DISCLAIMER: The characters in this story are not based on any of my friends in any way. So, if you see something that makes you think I'm writing about you…I'm not. Also, I know this story isn't exactly biblically accurate, but it's fiction, and it's just meant as fun. It answers an important question that I think we all wonder sometimes. (I'm not telling you what the question is; you have to read the story.) Still with me? On with the story.
IT’S THE END OF THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT
CHAPTER 1
It was just like any other night. Kevin laid there in his bed, wondering about life, the universe and everything. He’d just recently graduated from high school, and seriously missed it, if only because of the friends he had there. In fact, many of his recent dreams had been about that old place. Oh, sure, it was different every time; from there being a beach behind the school, to his old friend Connie winning a science award--
Speaking of which, what was going on with Connie? Last he’d heard, she was loving life at Max College, all the way in California. Lucky her. Kevin couldn’t get into a big-name college; his grades throughout high school were not so hot. He’d always failed at so many things: classes, sports, love…and the list goes on. Did he have a crush on Connie? Well, not that he’d admit. Still, he had hope that one day he and someone would end up together, whether it be Miss Connie Kodak or not. Of course, doing that would mean that he’d have to excel at winning her heart, and excelling was not his strong suit.
* * *
Whoo-hoo!
 That was Chris Cammer’s first thought after leaping into bed. It had been quite a day. He’d just gone on a date with Marie Allen, the girl of his dreams. They had gone to see Revenge of the Sith. Did Chris like Star Wars? Well…it was pretty good. This movie was probably the best, at least from what he saw of it. Some of those scenes were sad, especially Anakin slaughtering the Jedi in Order 66. The best part, though, was during the most heartbreaking scene. It wasn’t that sad to him, but obviously Marie thought it was horrible, because she’d said, “Oh, no” in a mournful voice with tears flowing down her face, and put her head on his lap. Did you think Chris liked that? Does a cat meow?
Before Chris went to bed, he pulled out his Bible and decided to read a random verse. He opened up the holy book, closed his eyes, flipped to a random page, and plunked his finger down. What verse was it? Chris didn’t bother to look at the top of the page; he knew it was a Gospel since the words his finger was on were red. What did it say? “There will be signs in the sun; in the moon and stars. On the earth, men dying of fear, apprehensive of what is coming in the world, for the heavens will be shaken at their foundation.” Ah. It was about the end of the world. When was that going to be? Who could say? No one knew the hour or the day. Chris remembered those people who said the world was going to end on January 1, 2000. Hah. Here it was, summer of 2005, and this old planet was still here. Yeah, even his friends told him that the Bible said the world was going to end in 2000. The strange thing about that was he’d never seen a Bible in their house. Still, the end was nothing to fear. It would come when it came, and he’d go up to heaven when it did. If only he knew just how soon it was coming…
CHAPTER 2
It was what anyone would call “the middle of the night.” In fact, it was just after midnight. Yet, for some reason, Kevin couldn’t sleep. He figured he never should have eaten those two chocolate Pop-Tarts before bed. Still, why did it feel like it was morning? Why was it light outside? Okay, now he knew: it was a dream. He was expecting the school bus to pull up anytime. Maybe this wasn’t about high school, though. Maybe this was about something totally different. He looked around his room. There was a big thing in the middle of his floor. He didn’t know exactly what it was. It was big and white, and looked like it had wings. Then he saw a face; it was unblemished and perfect. Yet, somehow, it looked like his old friend Elisha Verne, who had died in a car accident years ago. Yep, that straight brown hair, that tall, slim figure and those distinctive eyes…it was her. So, why was he dreaming about her? All the old memories came back to him: how much fun they had playing GameCube together; how they used to laugh together at the classic sitcoms; and how she used to say, “I may be a few years older than you, but I consider you my best friend.” He didn’t need this; not now. Life was hard enough without being reminded of those who he’d lost.
“Kevin, do you remember me?” a voice said. He looked again. It was Elisha, decked out in white, glowing, with bright wings.
“Elisha, how could I forget you?” Kevin replied, despair evident through his tiredness. “You were my best friend.”
“Listen, I have something to tell you: This world has nearly expired.”
 Kevin was puzzled. “What do you mean?”
“You know that R.E.M. song we used to listen to all the time?”
 Kevin thought back. Yeah, they used to listen to several R.E.M. songs. He remembered his favorite, and thought she meant that one. “Which one, ‘Stand’?”
 “No. The one that we saw dc talk perform on the Freak Show tour.”
“Oh, that song about it being ‘the end of the world as we know it’?”
“Yeah. Remember how I told you that one day, that song would ring true?”
Kevin was confounded. He’d known for nearly all his life that the apocalypse was coming soon. Why would Elisha come down from the splendor of heaven to tell him this? Oh, wait; this was a dream. It didn’t have to make sense; it was just a bunch of random bits from his memory. He figured he’d play along. “Yeah, but you remember what Brother Macintosh said. It could come tomorrow, or it could come in a thousand years.”
“It’s coming in seven days, Kev.”
“Well, it could be that, or it could be seven years, or seven months…”
“No, Kevin. I didn’t say it could be seven days. I said it is in seven days.”
 Huh? Kevin couldn’t believe his ears. “And just how would you know that?”
 Elisha stammered, which made Kevin notice it was odd to see an angel not know what to say. “Um…well, I’m not supposed to tell,” she said.
“Okay…should I tell anyone about this?”
 “Tell your close friends, like Connie.”
 Kevin wanted to ask how Elisha knew about Connie. He hadn’t met Connie until shortly after what happened to Elisha. Wait a minute. This was a dream. Plus, don’t they talk about how angels are watching down from above? “So, next Friday, then?”
“Yes. You will know what I am saying is true in the morning.”
 “How will I?”
“You just will.” The room went pitch black as Elisha disappeared, taking all the light in the room with her. Kevin immediately dozed off.
* * *
Connie Kodak lay in her dorm bed. Her roommate was gone out late that night. She always was. Still, Connie loved sleep too much to be out late. Besides which, she didn’t need to be out there having wild parties where everyone was drinking and taking drugs and getting wasted. What would a girl like her be doing that for? She set her iHome clock for 7 AM. Yeah, she had to wake up that early to go to English Lit. Why did she have to go to that class? She wanted to be a web designer. It’s not like the teacher of that class knew her name; there were so many people in that class. She was used to high school, where—
She heard a sound. It sounded like music. Rock music. Had she left her headphones on? For some reason, her iHome stereo was on “radio” mode. Why? She didn’t like the radio stations here; she could never find a good song. Well, this one sounded good, so she figured she’d turn it up. As soon as she heard the tune, she was confused by the lyrics. Who the heck is Lenny Bruce or Lester Banks? What is a “slam book neck”? She attempted several times to turn the radio off, but even after she unplugged it, it wouldn’t stop. She plugged it back in and tried to turn it down. That didn’t work. In fact, she tried everything, and the song kept playing until it faded out. Then, there was silence as the clock shut off, no longer on the radio mode.
What was this? Was this some kind of sign? No, it couldn’t be. Or could it? She’d sleep on it; she was far too tired to think about something that important right now. It would come when it came. She shut her light off and went to sleep, having no idea what was to come.
CHAPTER 3
Kevin woke up that morning, not exactly feeling rested. What was with these dreams lately? First it was that one about losing Connie last week. As far as he knew, she was still okay, even if she was on the opposite side of the country. Thank goodness for cell phones. And now this. His arm felt very numb, probably because he’d been laying on it. That happened to him a lot. He moved his arm every which way, and after the numbness stopped, he felt something light, sharp and flat in his hand. In fact, it felt like paper. Was there a message for him on this? He opened it, and saw written words that sent him into a total state of shock. They said:

See?
I told you so!
Remember, seven days.
And I’m not sure of the time…
So just be ready by 12:01 AM.
See you soon!
Love always,
Elisha

Now, he didn’t know what he was going to do…but he did have an idea what little time he had to do it in.
TO BE CONTINUED...