When Time Doesn’t Exist

Chapter 1

In her whole life, Lyn has never been outside the house so she has never seen what the environment or the outside world really looks like. She only sees it in the shows she had already watched with her parents. When Lyn’s mother was still alive, her mother said that they might be the only people who live in the town because it is obvious that no one can really survive in this cruel world. So now is the first time she disobeys her parents and this is also the first time she will leave the house to know what was going on outside these massive walls of their house. She would have worn a mask as her parents did a long time ago but she doesn’t even care now because she is out of her mind and it’s okay for her to breathe the contaminated air.

The first things she saw were the newspapers and other trash like papers strewn on the road. She thought people were just inside their homes but she was shocked to see their doors open and still moving due to the force of the wind. Her mother was correct. She doesn't know why it is necessary to use a mask because it is not smoky and she can still breathe.

“Look at the outside world, Dolly,” she said as she looked back and forth to those houses and her only ripped doll.

Lyn was still clueless about the outside world because she doesn’t even pay attention to those pricey cars and money that are scattered on the streets. That money isn’t useful today anyway because of their situation. She was just minding her own business and just peacefully walking while holding her old doll. Her reaction on her face is unidentifiable since she doesn’t know what she feels. She was happy and scared at the same time because she doesn’t feel safe walking around on the streets even though it is obvious that she’s the only person living now in their town since her parents were gone now. She was busy looking in her left and right direction to see those houses with the same height and with the same measurement of lawns and pathways. She was also leaning to see what was inside the houses clearly, but all she could see is an empty dull room just like hers.

While she was exploring around, she noticed a large barrier in front of their subdivision. She searched to see if there was a door here or any way to get out of those high barriers but she did not find anything so she just thought to turn in another direction. She thinks there are still people living outside those big barriers and she is still hoping that her parents are still alive.

She tried to enter the houses that were open in case there were other people who could talk because she was bored walking around and looking at the same houses.

"Is there really no one there?" she asked softly as she passed on those houses.

After she said that, a sudden rock rolled to her left side so I looked in the direction where it came from but she saw nothing. She thought that maybe it was just wind, but it was impossible for the wind to blow a stone away because she thinks this stone is extremely heavy.

She slowly entered the open house and went straight to a room because she thought someone was also hiding inside their own room like herself but when she opened the door, she saw nothing. She did not leave that room immediately because she was fascinated by what she saw on her left side.

Lyn found an opened notebook full of drawing and painting. There are bad and good memories that were unlocked as soon as she saw them because one of her passions is to paint and draw. She remembered how her parents taught her how to paint and she even remembered how she passionately brushed and stroked her paintbrush at the plain white canvas but she didn’t hold a paintbrush again because of one traumatizing event. Maybe if the person who lives here is still alive, they will get along right away because they both love to draw and paint. She looked at the other items lying on the table and she saw the food that was already bitten by someone. It is strange since it is not yet moldy and it is still not surrounded by ants or other insects which means that it is still fresh.

As she looked across this living room, she noticed the curtain moving because of the force of the wind. She peeked outside and she was surprised because this house was just in front of her house. Lyn is not good at memorizing streets and roads because it is her first time going outside. She did not notice that she had returned to their street. Because of the closed windows with metals surrounding them, she already knew that it was her house.

She roamed and explored around that maximalist living room for about ten minutes before she thought of going home to cook something to eat since she was already feeling hungry right now. Her appetite came back because it’s already been days ever since she had eaten a proper meal. She loves watching movies so she also learned a lot like cooking, cleaning, painting, and more but those hobbies and interests faded like a bubble that was blown away by a strong wind since her motivation and inspiration in life were all gone.

So far, she is sometimes content with her life because it is peaceful and quiet but sometimes she also feels sad and bored since she has no one to talk to so she was frequently hallucinating in her house.

As soon as she went home, she wondered because she didn't even get sick when she stepped outside the house for the first time. Her mother even said that she is sensitive and she easily gets sick.

She decided to cook the food that was stocked on their old cupboard. It’s been there for years now but it’s still not expired because it is really good for surviving and it will really last for years. She put some oil in the pan to start the frying. She did not even realize that the heat on the stove was strong so when she put the onion, the oil spilled out of her left wrist which is her dominant hand.

As soon as she was done cooking and eating the meal that she made, she went out again to go to that suspicious house because she has a feeling that someone is living inside that house. When she entered the house again, she noticed a candle on the table. She didn’t notice this when she went here earlier. This candle is beautifully made and carved because it has designs and different colors on it but when she looked closely, she noticed that this candle has already been used because there is wet wax on its side. Even though she thinks and acts like a childish person, she is not dumb about simple things like this. She knows that this candle is used recently because of the wet wax dripping beside the candle.