A few seconds later, a girl started awake. She was laying on the floor in front of her window. For a moment, a magical moment, she thought she must have dreamed the events leading up to this. She tried to sit up, but felt dizzy, and a little sick to her stomach. Having fainted before, she knew what she needed to do. So, she lay on her back and elevated her feet, resting them on the windowsill.

Forced to lie still for now, she took some deep breaths. Something was very wrong outside. Maybe everyone had evacuated and not known she was in here? Maybe it was the rapture, and she was just the only person who sucked? Maybe it was a zombie apocalypse! With invisible zombies? Okay that one seemed unlikely. But all of the answers seemed unlikely.

A resolute calm filled her mind. She needed to find out what was going on, and what if anything she needed to do. First, deep breaths. In, and out. In, and out. She knew she was feeling a little better when the next one was a yawn. So, she sat up. Still a little shaky, but nothing she couldn’t handle. The curtain still open caught her eye, and she looked up to see a cloud slowly crossing her tiny view of blue sky from this angle.

“Huh. Pretty.”

She often forgot how beautiful something as simple as the sky could be. The world outside this room sometimes felt like an alien landscape when she looked at it. A place so unfamiliar on an emotional level that it was upsetting to behold. But other times, she’d catch a glimpse like this. At a time when her normal fears weren’t at the forefront of her mind and just be caught by the beauty of the world. But then… Bitterness. It was a world that wasn’t hers.

So, she rose. Glancing out of the window to make sure that things were still the same, she found her way to her desk and sat down. First things first. She opened the internet and checked the news. The fact that the internet was working gave her a little bit of hope, but as she scrolled down today’s news articles she found herself increasingly perplexed. Her brow furrowed, and she could feel the confused look on her face.

There were news articles for today, but not one of them was talking about anything like this. Just the normal news she’d expect. Maybe she was panicking about nothing…? So, she continued on to social media, determined to find people talking about this. She searched for posts containing the name of her city and sorting by latest and… nothing. Nothing suspicious anyway. Scrolling through the posts, all that showed up was people talking about local events and so on. Then she paused, and scrolled back to the top. This wasn’t right…

9:15 AM @SantaDelMarPolice: 🚓 Our dedicated officers are here to ensure the safety of Santa Del Mar residents and visitors. Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions or concerns. #CommunitySafety

8:30 AM @Beachercise: Rise and shine, Santa Del Mar! Another beautiful day awaits. Explore the scenic beaches and don't forget to tag me in your photos. Meeting down by the beach at 10:30! #SantaDelMarAdventures #exercise #fitness

2:58 AM @BeachBumSara: 🌊 Good vibes and crashing waves in #SantaDelMar tonight! The ocean is alive with moonlight. #BeachLife #NightLife

2:54 AM @FoodieAdventures: Just had the best seafood tacos at the Santa Del Mar pier! Fresh catch of the day. 🌮 #FoodieFinds #SantaDelMarEats

2:53 AM @MusicInParadise: Live music at Santa Del Mar's famous beachside bar, "Seaside Serenade" tonight! Come groove to the tunes and enjoy the sea breeze. 🎶 #LiveMusic #SantaDelMarNights

The timestamps were abnormal to say the least. As she scrolled down, there were posts almost every 5 minutes before three AM, but after that… Only in the morning, and at suspiciously perfect times. Wait, were these scheduled posts?

Her stomach sank. Well, maybe it was still nothing right? She decided to post a reply to the police.

10:54 AM @Girlbage: Sorry to bother you, but if anyone is monitoring this account could you please respond? I can’t get through to 911, and I can see fires in the distance. I don’t see anyone outside. Please help.

Somehow, writing a plea for help really made the situation seem more dire. Wait, if those are just the posts for her area…

She frantically started a new search, looking for latest posts with no other criteria. It was the same result. Scattered posts that looked like they could be scheduled, followed by normal posting. All before 3 AM.

Suddenly, she felt very, very small. The sound of her hyperventilating filled the room. She couldn’t think. She couldn’t think. She couldn’t think! Panic began to take hold again. Jumping up from her computer she did the unthinkable. She ran to her front door, wrenched it open, and went outside.

A scrambling mad dash down the stairs on the outside of her apartment building. She tumbled upon hitting the ground floor, leaving a bloody gash on one knee, but stood up and ran into the center of the courtyard.

“Hello?! Is there anyone here?! Please! I need help! Please! Someone respond! Anyone! Can anyone at all hear me?”

Only silence answered her cries. She stood in what should have been the center of a bustling courtyard, and a stone cold certainty overtook her. There was no one to hear her.

She doubled over, and promptly vomited. The echoed sounds of her emptying her stomach filled the courtyard, as if to emphasize how very quiet everything was. She rolled over on her back when she was done, laying still and looking at the sky.

Whenever she was outside, she got scared looking up into the sky. The deep blue abyss made her feel like she was barely clinging to the ground, and at any moment could fall into that vast expanse of nothing. It made her uneasy on a good day. But today, somehow, it didn’t seem that bad.

In a small town called Santa Del Mar, on the coast of California, there is a courtyard. In the center of that courtyard lies a lone figure. A girl, on her back, stares up at the sky. She’s been laying there for 33 minutes and 47 seconds. She is 28 years old. Her name is Lily. She has brown wavy hair, matted from not being cared for. Her pale skin is dotted with freckles. Thick glasses sit on her face in front of her emerald eyes, threatening to dangerously magnify the sun shining down on her. She’s 5 foot 10 inches tall, and a little overweight due to her sedentary lifestyle. She is wearing a ratty old mismatched set of pajamas, and has neglected to put on shoes before running out of her house. She has a bloody gash on one knee that is starting to hurt more as she comes back slowly to reality, and is currently laying dangerously close to a pile of her own vomit.

Oh, and she thinks that she might be the last living human in the world.