At a certain point, I simply accepted my fate.

I began to relish the sounds of the bustling city of Miami as I walked through its streets, occasionally encountering a Florida man in in his natural habitat strung-out on drugs. There were people attempting to run game on girls even at 10 am, their persistent pursuit of desire was absurd to me.

Yet, amidst all its VICE, the city possessed a unique beauty.

Something about the air, every time it touched your nose, you felt a spark of life.

Zooming cars whizzed past me as I strolled down the streets. The stunning azure sky intersected seamlessly with the golden sands of the beach.

Placing my silver wireless noise-canceling headphones around my ears, I marveled at how sound alone prevented this city from becoming the most beautiful place on earth.

After a considerable walk, I eventually arrived at the campus of the University of Miami. I strolled across its vibrant grounds, a warm Florida breeze carried with it the fragrance of blooming flowers, mingling with the lively chatter of immersed students. The sight of palm trees swaying gracefully against the azure sky, casting dappled shadows on sunlit pathways, imbued me with a sense of tranquility.

Most of the student body gave me a wide berth like I scorched the earth with each step.

With each step, I couldn't help but reflect on the fleeting nature of life. One moment you’re here and the next moment you make a life changing decision that makes you’re whole family look at you crazy.

Every day having to hear the same “I don’t think you should quit, Jeice. You made the wrong decision, Jeice. Think about it a little more, Jeice.” BLAH BLAH BLAH

I find it hilarious the same people who told us to get real about our dreams have the most to say when you quit like they wanted you to.

I continued my walk across campus, listening to my music and rambling to myself.

Until someone interrupted my peace.

“Jeice! Wait up!”

She must have been extra loud to break my soundproof barrier.

“I said wait up Jeice!” I decided it was in my best interest to stop and take my headphones off.

“Oh wassup Hari. I ain’t even hear you.”

A short bespectacled female scuttled across the earth to stand in front of me. She was cute, not in the see-her-at-the-club-and-go-talk-to-her kind of way, but the I’ll-sit-next-to-her-on-the-first-day-of-class kind of way. And that's how we met, we just good friends now though.

“Did you see the news?”

I rolled my eyes and stepped past her.

“No, but I’m sure you’re gonna tell me.”

"Rude..." She made this pouty face, and it was adorable.

"My fault, continue..."

“Okay...So basically they said today there’ll be a series of celestial events and their all lining up on the same week. They said something about a meteor shower, followed by some kind of eclipse. They also said that it might snow soon. Climate change and all that.”

“Snow? In Miami? Florida? That don't make sense.”

"I said the same thing when I saw it."

"That's interesting though. I guess we'll see about that snow."

I guess Hari and I were headed to same place since she kept pace with me the whole time. We talked verbosely about nothing. She asked me how Twin was doing, I told her he doing good not going into much detail.

Before long we found ourselves standing before two grand double doors, a gateway to the beginning of the end. I noticed the remnants of what used to be a wasp nest stationed above the door.

Hari stopped me before I entered and looked at me with her puppy dog eyes.

“Do you want to uh…maybe get some drinks and watch the meteor shower with me?”

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

I had to stop for a second to consider my options.

“I’m not doing anything later, just uh...text me to remind me."

"Okay...Bye Jeice!"

With a nod, I made my way in and quickly turned left, just down the hallway held my environmental studies class.

Professor Manuel would just have to understand and forgive my tardiness. He was lucky I even showed up. Entering the room, I felt eyes full of judgement staring at me. I supposed it wasn't an everyday occurrence for the star of the basketball team to actually show up for class.

The grand lecture room could hold a little bit more than a hundred students, but the room was peppered with a plethora of empty seats. A quick scan made me believe there were maybe 30 students present today. The room had an old wooden vibe and it matched the professor’s demeanor. Nodding at Professor Manuel, I chose a seat towards the back of the lecture room.

"Pleasure to have you finally join us, Mr. Valenci. Now, as I was saying, the syllabus for this Environmental Studies class will be available online shortly, and I expect each and every one of you to send me an email confirming your access." Professor Manuel had an unusual voice—a blend of necessary sternness for a teacher, a hint of New York vitriol stemming from his origin, and a unique pronunciation that hinted at English not being his first language.

Professor Manuel continued to drone on, and my mind wandered aimlessly throughout the class.

Why everybody keep moving away from me.

It felt like a bubble formed around me and everyone was afraid to pop it. It reminded me of Covid times. The people I sat next to slowly inched further away. I would’ve assumed they were racist if they weren’t the same skin tone as me. It all left me drained and tired.

"Escúchenme, clase. You look so bored. Hmm.” Professor Manuel began to comb his beard with his hand while thinking.

“Let's say the world ended today. What would be the first thing you’d do?" Professor Manuel's question made me pay a little bit more attention.

"It depends," a fat greasy slob (ok maybe he wasn't all that, but he was big, and he was one of the people who inched away from me), wearing an orange 'U' hoodie responded. "Are we talking zombies or aliens? And if it's zombies, are they intelligent? Fast? Because if their fast and can climb, it would be really difficult to escape…"

"I would kill myself. There's no point in living through that," a student yelled from the middle rows, his appearance matched what he said.

"I read this story a few years back, and the zombies were called aberrations. They ruled over territories and had elemental powers. It was pretty

cool," more idiots chimed in, but even fewer answered the question.

"Now, class, while your responses are hilarious, the first thing I would do is go to any dining area on campus or any place nearby with food, a roof, and some water," Professor Manuel added, trying to steer the discussion back on track.

Eventually, after a little more back and forth, Professor Manuel decided to conclude the lecture early. It made sense since it was only the first day. As I grabbed my bag, put my headphones back on, and prepared to leave, Professor Manuel's voice called me out.

"Not you, Mr. Valenci. We still have some catching up to do," Professor Manuel said, a small smirk playing on his face.

I descended the long stairs of the lecture room, approaching the professor. As I drew nearer, I began to notice the changes in his appearance. Time had aged him noticeably. His curly hair was slightly receding, flecks of gray appearing, and his bronze skin bore the marks of wrinkles. Despite that, he was in great shape. It always amazed me how Professor Manuel managed to find time to work out amid his busy schedule. Chin held high, his gaze constantly wandering, if only I could glimpse at the thoughts that resided within his mind.

"Now, this will be the last day you show up late to any of my classes. All you need is attendance and a little bit of participation, and I'll pass you through. You have a brilliant mind, Jeyson..."

"Jeice," I interrupted, I’d rather be associated with the Red Magma than my government name. "Come on Teach, we've doing this little dance since the first day I stepped into a Santana Manuel class during my freshman year. I arrive late, stay after class, learn the materials on my own time, then come to you with questions later."

“Yes, that was how we did it, but unless you decide to rejoin the basketball team I can’t afford you those privileges anymore.” Professor Manuel always talked with his hands it was just something I assumed all teachers did.

“So that’s what this is really about. The coaches sent you to recruit me back. You know what they did to Twin was wrong, I can’t go back.” I talked with my facial expressions my emotion worn on me as clear as day.

"I'm just saying, you're talented, and it's a shame to waste it. People as agile and long-limbed as you…are rare. Besides, I need my parlays to hit. Do you know how much money I made last year betting on you and your brother? Even Rome managed to snag me a few bucks this past year."

"I digress. How is he doing, anyways?" Professor Manuel shifted his focus from the computer screen back to me. We weren't at eye level; My physiology only allowed me to look down on him.

"They tried to get me to consent to him being put into a coma. I guess the shouting about the end times and the incessant chanting became too much. Oddly enough though, when I went to see him the other day, the screaming stopped. He was terrifyingly calm. He hugged me and whispered in my ear to 'Meet me at the heart,' before handing me a sheet of paper with three words on it, then he just walked away." I reached into the pockets of my nylon pants and handed Professor Manuel the torn paper.

"SURVIVE. ADAPT. EVOLVE? What's this even supposed to mean?"

"I have no clue and he ain't leave me any time to ask him."

"I think you should go visit him again bef--"

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Our conversation was abruptly interrupted by the sound of thunder, though there was no visible lightning. The ground trembled, and the building shook. We rushed to the window to see what was happening, witnessing mass panic unfolding. People were running to seek shelter, pushing fellow students and faculty aside.

“MOVE OUT THE WAY BITCH!”

Confusion washed over me as I tried to understand what everyone was running from.

Then, I saw it.

Before I could really comprehend the sight before me, I felt the thousands of large meteors crash into the earth at varying speeds. A dark mist began to envelop everything, obstructing our view from the window, slowly seeping into the building. Professor Manuel and I exchanged a worried glance.

"What the fuck is going on?"

And then, the world fell asleep.