Such a beautiful summer day

That thing was huge, really huge. To the point I was wondering if it could even see me. I mean, two hundred meters above, can you even see something as small as me.

Do we humans even think about the insects and spiders on the floor when we walk?

Not in the slightest.

Should I run?

Chances are high that it wouldn’t work, it could kill me in one step.

Should I fight?

Hell no… It wouldn’t do any good to sting this monster in the toe and make it even more angry.

Should I pray to God?

Eh. I’d rather die.

As I was pondering all my possibilities and looking around, I realized that I was the last man standing. No one was alive around.

It was a strange feeling, as if humanity had been erased from this area. Only leftovers of bodies were still on the floor, in puddles of blood and festivities of human parts.

It was real chaos.

It was hell on earth.

The destroyed city thanks to russian’s bombing in addition of this stupidly big monster.

Weirdly enough, in the middle of this life threatening situation, a quote from Shakespeare came back to me : ‘Hell is empty, all the devils are here’.

It was fitting so much the scenery in front of my eyes that I couldn’t stop myself from smiling.

I might have been a bit nervous to know that my hour was coming.

After not having moved for a minute, the monster tilted its head and landed a growl.

That growl was so powerful it made the floor tremble, the broken cars were jumping a few centimeters from the ground, and my body was shaking pretty heavily.

Just by growling this thing almost created an earthquake…I prefer to not think about the possibility of taking a hit.

It then turned and faced me. At that moment, I could feel cold sweat waves going through my whole body.

It tilted its head the other way.

After a moment of pause, it laid its hand on the tower next to it and leant forward in my direction.

Even though it was almost noon, the sky turned black in a second.

The three eyes of this thing were staring at me, intensely, none of my movements would have been left out.

But I didn’t move, I didn’t blink, I didn’t even breathe.

The eyes blinked, unsynchronized, and got back to scrutinize me.

Since I was not making any moves, the monster probably deemed me as not dangerous and lost interest in me.

It got up once again, and left without saying anything. One could only hear its footsteps on the floor getting quieter and quieter.

Once this thing was not in sight anymore I lost all my forces and couldn’t stand anymore. My knees hit the floor, It was painful but I had other things in mind.

“What just happened…? It’s the same situation as when I was a kid. Once again I’m the only survivor…

Am I lucky to have survived two times an encounter with this kind of monster?

Luck, eh…?

How is it lucky to be the only survivor left behind, having to bury the ones I love? “

As I was mumbling my despair I looked at my beloved.

How can such beautifulness be destroyed so easily?

This monster’s kind took my mother away, but the love of my life wasn’t killed by them. She was killed by some stupid apes fighting over power. When I think that evolution led us to this, my anger becomes hardly manageable.

I gathered as much strength as I could and crawled next to Amandine.

Seeing her dead body, half-burn, with a missing arm and a hole in her rib-cage affected me more than I thought it would be.

My whole body started to shake, shivering from the depth of my pain.

Slowly, I reached her cheeks with my left hand…

“It’s getting colder.

Fuck…”

It was such a beautiful summer day, hot enough to go on a picnic in a park or to the sea. We were planning to go eat some watermelon and have a hike at the top of the mountain.

But they ruined everything, the monsters and the humans.

I grabbed Amandine’s hand, it was already starting to stiffen.

I stayed on my knees, next to her corpse for a long time, without saying anything, tearing up my heart with silent tears. Even the salty flood from my eyes didn’t warm up her body.

It was such a beautiful day.

Few hours passed.

It was sunset time.

When I couldn’t cry any more tears I started to move again.

I was the only one left in this city. I should probably leave it before any armed forces come here to loot food and everything left behind.

I decided to grab a bag on the floor and try to find some food and first necessities between the rubbles of the bombing.

It took me around an hour to complete my bag.

Once it was done, I had one last thing to do here before leaving this town.

I grabbed a white bed sheet and wrapped the love of my life inside.

I carried her in my arms and climbed up the first mountain of rubble to have a better grasp of the damage made by the bombing.

Under the orange light of the setting sun, it was such a beautiful scene. Making the picture in front of me very nostalgic for a reason I didn’t know.

Well, maybe I actually knew the reason, but it was too painful to think about it.

Thankfully, humans have a psychological defense mechanism that allows them to survive through their traumas, simply by forgetting them..

I never felt such emotion. It was between pain, sadness, nostalgia and spleen. I don’t know where all my anger went, but it was not there anymore.

Maybe I couldn’t be angry in front of my own powerlessness. I couldn’t do anything for mom or for Amandine.

The warmth of the light bathing my skin was very enjoyable. I enjoyed it to the fullest I could.

Not that I could smile, anyway.

Nothing was left standing but rubble.

“Seriously, it was a really beautiful day. What a waste.”

I tightened my grip on my beloved corpse and jumped on the rubble, skating to the bottom ,two meters below.

I made up my decision.

“Let’s go to the top of the mountain we were supposed to climb today, You will at least have a beautiful view while resting in peace.”

Few more hours passed to reach the top of the mountain, it was more difficult than expected to carry a dead body all the way up.

I found the perfect spot, between a bunch of trees , you could see the whole valley from there.

“Hmmm, that’s a nice spot sweetheart. It would have been perfect for our picnic.

Ok, let’s settle here.”

I dug up a hole and placed the body inside.

Once the body was in the ground, I kneeled down, grabbed the white sheet to uncover her face to see her one last time.

“I’m sorry Amandine, it seems like we won’t be able to spend aeon together. I will probably die somewhere far away from here.

I’m sorry Amandine, I couldn’t save you. But I have to say that I respect how you died, protecting the weak until the very end, with your infinite love.

I’m sorry Amandine, I won’t take anything from you with me, the pain is too much.

Here, you can have our rings of engagements.

Please, don’t be angry or pained by the fact I wish to leave everything here, behind me.

I’m sorry that you have to find out that after your...death….

You know, today was such a beautiful summer day.

It’s a bit embarrassing to say it now, but this picnic was a set up, an excuse. I was actually planning to ask you to marry me and become the mother of my children.

I would have sucked as a father but that’s okay, you would have been a perfect mother.

Loving, caring, turning angry when they would come back for their jeans teared up or full of mud.

Ahaha…

What else... to add?

...

Amandine, I love you.

You will be missed.

I will miss you…

… from the bottom of my heart...

Farewell, love of my life.”

Since I was not moving an inch, fireflies started to gather around this very private talk.

Glowing in silence, flying around peacefully, without a care for the world. Humans sent Amandine back to the circle of life, and life was welcoming her in a very quiet and pretty silence.

No tears flowed out. I even smiled when I was saying my last words to her.

I really wanted to send her off with a smile, a gentle one.

To thank her.

Even if it meant to break up the remains of my heart.

That’s what farewells are for, no?

To shatter one’s heart to dust.

I don’t think I will be able to cry anymore.

“It hurts…”

After pausing for a moment, It felt like it was time to end all of this. To say my last goodbyes to my beloved. I looked at her one last time and got up, taking the shovel that had been waiting lying against the tree next to me, in my hand.

In one stroke, I put the head of the shovel under the ground, used my foot to put some more weight and balanced my body backwards in order to detach the earth from the soil. It wasn’t an especially big shovel, but with all the events of the day, it felt like it was really heavy.

One pile of soil after the other, I covered the corpse that was lying inside the earth. I covered the body of my beloved.

Adieu, as they say in French.

Farewell, as they say in English.

Sayonara, as they say in Japanese.

After finishing, I tried to clean up the place the best I could, hoping that nobody would come here and tried to open her last home, in order to find out if she had any gold teeth or jewels.

Nothing much I can do anyway.

I put the shovel on the side and put my backpack on.

As I was putting the strap of the bag to my shoulder I felt a hit in the back of my head. It was so violent that I was almost knocked off immediately and fell on the floor like a bag of potato.

Without any struggle.

Before my consciousness left me I heard two men talking.

“Now that he’s knocked off, administer the sedative.

Yes, Major!”

They were talking in English.

Wait… Major?

Major, like in the army?

Is it the US army?

No way, isn’t it?

Russians bombed this city this morning, so it’s unlikely.

Well…

In fact it does make it more plausible...

Oh shit…

Really… It was such a beautiful summer day.

The beautifulest one...