A Death

As I stepped outside I was engulfed into the thick, heavy spring air. It had been a particularly humid spring season and that wetness was making itself known. The sky was a spattering of reds and oranges as the day gave way to night. A wall of clouds filled the horizon and I could hear a distant rumble rolling through the sky heralding the arrival of a spring thunderstorm. Though the storm hadn't quite arrived, it would be here soon.

Emily sat on the curb a ways away from the office's entrance, her purse rested haphazardly on the ground next to her. She held a half burned cigarette between her fingers with another snubbed out on the ground near her, embers still smoldering. I started to make my way towards her, she must have heard me coming as before I called out to her she turned to me with a small, half smile.

“So how'd it go, boss lady?” Her sarcastic tone managed to draw a snort from me.

“Not well.”

“Get fired?”

“Yep.”

“Figures.” She said and offered me a cigarette. I sat beside her and gently declined, it had been years since I quit and I wasn't going to start again now. Emily just shrugged. “Suit yourself. So, do you think the old man will come to his senses and give you your job back or is he gonna go down with the ship?”

“Dean might invite us back but I wouldn't count on it, that man is too stubborn for his own good.”

“You can say that again.” A companionable silence fell over us. Despite how Emily presented herself I knew she hated confrontation and was using this as a chance to calm herself down. For my part I was simply content to sit in the warm air, watch the storm roll in, and think about where life would take me next. Of course my most immediate issue was my new lack of employment, but I was young, had good work experience, and solid references, so I wasn't too concerned about finding a new job. The question on my mind was, do I stay in the same field, or maybe try going back to school, and finding something I actually enjoy. I thought about moving back home to be closer to my parents, they were getting up there in age and would appreciate the help, hell, maybe I should get a dog, or a boyfriend, both could be good too.

Emily and I had sat there long enough the storm had almost arrived, the wind had started to pick up and the first droplets of rain started to wet my hair. I placed my hands on both my knees and made to stand.

“Welp Em, I should probably get going. Are you going to be okay?”

“What do you mean by okay?”

“Like without this job.”

“Oh nah, I’m probably cooked but I’ll figure it out.” that got a light chuckle out of me.

“Well if you need anything you have my number, just give me a call.”

“Aye-aye cap’n.” Emily replied and gave a two fingered salute.

I stood and started making my way across the parking lot, I had parked my car on the far end of the lot which was a decision I was now regretting as the rain started to pelt down harder. By the time I had reached my car and started fumbling with the key I was thoroughly soaked. My car was an old beater sedan painted in an ugly gold I had picked up for cheap, the check engine light was on, the air conditioning didn’t work, and it was rusting around the wheel wells. The car might not have been glamorous but she had gotten me through life since high school and I loved the old pile of junk.

The car was old enough I still needed the physical key to unlock the door which was annoying to have to do in rain. After fumbling around for a few seconds too many I finally got the door open and threw myself into the car, seeking refuge from the rain. As I slotted the key into the ignition the engine had to turn over several times before actually starting.

Putting the car into gear and pulling out of the parking lot I was becoming more and more concerned as the rain began to fall harder and the winds whipped up even faster. It was only a few turns after leaving the lot until I was merging onto the highway and starting my long commute back home. I had a nearly hour long drive ahead of me so I got myself comfortable, turned on the radio to my favorite station and started my trek home. I had driven for around thirty minutes and was now well into the middle of nowhere, as I lived in a different town from where I worked. I had to pass through farm fields and pasture on my drive.

The further I drove however the worse the storm became, the rain was coming down in sheets making the road slick, the wind howled furiously, and lightning spiderwebbed through the dark clouds. My car was running low on gas which was strange as I had just filled it up that morning, tank must be leaking. I thought with a sigh, while I loved my old girl the repair costs were starting to mount, and at some point it would just be more than the car was worth. There was a truck stop ahead in the distance, I was planning to stop there to refill, and maybe grab a snack.

But before I could arrive the air around me began to feel strange. The inside of my car began to fill with the smell of ozone, and my hair began to stand on end. As soon as it started and before I could even process what was going on a deafening boom echoed through the air. Pain filled my body and my muscles seized causing me to veer off the road and into the drainage ditch beside it. My mind reeled as I tried to come to terms with the unlikeliness of what had just occurred, did I just get struck by lightning? Though the pain was immense and my body was refusing to respond to the commands I was sending it I still had the clarity to think, Fired and hit by lightning in the same day, at least it can't get worse. Or so I thought until the world became unbearably hot around me.

When I saw orange flames beginning to lick at the edges of my window I realized the lighting had ignited the leaking fuel, setting my car ablaze. Panic filled every fiber of my being and I tried to will my body to move but it refused. The world grew hotter, the flames had started to encroach on the car's cabin, filling it with smoke. The pain, heat, and smoke had started to mess with my head and I could no longer think straight, my senses were growing fuzzy and memories began to fill my mind. The dog I got for my fifth birthday, my parents smiling when I won the school's science fair, the friends I grew up with, quiet nights spent with the guy I dated in college, even my now former coworkers were there. As my life played back before my eyes and my vision grew dim I had one simple thought, this sucks, and then I died.