north. skephalo

o

"Darryl?"

It was just his name. It shouldn't make him feel giddy and dreadful at the same time. Who would have even thought you could feel them both at the same time?

"Zak," He breathed, the familiarity in the younger's voice was comforting.

"Darryl," His voice was unsteady. More so than before. He had never heard him sound so... what was the word. Uncertain? Troubled?

Silence filled the air. This was usual when they called, but it was never like this. This silence was heavy, it made Darryl feel small. Neither of the two knew what to say. Who would after just hearing the world is going to end in a week?

"Darryl, can we meet?"

He didn't need to hear a word more. Before he even knew what he was doing, he had grabbed his keys, wallet, and a phone charger and was out the door. He didn't bother locking the door. With all the uncertainty surrounding him, one thing was certain. He wouldn't be coming back.

"I'm on my way. I'll be there as soon as I can," He slammed the door of his truck, shoving the key into the ignition. "Can we stay on the call while I drive?"

"Of course." Zak's voice soothes his nerves as he pulled out of the parking lot and onto the street, punching the boy's address into his GPS. "How are you taking it?"

"I don't know." He tried his best not to seem angry, even though he was. Of course he wasn't angry at Zak, he was angry at the world. Why did it have to be now? Why couldn't it have been when he was old and in a nursing home, when all he had to lose was the memories of the life he lived. He had his whole future ahead of him, and it had just begun to look up.

"I don't understand," Darryl could hear the younger's voice trembling. "If they knew about it earlier, why didn't they tell us? We could have prepared or something!"

Darryl was about to respond, but was interrupted by the sight of burning buildings to his right. He stopped at the red light and gazed at the horrific sight of the town he once called home crumbling to pieces. Large groups of people were gathered on rooftops, doing what Darryl could only assume was rioting. What did they have to lose if the world was ending soon anyway? Below the buildings, in the streets, were smaller crowds running out of the buildings. He recognized one as his apartment complex, and was thankful he decided to leave when he did.

A loud honk snapped him back to reality, realizing he had been sitting idle at a green light. He pushed his foot on the gas and sped onto the northbound highway, hoping to get to Zak as fast as possible.

He had to see him before, well. Before the world ended.