Haden said in his normal tone again.

Chapter one prt.2

They ran for a while with Millie leading the way. She listened but then realized it was fading away.
"WHAT THE HELL?! WHERE IS THE WATER?!" she yelled out with anger. She was annoyed enough as it was and didn't need anything else to agitate her.
"...its back there... you really have no idea what you're doing do you?"
Millie shook her head. She had no experience to live without someone else telling her how to or what to do.
"Look, its south of here. We can WALK there and see how clean it is. More than likely we can drink it. Follow me"
"FOLLOW YOU?!" Haden looked back at her like she had a better idea. She stared at him for a minute.


"How can I trust YOU know where to go?"
"I've done this stuff before. I got hiking, back-packing, canoeing, everything. Been in boy scouts since I was a kid. It's not hard stuff if you know what you're doing."
She looked at him. She never knew that about him. She was a city girl. She was the kind who liked to be pampered most of the time. She looked at him again but he had turned around and started walking what she guessed was south.
"How do you know which way we're going" she said.
"One, the sun is starting to set some so it's setting west. From there I can tell what direction I'm heading. Two, I know this forest it's not far from where I live."
"But we live in the city?"
He looked at her laughing
"YOU live in the city. I like on the edge of the city. I'm just zoned for a city school. My parents had to drive me to a bus stop most of the time. Otherwise I never would have made it. The buses never came that far out. Sometimes I had to stay home though. Dad would get sick a lot and mom couldn't do all his chores too. So I'd do them which took all day."
She never knew. She always wondered why he looked a bit stronger than some city boys. Most worked out but when they did they were huge. His were big but moderate, like they were just right.
"what all did you have to do?"
"well... I'd have to go feed the dogs, we had 5 of them, I'd go clean out the barn, feed the horse, the cows, chicks, check on the crop, help clean the house--"
"wait? You live on a farm?"
"Yeah, the last one for a while around here I suppose."
"Wow, I never knew--"
"we're here. Looks clean too"
she looked at the little creek before her. The water was shallow and clear. It didn't look muddy or unclean at all. Haden cupped some in his hands and drank it.
"So how is it?" Millie asked. He didn't turn green or anything so that was good.
"Taste great." he smiled. Then he splashed some onto her. Millie screamed at him and hit him as hard as she could on the shoulder.
"was that supposed to hurt?!" he asked almost laughing.
"Oh? I didn't hurt? Sorry let me fix that." she stomped on his foot as hard as she could. His face turned a little red as he started hoping on one foot in pain.
"OUCH! THAT DID HURT!"
"Told you I'd fix it."

Chapter one prt.3

It was finally almost dark and Millie and Haden were getting a little tired.
"How much longer?"
"Less than a mile"
"you said that-"
"I said that less than 5 minutes ago..."
"Oh...still"
They could never agree. But Millie had to admit, she was seeing Haden in a new way all-together. She never knew this much about him. He was always the annoying poor kid 

who everyone said lived on the streets with his mom and dad who didn't even work. That was the rumor anyways. He had one friend as far as everyone else knows and that was brad that died in a car crash only a few months ago. Haden missed a week of school and when he returned he didn't seem any different.
"Here we are"
"FINALLY!" Millie looked at the small almost gloomy looking house. It was more simple than simple but had something about it that she never really knew. She looked closer at it and she felt like she had seen it once before.
"Come on in. if my parents were home they'd love to meet you but since no one's here you don't have to worry about having to tell your whole life's story to them."
"Why is your house so small?"
"It's just my parents and I; we have no need for a large house. Plus we can really afford one either."
"Oh... sorry... I'm so used to--"
"those big housed in those huge neighborhoods that have pools in the back yard and large fountains in the front, I know."
"Not what I was going to say"
"but it's the truth. I've seen your house before. I know where you lived before you even moved the first time. Nice houses but too big."
She looked at him crossly.
"What? It's true! Those housed are huge! I could fit my house inside your house!"
"So what's wrong with a little more living space?"
"Having to fill it with stuff you don't really need but complain that you DO need even though you and everyone else in the world KNOW you don't but SAY you do anyways. You actually listen to this world and forget to listen to your heart."
No one had ever said anything like that to her ever. The only time she heard anything like that was at movies where the girl was consumed by the world till someone pointed out to her how wrong she was. But she wasn't that girl...was she? She thought about it. Maybe she was... but she couldn't admit defeat! She was right! She was... totally wrong...
they walked into the house. It was neatly cleaned but old looking. It had everything her house had just out of date. She never had seen anything that old before.
"Here's your room you can stay in. it's the guest room. It's a little smaller than what you're used to I'm sure but it's the best room in the house. My parent's room is down the hall. My mom was a small girl too. I'm sure she has some stuff you can use to wear. My room is next to this. If you need anything let me know."
She walked into a room that was probably a 10x13 foot room. She was used to at least a 15x15 room at least.
"Thanks..." she closed the door. She walked over to the bed and fell asleep.
Around 5 in the morning Millie woke up to the sound of music. She opened the door and listened. It was a familiar song. "Cause tonight, we can be as one... tonight... Sunday, bloody Sunday..." she knew what song it was but hadn't heard that song in a long time. She walked into the living room and there was Haden in the living room with a guitar singing Sunday Bloody Sunday. She looked at the clock. 5:05 am.
"Sunday, bloody Sunday--"
"you're a really good singer..." Haden jumped a little and stopped playing.
"Sorry, did I wake you up? I didn't mean--"
"no, it's ok. I didn't know you played so well..."


"It's my dad's guitar. He showed me how to play a little bit. I started looking stuff online at the library to learn more."
"Wow..."
She looked around the room and saw small items on the self on the wall next to a small TV. She looked at them and picked up a small glass ordainment of a dragonfly.
"My mom loves dragonflies... can't get enough of them I guess... you can find them all over the house. She's always walking down to our pond in the summer time to look at them."
"You talk about your parents a lot don't you"
"Yeah, they're my family... They're all I've go-...had..."
he put his guitar down and put his hands to his face and leaned over with his elbows on his knees. He sounded like he was almost crying. Millie walked over there and laid a hand on his shoulder. "You don't have anyone else you go to movies with or shopping or anything with?"
He shook his head no.
"My family is all I had... after brad died at least... he was like my brother. We were going to go to school together and work together. His parents didn't like me much because they thought I was beneath them but he was always welcomed by my parents so we spent most of our time here or at the club house we built as kids."
"I'm...I'm sorry..."
Millie got up and walked outside. She didn't know what else to do. She walked over to the pond. The sun was rising... the sky was just turning a light blue over the horizon. She watched the sun as it rose over the horizon she never knew existed with purples, blues, reds, oranges and every color in-between. As it got lighter outside she could see the dragonflies Haden's mother must have loved so much. The water imitated the sky with its abstract version of the sunrise.
Suddenly, Millie felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked to see it was Haden. He was standing behind her with both of his hands now in her shoulders. She reached for them and pulled them around her. Haden held onto her standing there till the sun finally shown over the horizon. Then they went back inside to get ready for the new day. A very new day.