One day you wake up, not knowing that someone has decided to change your life.
Not someone you personally know, someone up there, someone who doesn't know your grandmother sleeping in the next room, your parents who worked on their store everyday, your brother whom you always fought with.
One day you wake up, hearing the alarm. Not just any alarm, but The Alarm. The one that wails sorrowfully, the one people forgot on their dinner table. The Alarm, the one the authorities have warned you might some day be put to use. It's the one that they say to leave your belongings behind
You get off from bed, feeling still drowsy, not sure what it means. Your parents are smarter, they are busy packing. Your brother started going to the cupboard, finding some food because he is hungry and he doesn't care. You tried to remember what they told you in high school.
Your parents shouted you to wake up, start moving, start packing your essentials. Who knows when you will be back? Who knows if there is anything to go back to? The first thing you took was your high school diploma. You thought it was your chance back to the future. It is the ticket that is going to save you later on. That's what you think, that's only if the definition of future is still the same.
Your parents took their valuables, to save them from burglars, to rebuild their life when needed. That's what they think, that's only if life is what waits for you. Your brother now started to catch what is happening, he put some bread in his rucksack. Because he is hungry, because he doesn't care for anything else. He tuck some old shirt too, and his most precious ukulele.
You found out later on that among your family, your brother the insolent harsh brute is the smartest one. You searched open my secret cupboard, looking for a letter you had planned to give to your crush. You put it in a bag, wondering if you'd meet her on the way out. You decided you need something to eat too, so you pushed a bread in my mouth, and continued packing your clothes.
You r grandmother, bless her, she was slow. Your mother helped her up. She was too slow though, she wanted to stay behind. She was confident and fearless and old. Finally, mother packed her some water, some congee leftover, and a set of clothes. Grandmother watched us pack, mumbling that you should not forget to bring some meds. Yes, grandmother was wise too.