Extreme 24

It was an out-of-the-ordinary day in the life of the Takeo family. The sun was rising up in Hiroshima, and birds started to chirp their favorite tunes. Horse carts started going along the roads. Bakeries started to open up and the fresh aroma was starting to fill the city with great smell. Hundreds of poor people were opening up their stalls and trying to sell their products without anyone trying for a discount. Takeo’s father was one of the many businessmen who woke up early in the morning to get to work, and Takeo’s mother was working in a barber shop far away in the city center. Everyone was waking up and going through their daily routine. As Takeo’s parents left home for work, they left Takeo in the house alone. Takeo was used to being alone, as he walks to school himself everyday and has many things to entertain himself, including some torn old books and the radio. School time was drawing near. Takeo was getting ready for school. “Ok, let’s see. Pencils, textbooks, folders, I’m all ready,” Takeo said. He headed out the door, locking the door behind him. The trees around him were beautiful, the sun was shining, and no clouds were blocking the sunlight. Takeo hummed his favorite tune as he jogged happily down the streets, leaving home behind him. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a blinding white light shone over the city. The world was in silence. Takeo crouched down and started to pray. He prayed to the gods of the world. He prayed that he would not die, he prayed that god would give him a chance. He didn’t know what to do. He didn’t know where he was. He didn’t know what will happen to his father, mother, and most importantly, himself. He closed his eyes and started to weep. For a second, he whispered to himself: “Takeo, you will survive, and your mother and father. They will also survive. Be brave.” A terrifying sound shook the city. Takeo put his hands over his ears and started to brace. Almost instantly, a big cloud of smoke and wind tore past him, and the buildings around him. Structures started crashing down, people started falling down, but Takeo was standing alone in the wind and smoke, still crouching in his brace position.

*** The destruction was indescribable. It was devastating. It was immense. All around Takeo, buildings had collapsed, the roads were full of corpses, and it seemed that Takeo was the only one who had survived. Fires were waiting to be distinguished, but since there

were no firemen around, the fires kept burning. The fire looked like the hot sun. The world was in silence once again. For a second, Takeo thought that he would die. He opened his eyes. “It’s not over yet. What am I going to do now?” He felt the terrifying pain on his body. He was covered with burns and bruises. He had a broken arm and a twisted ankle. His T-shirt was torn apart, and he was only wearing his blue jeans, which seemed black now. “God, no!” Takeo wanted to swear. But he was smart enough not to do so. He had to stand up against all the physical and mental disabilities he had, and search for the light in the tunnel, which seemed almost impossible to find. He stood up slowly, and started to walk like a snail, slow but unsteady. He didn’t know where he was going. He wasn’t familiar with the world around him-- it wasn’t Hiroshima, it was a ruined Hiroshima. His city has just been bombed. No longer did the horse carts move. No longer did the bakeries give out fresh aroma smells. No longer did the sun keep shining. Everything stopped in its tracks. A few days passed. A few weeks passed. Takeo felt no hope at all.

*** Takeo was missing his mother and father enormously. He cried and weeped as he walked to the distant of nowhere. He thought of the good old times when his father came home with his favorite “Bai Zhi Nian Ren” chocolates, and when his mother came home and sang “Happy Birthday” to him. He tried to go back to the good old times he thought of, but it was no use. His hand was getting wet, and he was covered with goosebumps as he headed forward with his torn old rucksack on his back.

*** Takeo had walked five hours now; his tummy was grumbling madly and he felt like he hadn’t drank water for a year. He started to feel the stress, and he wanted to rest in peace, in a world which was peaceful. But, the world around him wasn’t peaceful. It was the exact opposite of peaceful. He felt horrible without his mother and father, even though he is used to being alone. Takeo kept thinking horrible thoughts as he walked straight ahead. Suddenly, he saw a distant shadow about five hundred meters ahead of him. All his thoughts went blank. It looked like a girl, a girl like his age. “Hey!” Takeo shouted. He had used all of his strength to shout out a word.

Takeo ran with all his might to the girl. He finally caught up with her, and tapped her on the shoulder. The girl instantly turned around. She stared at Takeo, and suddenly dropped his mouth open. “Hello, who are you?” the girl asked quietly after a while. It seemed that she also didn’t know where she was. “I’m Takeo. What’s your name?” Takeo replied. He wanted to be friends with the girl. It was his only chance to survive. The girl might provide him with some help, or they might work together to solve his dilemma. By now, Takeo didn’t know where his parents were, and he was dying to find out. “Kimura. What are you doing here?” the girl replied. “I walked for five hours here. I survived the bomb. I want to find my father and mother,” Takeo explained everything that had happened to him. It took a long time to produce each word he said. It turned out that Kimura also was looking for her parents. Takeo and Kimura agreed to work together as a team in order to find their parents.

*** They walked along. It was dark now, and once in a while they yawned and felt sleepy. Beside them, the burning fire from the bomb crackled in the darkness, acting as temporary street lights. Debris was scattered everywhere, and occasionally, small parts of buildings that were slightly damaged started to collapse. “Where should we find a place to rest?” Kimura asked. “I don’t know,” Takeo replied, “How about food? How about water?” “I don’t know either,” Kimura said. Ahead of them, there was a small grass clearing, perhaps a farm field. Takeo was very sleepy, so he considered it as a possible sleeping area. “Wanna sleep there?” Takeo pointed to the grass clearing, “It might be our only hope. We might find some food and water if we’re lucky.” Kimura quickly agreed. After all, it had been a tiring day, and they deserved a rest. They hadn’t had lunch or dinner, but they had to stand it. Takeo and Kimura walked to the grass clearing, found a quiet spot, and started to prepare for bedtime. They moved all the debris aside, and lied down. They closed their eyes.

*** The next morning, the sun was shining again. Takeo and Kimura woke up early-- they couldn’t sleep in the dark night which seemed to never go away.

Takeo wished that some rescue workers would find them in the grass clearing. It was their temporary home, and they couldn’t leave it for now. The two were very bored. There were no food, drinks, or even people around. The fire hadn’t cleared, it was still burning heavily. They felt totally alone in the sunlight, because it didn’t lighten up anything-- it had nothing to lighten up. Out of nowhere, almost suddenly, a quiet buzzing sound started to arrive. Kimura was the first to hear it. “Hey Takeo!” Kimura said, “What’s that sound?” “I don’t know!” Takeo replied, “Perhaps helicopters,” he sais with a glimmer of hope. The buzzing sound started to get louder. It sounded like a helicopter. “It’s a helicopter!” Kimura said. The helicopter came into sight, approximately five hundred meters away from them. It was a red helicopter with a Japanese flag hanging from the top-- presumably the government’s. The helicopter wasn’t as new as it could be-- some parts of the skin were aged out, and the glass door had a cracked surface. It seemed that it could break down in any moment. But, Takeo and Kimura didn’t take any chances-- they would get into the helicopter and go to safety. The helicopter came within two hundred meters. Takeo and Kimura waved with all their might at it. They could see the captain wearing a black suit, and looking around, presumably for survivors. “Here! Here!” Takeo and Kimura shouted at the helicopter with hope rising by the second, “We’re here!” But the captain didn’t seem to hear or see them. He kept looking around, scratching his head. The helicopter was right above them now. It soared in the air like the only bird in the sky, flapping it’s imaginary “wings”. Takeo and Kimura ran to catch up. But they were no match for the giant helicopter. The helicopter went further, and further, until it disappeared into the mist, leaving no trace behind it. Takeo and Kimura had lost their best chance of getting to safety and finding their parents. Hope was gone, for now.

***

Takeo couldn’t sleep that night. He didn’t eat or drink since the bomb landed and he was overwhelmed by the fact that his parents were nowhere to be seen. He hadn’t received any information about them and their well beings, and what had happened to them. Takeo thought about every possible thing that could happen to them, from dying to finding him, from becoming deaf to becoming blind. Anything could happen. The moonlight shined on the grass clearing, as Takeo lied down beside Kimura, who seemed deeply asleep. They had been here for quite a long time now-- Takeo couldn’t even keep track of the date. Owls sounded, and birds went back to their homes. It was very eerie, and Takeo seemed to be the only person who was awake in the darkness. It was a sad night, and one of the longest nights Takeo had ever experienced.

*** It was a rainy day. Water droplets shattered the remaining loose debris in the city. No bird chirps were heard. Takeo and Kimura had been awake by now, and wondering what to do next. They wanted to eat, and didn’t care what they’d eat-- they were too hungry to do so. “Good morning Takeo,” Kimura said, “aren’t you hungry?” “Of course! I’d die to eat, eat anything,” replied Takeo, “How about hunting for food, like animals? We’ll find a forest and make a bow and arrow and shoot a bird to eat!” “But we wouldn’t find food here! And it’s way to hard to hunt,” Kimura said. “Yes we can go hunting.” “No we can’t.” “Yes we can; I’m getting frustrated here!” “No we can’t. CAN’T!” “Yes we can, and I’d rather die than not go hunting.” “Ok, fine, let’s go. But we must find the materials for the bow and arrow...” As Takeo and Kimura argue, a police officer was walking nearby. He was on duty to search for the remaining survivors. So far he’d found none. Little as he, Takeo and Kimura knew, he would find the first two survivors today. Yes, today. Takeo and Kimura set out with a bow and arrow, with the argument pretty much gone. Their plans were to shoot down a bird, and return to the clearing. But things didn’t go as planned... “Hey! I see someone!” Kimura was yet again first to see the policeman. She pointed to her right. Without thinking, she and Takeo ran straight to the policeman.

***

“Hello Mr. Policeman!” Takeo and Kimura said together. “Yes! My first two survivors!” The policeman grinned and hugged the two. “I’ve lost my parents?” Takeo said. “I’ll get you to your parents in moment,” said the policeman, “I’ll call the helicopter with my walkie talkie.” “Is that “helicopter” the red one that we saw?” asked Kimura, curiously. Hopes seemed to rise. “Yes, yes,” replied the policeman, “it is.” Takeo and Kimura hugged each other. Finally, it’s time to get food, drinks and of course find their parents. Takeo forgot about thinking about what will happen to his parents-- he was too focused on what was happening around him... hopes were rising by the second.

*** The helicopter was dirty, but Takeo and Kimura didn’t mind. On the helicopter, they were served miso soup mushroom porridge, but they didn’t mind either. They were so hungry that anything would be satisfying (we said that several times already). It felt like life had never been that enjoyable, especially when Takeo and Kimura had spent what seemed like a thousand years out in the open, alone. They would find their parents, and that would be the happiest thing that could happen to them in their lives. In a blink of an eye, the red helicopter came rolling to a stop. Takeo and Kimura stepped out of the helicopter, and listened to the policeman's’ instructions. All around them, flowers were growing beautifully, bees were buzzing peacefully, and small lakes were floating around. “This place is nothing like ruined Hiroshima,” Takeo thought. Never did he know Kimura was thinking the same thing. “Follow me,” said the policeman. He directed Takeo and Kimura to an opening which was full of tents and people. When I say full, I mean full. No kidding. The whole place was crowded with injured people, hungry people, and people who had lost some of their family members. Takeo didn’t know where he was, but it seemed almost 100% to him that this parents were here. He could feel it with his heart. His heart which was pumping madly. The policeman led Takeo and Kimura to a tent. “This will be your tent. Settle down here, and come out after you’re done with your business. We’ll find what you’ve always been waiting for. I just hope (they) aren’t dead,” said the policeman.

*** Takeo’s heart was jumping out of his body as he ran around people, and people, and people. He looked frantically, pulling

Kimura along with him. There were a couple of elderly people, but most of the people that he bumped into were probably around thirty or forty years old. Takeo didn’t recognize them. Kimura, meanwhile was looking out for her parents. She was covered in sweat glands and goosebumps as she tagged along with Takeo. She closed her eyes and imagined hugging and kissing her parents, and it seemed that she really was doing so. Then, she opened her eyes. Kimura couldn’t believe her eyes. She thought her eyes were wrong. Her parents were standing right in front of her! But she still thought her eyes had some type of problem. “Hey Takeo! Stop for a moment. I think I see my parents!” Kimura screamed. Takeo instantly turned around and stopped running. Kimura was hugging her parents by now. She was covered in tears, and her mouth was shaped like a capital “U”. They hugged, kissed, and cried forever-- it almost seemed that she had forgotten all about Takeo and his parents. The feeling she had was tremendous. Relief shook over her, as she fell into her parents’ arms. It was real. Here eyes weren’t wrong-- they were right! It took quite a while to calm down, calm down, and calm down. She was happy now, but only one thing was in her mind that wasn’t pleasant was that her friend, Takeo, hadn’t found his parents yet. She felt empathetic, and quickly the “U” on her face turned into a “u”, then a “-”, and finally a “n”. “Mother, father,” Kimura said, “I have to help my friend. I’ll tell you about him later-- this is too important.” “Be quick, I’ll be waiting here,” her parents replied. Kimura rushed to catch up with Takeo. They kept tagging along each other for what seemed like a million years...

*** “Whoa! Stop!” Takeo slid to a stop, “Let me fix my eyes. Something has gone wrong with them, and I don’t know exactly what.” Kimura followed his instructions and stopped. Takeo pointed to his left without saying anything. Kimura looked in that direction. She saw people. Loads of people. Nothing out-of-the-ordinary. But Takeo kept pointing, and his arm was shaking madly. His eyes were watery. His heart stopped pumping blood. He paused, and then ran. He ran like he never ran before. He wrapped his shaky arms around what seemed like two strangers to Kimura. Suddenly, Kimura knew what happened. Those two strangers were Takeo’s mother and father. She remembered how she hugged her parents. Now, it was happening with Takeo himself. They seemed to have hugged forever.

*** Birds were chirping, bees were buzzing, and flowers started to grow. Spirits were rising around the city. Everything had returned to normal, and everyone did what they had to do. Horse carts were going on the roads, businessmen were going to work, and schoolboys were on the road selling books. Once again, it was a day in the life of the Takeo family, and Takeo was walking to school. A new school. And who was his best friend? Yes, it was Kimura. Kimura that helped him find his parents.