“You know the end of your world will happen tonight.” he said as a matter of statement rather than question.
“What?” he exclaimed knowing that most of what his companion said was true. “Tonight?” he continued with a sense of panic in his eyes as he still looked around trying to find his keys so he could leave for work.
“Yes, tonight.” he replied with some disdain, as if he should not have to speak twice.
“So I should not bother going to work then?” he asked, wondering why he was asking.
“Well you could but your boss would just be upset with you tomorrow.” he responded.
“Hold up! You said that the world ends tonight. So what’s the point of going to work and why am I bothering to even question it?” he asked more of himself than to his friend. “I should be calling my family, finding my close friends, saying goodbye to the one I love…” he frantically continued. His breath became shallow and his vision blurred as a panic attack began to set in. Suddenly it all stopped as he felt a sharp pain in his lower left leg. “Ouch! What was that for?” he screamed at his companion.
“You were panicking for no reason!” he replied as he walked away and rubbed up against the open door.
“Of course I was panicking, you said the world is about to end!” he screamed back.
“And it is.” he replied, now leaping onto the messy bed and looking about for a spot to lie on.
“OK, you’re doing it again. Winding me up and watching me freak out for no reason.” he reasoned. He sat down on the bed next to his companion and started to think. “So the world will end tonight, but tomorrow will still happen as my boss is going to be upset…” he contemplated to himself as he spoke aloud.
“Only if you don’t go to work.” the voice said, now from the other end of the bed.
“What, the world will end or my boss will be upset?” he asked.
“Both, but your world ending will happen either way, your boss’ reaction is just basic probability, like most of your life.” his companion said in a sleepy yawning kind of way.
“OK, so my boss’ reaction aside, how is the world going to end? Big explosion, giant solar flare, inter-dimensional demonic entities or is the world destroyed to make way for some space equivalent of a bypass?” he finished off sarcastically.
“Well if you’re going to get like that, then I can’t be bothered” he said defiantly and closed his eyes, nestling his head into the duvet.
“Don’t be like that, it’s a lot to take in, the end of the world and all that,” he pleaded. “I just want to know how the world will end tonight!”
His friend and companion raised his head up, his eyes bright and large stared straight at the man standing at the end of the bed. “Well, and I only answer you now to save your dignity, there will be no big explosion, no solar activity will wipe life from the planet, no demonic armies will arrive and definitely no bypass. It will just fade from existence, as you close your eyes and sleep.”
“Oh, just like that, sounds kind of peaceful. I guess when I wake my world is recreated?” he asked the black bundle of fur now very asleep on his bed. He looked at him, smiled and gave him a small stroke behind his left ear. Then he found his keys, opened the door and left for work.
