Dreams and Nightmares

Predator and Prey

He sings me lullabies every night to calm the nightmares I never remember.

The wind rustles the leaves high in the trees, covering the sound of my footsteps as I step closer, my bow in my hand. My bare feet softly step on the soil of the forest, barely louder than a breath.

The breeze whips my hair in front of me, carrying my feet forward, step by step. The saber-toothed tiger comes into my sights and I crouch down. The creature's neck is bent down gently drinking water out of the spring. Crouching down, I pull an arrow out of my quiver and string it, pulling my string back as quiet as a mouse and aiming it at the giant ferocious cat's heart.

Someone crashes into me and my arrow flies missing my target as she perks up, running away. Automatically, I fight back to no avail. Alan stares down at me with dark eyes, his face cross. "This is the third time this week," he growls, pinning my hands above me.

I glare back silently, struggling.

When I give up, he stands up, dusting himself. "Let's go home. Sun's going to set any minute."

I nod, feeling the tears of frustration well up in my eyes as we make our way to the makeshift treehouse, climbing up.

I watch the view of dinosaurs and pterosaurs chewing on leaves or eating berries. All the predators turned vegetarian for nature forbids hunting.

Alan hands me a bowl filled with soup as he seats himself next to me, our legs dangling over the wood. We eat in silence, not wanting to talk about the looming topic.

After finishing, I wash the stone bowl and set it to dry before returning to my spot. Alan does the same, sitting closer to me this time, our legs barely touching. "Zoe," he says quietly.

I turn to him, tears glistening in my eyes. "I don't understand. Why us? THere were more than four billion humans before we went extinct! Why do we have to come here?"

"Zoe, you know why," Alan says softly, wrapping his arms around me. "We were the last two to die."My tears soak into his soft cotton shirt as he holds me close.

"I don't even remember it," I whisper. "I can't even remember being alive." He just holds me, rocking slightly.

When the sun has set, he murmurs, "Let's go to sleep."

I nod, my thoughts elsewhere, as we sink into our respective, separate beds.

A wind drifts in through the window, causing me to shiver. I slip out of the thin handmade bed sheet covering my skin. My feet lightly touch the floor, as loud as feathers.

My knee rests on the edge of his bed, my shorts rising slightly. "Can I?"

"You know you always can," he sighs wearily, moving to make some space for me. I lift his bed sheet, slipping under and sliding next to him, facing him.

Alan's hand traces the edge of my shirt.

"I'm not sorry," I tell him.

'I know." His hands drift up, tracing my lips. "But you should be."

He tells me stories to help lull me back to sleep.

"Tell me a story," I whisper, even though no one exists but us.

He does. He spins a tale of life before humans existed. A story about the circle of life. The balance of predator and prey.

I fall asleep in his arms, his fingers caressing my cheek. I fall asleep to the sound of his voice singing me a song.

Around midnight, I startle awake, panting.

I remember my dream.

I never remember my dreams.

The images flash through my mind. THe screams of a girl. My sister. The silent pounce that doesn't disturb a leaf in the forest.

The roar of a tiger.

I look at Alan, sleeping peacefully next to me and I kiss his lips, carefully stepping out the bed and gathering my bow and quiver of arrows.

Before climbing down the vines, I look back at him, whispering, "I'm sorry."

The moonlight guides me through the forest as I make my way to the tiger.

Time to exact my revenge.

I find the only pair of saber-toothed tigers that exist in this world, sleeping peacefully in the entrance of a cave.

Her eyes fly open and she watches me, slowly walking out into the clearing.

I raise my boy and notch an arrow.

She watches me knowing and she stands tall, releasing a roar that shakes the forest. I hear footsteps, and I know it's now or never.

He warned me what would happen if the peace were to break.

I let the arrow fly.

I know that he would do anything to stop that chaos that would follow.

I watch in horror and silence as Alan swerves, the arrow piercing his heart.

The wind circles around us as the moment stretches, our eyes meeting.

He falls to the ground, vanishing into dust.

I run to his side, grabbing at the dust. "No." I tremble. "No, no, no."

I didn't tell him that my memories were slowly returning before and now they came in a rush.

The dust from the nuclear war flying high in the sky, blocking out the sun.

The landfills filled with the rotting decay of the dead.

The survivors scrambled for food.

Alan by my side as we were forced to hunt to live.

A tiger snapping his neck.

Him lying in my arms.

I return to the present moment. The saber-toothed tiger blinks at me, watching me carefully before coming closer and muzzling my hand.

I remember holding the knife in front of my heart as I pushed it in.

The last human alive.

The same knife lies in my boot, no longer tempting.

I was given a chance for a reason.

It's time I used it.

I've already died once anyways.

It's time to make things right before my end.

He sacrificed himself to preserve the balance.

I sacrificed everything to preserve his memory.

The End