Disgustingly romantic!

She sleeps exactly the way she is named-‘Angel’. Under the twinkling blanket at this barren open land with only fire in the name of protection and a tiny attempt to keep the uninvited away. I didn’t realize till this very moment of emptiness that it has been almost ten years since the hell rained down from sky in the form of a single entity which they called ‘the one’ that triggered a chain of events causing mass destruction. Floods, droughts, plagues- name it and it had already happened. People killing people in the name of survival and then there was none left. Not for us at least since we haven’t seen a face other than ours in the past year.

Gods fought with sheer will, channeling thunderous rage as their swords strike bursting frightening rays of destruction causing her to wake up. When the life on earth is at the edge of extinction what else cloud they possibly have to battle about, I wondered.

She swirled in her reindeer skin blanket, gave a glance and passed a smile.

“It’s your turn to take a nap.” she reminded me.

“I would rather enjoy the view of the end with you.” she giggled to my reply and eventually agreed.

In the black haze of burned up soil it was easier to see a quarter-mile than it was to breathe provided it’s your first day at the dead world. Else the poison in the air felt as normal as the oxygen in it. Similarly in the way as it felt normal to wait for vultures to rip your flesh apart as you watch them do so.

We gazed at horizon as the sun gradually rose to turn around the chilling breeze into dry burning dragon’s breath. So we began our journey in search of fluid be it water or not, a plant or edible flesh be it poisonous or not.

“Which country do you think we are in?” I asked out of boredom.

“I like to think Alaska” she said with minuscule fragment of enthusiasm.

“But its sand everywhere, how can it be Alaska?”

“We are travelling for as long as I can remember Jev. Also there is no sign board shouting out otherwise so from now on this is Alaska.”

Makes sense, what does it matter anyway, it’s not like had it been Vegas I would ask her to marry me or vice-versa. We would still be searching for the same basic things to survive not diamond rings.

I spotted a warehouse with broken windows and door ripped diagonally in half.

“Let’s see which rodents are ready to be cooked.” I said while feeling disgusted even after so many ways I have cooked them over the years that now they taste like baked bread provided I remember correctly what bread tasted like.

As we entered the premises I felt a rush of pygmy but quick creatures around my feet. She lighted the thin bundle of dry wood sticks that was wrapped by a rag dipped in few drops of gasoline at one end that we collected on the way from abandoned vehicles and said.

“Looks like a feast eh?”

She pulled out her knife from her belt and threw it five feet away where the biggest of those fuckers were hiding. It went straight through its head and in a blink it was long gone.

“Time to cook, let me do the honors today.” she offered to take the charge which I welcomed with open hands as I wasn’t a big fan of cleaning dead animals before cooking them. Meanwhile I cleaned the place with whatever resources I can find to make it as suitable as humanly possible to eat and rest.

She lit a small fire in one of the corners and put a long stick through the soon to be meal, put it few feet above the fire to barbeque and rotated it gently.

“How can someone so gentle be such a bad-ass? How can I love a savage?” I wondered.

Although I knew that survival at this point of time demands our diabolic capabilities to be activated. That humanity can be won back once we ensure our survival.

“It’s ready or at least I think so.” she called me in her sweetest voice.

“Could not have a better date, we have got food which is slightly overcooked or under-cooked we’ll find out soon. We have water, partially brown but drinkable and a roof on top which could survive rain, storm on the other hand I am not sure. Let’s begin.” I mocked our treacherous conditions. She put her hands around my waist and stayed there for a few seconds. The stinky odour of our sweat became irrelevant for a moment there.

We sat on the floor and began eating our today’s meal, surprisingly it doesn’t taste as bad as it looks or smells or even sounds. That or our taste buds have surrendered to our core basic instinct to live. Either way I was happy that we are not going to sleep hungry tonight. We have gathered enough strength to see another day.

After finishing we threw out the rest for other creatures to carry on the food chain while we lay down on the floor holding hands in hands, looking outside of the moderate sized rectangular cavity in the roof. Glancing at the clear sky with its queen at the center she said

“Had it been a normal world, what would you be doing, what did you want to become?”

I thought for a second and no answer came naturally to me. I had never given much thought about it.

“I think I would be working in a farm probably. Raising cattle, growing crops that would make me happy, I guess. What about you?”

“I don’t know, maybe became a paleontologist.”

“Well it’s not too late we can still dig some graves. Its highly likely that we will find more bones than ever before.”

“I think you’re right. Maybe we should start some digging right now.” Her eyebrows rose an mm upwards. Her hand swiftly move over mine reaching my face she stroke my cheek. Her face came closer and we made the most of our time. However small amount we have left of it.

In the outside world the gods were still brawling over something more important than the end of the world. I say let them.