Earth Day, Spent Away

The day was April 22. Earth Day, they called it. On Earth, it would be celebrated as an international holiday. But, here on Nolitch, the day would be spent in grieving and devastation. A day off of work in the fields. The metallic roads would be deserted, and the reflective material of the identical living quarters would show no signs of movement. The dark, empty windows would make any visitor feel alone. Cold. Grief.

No one here would celebrate Earth Day. It was just a reminder of what they had left behind; what they were forced to leave behind. It had been exactly two years, three hundred forty-six days, seven hours, seventeen minutes, and thirteen seconds since they had left. Since they left Earth. And exactly six months after they had left Earth they arrived on Nolitch.

Chris gazed out of the untouched glass, staring at the silver outsides of the other residencies without really seeing them. He was really seeing his little sister, and the way her dark, curly hair danced around when she laughed. He could always make her laugh. Even when she was crying. And she could always make him laugh, even when he was at his saddest, lowest times. He remembered the song he used to sing to her, before she went to sleep. But now, who-knew-how-many-miles away, the memory of her smile, her chocolate eyes, and her tiny nose was too much. A single tear silently traveled down his cheek, and dripped to the floor so silently that you wouldn't have been able to hear it if you were not listening. But Chris was, and the soft little sound only caused more tears to fall.

The other apartments were no better. Each had the occupant of one human, and consisted of a small automated kitchen, a pocket sized bathroom, a miniature bedroom with a twin sized bed, and a humble little chest for photographs, next to the entrance. It was the prized possession of every single one of them.

It had been decided that all of the twelve, fifteen, and seventeen year olds would be sent away to Nolitch.

The Earth had been extremely overpopulated. Pollution was ruining everything. Resources were scarce.

But then the government came up with The New Start. It was a plan that would make Earth new again. The three ages of the children were picked at random, and they were shipped away to the colony of Nolitch. There, they would build a self-sustaining society.

After they had left, the government used all of its resources to clean up the Earth.

Chris hoped that it had worked.
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Lauren laid on the soft, green grass. It tickled her senses, and felt cool on her bare feet. Her dark ringlets of hair were spread out around her head, and her yellow dress fluttered in the wind. A small, blue butterfly danced over the clear, blue sky. It was enough to make any little girl smile.

But not Lauren. She stared up at the endless blue, still seeing it as the brown, chemical filled sky that the rocket traveled through.

The rocket that took her big brother away.

Most people were celebrating. In fact, she could hear the sound of music coming from a nearby parade. But not Lauren.
Not her family. No one that had had a child at the age of twelve, fifteen, or seventeen exactly two years, three hundred forty-six days, seven hours, seventeen minutes, and thirteen seconds ago.

She remembered Chris. His voice, and how much it made her smile. His short, red, curly hair, and how much she laughed when he woke up and it was all over the place. She missed his horrible jokes, no matter how bad they were. She just missed him. Every part of him. Even the parts that yelled at her to stop doing something.

A single tear ran down her cheek. It was so silent, and the sound of the parade was growing. Yet in that moment, all Lauren could here was the sound of Chris singing to her. He had always sung that song to her, right before she fell asleep.

Sleep tight tonight.
The moon is shining.
The stars are bright.
They all shine for you,
Princess of the Night.
Dream of your kingdom.
Dream of the moon.
I must go now, but I'll be back soon.
So, goodnight.
Little princess.
Sleep tight tonight.

But he had lied, that one last time.

He wouldn't be back soon.
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Nolitch would be back to work the following day, mining in the fields for precious metals and sending them to Earth.

Earth would be back to normal the next day, as well. Children would be in school, and adults would continue to work on ways to make Earth a better place.

But for some families, that would never happen.
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The End