James was always hooked on his tablet. He was good at coding and stuff. And also he liked to own things. He just turned 15 and things he wanted to own started piling up. From shoes to bikes. He was spending all the money his dad used to send him on buying stuff. Now, one just couldn’t get out of their district zone without prior protection from the radiation. The best way one could get anything was buying online. And the best part was that all the flights were computer controlled. So, it was far easier to send a plane filled with things and then they will be delivered to the door step the very same day. If computer controlled planes were out of question, there are always metros which ran underground. Though, they took a little longer time when compared with planes, but they did work like charm. It was like ordering a pizza and getting delivered within 30 minutes. And then James also started chatting with someone who makes him feel special; whom he met in a science fair a few months ago. He just couldn’t get enough of her and just trying his best to meet up with her. And to make up for the time and the distance they are separated, they used to exchange some kind of gifts. He would send some of his stuff, sometimes would buy online, which still was the safest, most affordable and the easiest way to get anything.

Matthew Stanley is an scientist. He is James father. Though he hasn’t met his son in little over a decade, they still used to talk over phone or over the internet keeping themselves equipped what the other person is upto. When he came to know about the girl that his son was interested in and was so longing to meet her, they forced him work a little harder to maintain balance in the atmosphere and reduce radiation to zero level, if possible. He always loved to build things, create fascinating things using the natural resources. And these so called resources are decreasing with each passing day. He would sometimes blame himself for the world around him. He was one among the few scientists who were hired to create and develop the life altering things. Though he saw the danger while they were still developing and raised his concerns, no one listened to him as the other became too ambitious and felt they could see the future and that they could just make history. Matthew pursued his own ideologies which were quite contrast to the others in his private lab. Though they showed progress on a small scale in testing, but he feared what would happen when used on a higher level like humans themselves. But then the catastrophic event happened which risked the very existence of human life. They had no other choice to use one of Matthew Stanley’s prototype, which as a matter of fact worked perfectly. The artificial man-made atmospheric gases made from various chemicals and a few rare natural resources did help in sustaining the radiation on a larger level. No one knew about it. No one were told who created it, until the whole world was on a safer place. 

So, when he came to know about the girl his son was interested in, he wanted to make the world a better place for him. He wanted his son to have a life he could never had as he was always away from the family. So, he was on a mission now. When he started with his work, the list was pretty big and a lot of things were needed to make it happen. Some of the things were on the other side of the planet. But he had to worry the least. He ordered everything he need online, which still was the most convenient, most affordable way to get anything. Since some were on the other side of the planet, he feared that they might take take to reach him which in turn might delay his mission. But to his surprise he received them the very next day. He made no attempt to waste any more time and started building what he wanted to build. 

Within a year, he was successful in making his mission a success. The radiation levels started decreasing and there was a lot of improvement in the environmental balance. Though, they still had to live life like on knife’s edge, as any slightest mistake could affect the ecosystem. But his discovery proved to be far better than he had expected. The use of eco-friendly things and clean fuel was advised so avoid any more catastrophic events which might hinder the very existence of the human kind and all the other living beings.

Now he is home to his family back after 11 years and enjoying the time with his son. They have moved to a place near his son’s love. So that when he could grow up, they could all stay together in the days to come. 

This is written for ‘The Future of Shopping‘, a contest by IndiBlogger in association with e-bay. And also check out the ‘EBAY Chrome extension‘ .