Dante

"30 minutes to the end of the world"

Is what Dante, seated on a couch with his family, heard the journalist on the TV say.

Dante was an average Italian guy, with black hair and deep brown eyes.

"Where are you going?". Isabel, Dante's mother, said seeing her son got up from the couch.

She was a beautiful woman that, like her son, had black hair and deep brown eyes and, even though she was in her fifthies, she demonstrated only half of her years.

Dante turned towards her and planted a kiss on her forehead before saying "I'm going out, I want to see how our world will end" and began to go toward the door.

"I hope we will see each other in the other life, son" Dante's father, Raffaele, said with red eyes. He was a tall man in his fifties with brown hair and eyes. Even though he was a stern man he loved his family more than anything and would do anything for it.

Hearing her husband words Isabel began to cry and a single tear escaped from Dante control and left from his right eye"I hope so too. Father, mother ;goodbye".

After saying this he pushed open the door of their humble house and went out.

What he saw when he went out was a scenery completely different than to the usual. He lived in street Saint Daisy, one of the antics districts of Florence, a city of the north Italy. Even though it was an antique district it was usually a bustling one, full of tourists, but, today, it was desolated. The sky, usually blue at this time of the day, was a bright red, effect probably caused by the solar eruption that would destroy the Earth.

"You too wanted to see the sky for one last time?" said a soft voice to Dante, immersed in his thoughts. He turned around and saw a beautiful girl with a white dress. She had blue eyes, blond hair and pale skin that, when added to her slim body, made her seem a doll.

She was Beatrice, Dante neighbor and crush.

Seeing her Dante made a warm smile "Yeah, it's a beautiful last sky." and then returned his gaze towards the sky that, in that moment, was becoming more and more bright.

"Beatrice"

"Yeah"

"I want to say you something before dying"

"Spit it out"

*Sigh*

Dante sighed and mustered all the courage he had before saying "I love you. I've loved you from the first time I saw you and I love you now too. It's a thing that I wanted to say you from a long time but only now, at deathbed, I've found the courage to do so".

Hearing him Beatrice made a complex expression and, after esitating for a moment, gripped his hand "I'm... sorry. You are one of the better person I've ever meet and I'm honored that you love me but... I don't love you. I've only ever seen you like a friend".

"Ahahaha friendzoned even in deathbed" said Dante with a bitter smile.

"I'm... sorry"

"Don't worry, it's alright" said Dante with a small smile before tightening his grip on Beatrice hand and continuing "the only thing I ask you is to remain with me until the end".

"You don't need to ask. We've been friend for a long time and I too want to remain with you until the end"

The duo smiled to each other before turning their heads towards the sky, now so bright it was impossible to look at it. They closed their eyes while the previous journalist, in a TV in a broken shop window on the other side of the road, began to make the countdown to the end.

"My dear viewers it's time, I hope we will see each other again in the otherworld"

"10"

"9"

*Tumtum... Tumtum*

"8"

"TumTum..TumTum...TumTum"

"7"

*TUMTUMTUMTUMTUM*

With every word the journalist spoke Dante heart began to beat more and more faster and more and more louder until arriving to a point where he can't ear her anymore.

"2"

"1"

Dante was ready to die but, before the world ended, he heard a genderless voice in his head say to him:

[Congratulations! You are one of the few people chosen by God to be saved. Your world will end but don't worry, you won't die. You will be transferred to <Purgatory> and, if you prove you're worthy, you will become an angel. Your transfer will began... now!]

Confused by the words spoken by the strange voice, Dante opened his eyes and saw that all the things around him were immobile, like they were frozen in time, but, before having the time to be amazed, his vision became completely white and he lost consciousness.