The Art of Loving Someone at the End of the World

Loneliness comes in many forms. You can observe it in the line at the bank, shopping for unnecessary goods, even under your own roof it lingers. Sometimes though, it's right in front of you, in the middle of a total humanity-killing apocalypse. That's the way Mary saw it anyways. 

Her week had started with greater prospects. Receiving her new job at the firm was just the beginning. She had met a guy. He was a sort of unperfect dream. Everything about him was what she had wanted for the past plethora of months, but at the end he had felt like a replacement. Just a buddy to fill in the void of having no one love you. It was while she was washing her dress from their third date, the meteor struck. 

Elliot experienced the impact after having some of the worst days of his life. He had returned to his hometown of London a failure, that Monday, after a botched business enterprise. Paris had been so nice to him, but it grew tainted, as it became the place his dream died. One chance he had, to prove his father wrong, and now it was simply in the garbage. He would have to run the family shop and pretend to be happy with it. Worst of all, he had thrown away his relationship with her, for the deal, and now regret set in. 

After the first hit, the world shook. After the second, it grew completely quiet. In the confines of her quaint basement, Mary didn't dare step outside. She remained there 3 days, thanking the gods for a terrifying high school experience that led her to stock up on food, and waited for the subsiding heat to die down. Once the door handle no longer found itself scalding, she grabbed any essentials she could find, and opened the door. 

Unfortunately for Elliot, his situation was a tad bit more dire. He had been driving through the neighboring countryside, readying to meet a possible investor. Unexpectedly a large blast of air hit his car, causing an airborne collision against a nearby fence. Possibly hours later he awoke with a large gash on his head, many feet away from the initial crash, and a fiery ambience. Stripping off a few layers of his suit, he stepped out of the vehicle, took a look around to the barren abyss surrounding him, and began his trek to the city. 

Destruction was everywhere. Crumbling buildings, scorched to dust. The only sound heard was the glass under each of Mary's passing steps. Not a single soul in sight. Surely there must be more survivor's, though they most likely made the wiser decision to leave a ruined London. Food was not as scarce as expected. Canned goods were mostly intact and plenty of stored water bottles available, yet, something was missing. She pondered making the journey to her parent's home, but wasn't sure if she would be more disappointed by their survival or their deaths. All she could do was hope for fellow people to make their presence known. That was her initial goal of course, until she saw him. 

It was a four hour walk back to London and Elliot swore he saw death. Running to the first shop he found and drinking any beverage available, he barely realized the state of things. A moment later realization dawned on him. He hadn't encountered a single soul. Everyone must be dead. The sole survivor. Negativity filled his head. Perhaps his father lived or perhaps everyone is in hiding due to the blast being a government attempt to wipe out the population. Millions of theories clawed at him but another hour later the walk to the Northside began and would end with disappointment, for nothing remained of his childhood home. The shop on the other hand was almost completely fine and it mocked him. He wandered the streets for two days, taking refuge in a small hardware store, awaiting something, he wasn't sure what, but it must be out there. 

Looking at him was a relief but loving him had been a disaster. Theirs is a convoluted story. Just 1 year and 8 months ago they had met in the smallest, most disgusting pub. He had been given an ultimatum about his future, and she, an opportunity. They drank to the decisions ahead of them, alone, until suddenly they weren't anymore. Suddenly, someone understood. So one drink turned to 5, one text turned to thousands, one date turned to living together. The future no longer mattered, they were fresh out of university and they only had each passing moment to live. So they did. 

Mary had been in love before, but it was different. Her past relationship was suffocating and she drowned completely in the midst of it, losing herself in the water. And when he cheated on her she thought she would die, that her heart would give and it would be his fault. Elliot would never let that happen, her heart was his and he cared for it as though it were glass. He did almost everything right up until the end. They had so much in common. A deep love for film, overbearing parents, even a slight quarter life crisis. Together, they were envied. 

Elliot had never been in love before. Sure, he had slept around in high school and made many promises he was unable to keep, but none of that mattered when he met her. That fateful night, he was prepared to give into his father's offer of upholding his shop, after all it provided comfort. She inspired a change in him, after entertaining him with the story of a new job she obtained at a low key office that would allow her to cease contact with her mother and father. She seemed happier than him, so he flirted and they went through the frivolous process of dating, which didn't seem that horrible anymore. The thing about Mary was that she wasn't afraid of showing her love or sharing her feelings, this provided Elliot with the validation he had never truly obtained. But that wasn't the reason he loved her. He loved her because she was true, she didn't act. 

Throughout their partnership they had plenty of small, insignificant arguments. The final month they shared together, she had begun to notice that Elliot had grown distant. He gradually opened small businesses online the past year, but was ready to take it another step further. A job offer had opened up in France and it was offered to him. Accepting it was the only option, but he didn't want to break Mary's heart, so he delayed telling her until the last weekend they had together. Obviously, her reaction had been strong. She was betrayed and didn't know how she was going to move on from this dilemma if he was so many miles away and would be so busy. He had chosen work over her, and it hurt. So just as easy as they got together, they broke up after a year and three months, with love in their hearts, never seeing or talking to each other again. 

A modern tragedy it was, seeing the man who had loved her so deeply only to stop so abruptly. She wondered if he cried for her the way she did for him. Elliot had, indeed, cried and briefly contemplated not taking the job, but it was his dream. He always wanted to be someone important and the worst part was that he had been important to her, nothing else should have mattered. The entirety of his existence was now insignificant, the world is falling apart.

Looking at her had been a reckoning of epic proportions. She had always been delicately beautiful, perhaps catastrophe made every little thing infinitely more amazing because he regarded her as a godsend at that moment. They could only stare at each other for a few slight seconds. She broke the silence. 

''You're alive''

He chuckled at this. '' I know I'm the last person you'd want to see right now' '

This was ironic because it was true. Coincidence was playing a nasty game with them. What are the odds of two exes being the final girls. She noticed the gash on his forehead and immediately paced towards him, cleaning the wound with her first aid kit. Words were not exchanged, they weren't necessary either. Communication rarely was difficult for them. After a silent and pensive meal the two of them decide to find a better shelter in a nearby stadium. 

They slowly began catching up on the last few months, sharing shallow details of each anecdote experienced. A newfound shyness had developed between them. The only emotion lingering was shame from Elliot's part and as he told her of his venture she could only empathize. She knew it was wrong to feel bad, but she recognized the depth of his wanting. 

Upon arrival, they settle in a room on the lower levels, away from any windows or openings, just in case. They were aware of what the proximity would bring. A conversation both parties were loathing to have, but it was inevitable. 

'' Was it worth it? ''

'' Did you miss me? ''

'' Was I not enough? ''

No, yes, yes, a million times yes. 

''Do you forgive me? ''

'' Have you moved on? ''

''Do you hate me? ''

No, no, no. 

Truth is that she could never hate him. She doesn't forgive him but maybe one day she can. They held hands then, and looked into each other's souls. They saw clearly for the first time in forever and cradled each other in their aloneness. Some other survivor's are possibly out there, but in that instant there were only them. Mary and Elliot together like always. 

Night came quickly. The part of Mary that had been missing was her heart. Elliot had taken it to Paris selfishly and only now is he returning it, making her complete. He became increasingly aware that nothing else was of consequence as long as she was there with him. They were each other's people, even before the current circumstances. And their love had outlasted a global disaster. Coincidence was playing with them, but fate knew exactly what she was doing. She gave them a final moment of closure and reassured them of their mutual love, which had caused them so much suffering. They were grateful for the little future they lived that night. 

Just 3 hours and 48 minutes after Mary and Elliot had fallen asleep, a third meteor hit, the impact decimating what remained of Earth's surface. It was alright though, death comes as easy as love, and so does life. When they are reborn, they bloom into two roses in an empty field, overlooking the horizon.