The end is just the beginning

Orion watched as the light swallowed everything, transforming the world into a sea of whiteness. His heart raced, and cold sweat drenched his back as the bomb approached fast on his location. Then, without warning, the light had swallowed him whole and all that he could see was a space of pure, unbroken white. 

No sound, no presence—only an endless whiteness.

"Ahh!"

With a sudden gasping breath, Orion jolted awake from the bed. His eyes were wide with terror and his chest heaved with rapid breaths… The remnants of the explosion still clung to his thoughts, sending shivers down his spine. 

"Where am I? What about the bomb?" Still in high-alert, cold sweat clung to his forehead as he frantically scanned the surroundings, only to be startled by what he saw.

A familiar, yet unfamiliar sight.

"Is this my bedroom? But how.."  His voice was filled with disbelief.

He vividly remembered being in the city center just seconds ago, watching the death of the final survivor and the earth-shattering explosion that marked the end of the world…

"Am I in the afterlife?" Orion tentatively placed his trembling hand over his chest, feeling his heart pound as if it yearned to escape his ribcage. Clearly, he was still alive.

He slowly placed his feet on the floor with an incredulous expression on his face.

"Then, the damned broadcast... was everything just a dream?" The idea briefly crossed his mind before being swiftly discarded.

"It was far too lengthy and lifelike to be merely a dream."

Orion's gaze drifted to a smartphone resting on the bedside table, its sleek screen radiating a glow in the dimly lit room. His trembling hand reached out and clutched the device, his gaze becoming fixed on the date. 

It was January 1, 2023— the same date as seven years ago.

His mind raced, searching for any answer that could explain his current situation and the only plausible explanation that he could come up with was that he had somehow traveled back in time, seven years into the past, before the broadcast started.

If it was seven years ago… The picture of a happy family briefly appeared in his mind.

"If it's truly seven years ago, I can save them!" 

The possibility that he had somehow returned to a time seven years prior filled him with a strong hope and joy. He could rewrite all the past mistakes and missed opportunities. 

"But first... When did the broadcast first appear?" he muttered.

To be honest, before the broadcast disrupted their lives, Orion was a typical recent college graduate. All he really wanted was to sleep all day, free from the worry of studying or tiring assignments. 

At the time the broadcast appeared, he was most likely asleep.

Just as he was straining his memory to recall the precise moment when the broadcast had disrupted their lives, the bedroom door creaked open, and a figure emerged from the shadows. The silhouette, outlined by the faint glow of the hallway light, sent a jolt of recognition through Orion's veins.

It was his mother.

"Mom?" Orion stood up from his bed with moistened eyes. He remembered the last time he had seen her was also seven years ago, a period marked by darkness and pain.

Ignoring his melancholy, Orion's mother approached him with big strides, her face obscured by the darkness

"Mom…" Orion whispered, his voice trembling with emotions about to overflow.

However, what followed was entirely unexpected. 

Just as he was about to tear up for this mother-son reunion, his mother fiercely slapped his back.

"SMACK!"

"Ah! Mom, what was that for?" Orion yelped, feeling the sting but maintaining a bewildered smile.

Perhaps he had been alone for too long because even his mother's slap now was strangely comforting.

Ignoring his weirdness, his mother scolded him.

"Why are you still asleep? Didn't I tell you to pick up your sister?"

Orion's playful demeanor vanished in an instant, his face paling with realization. 

He remembered. He finally remembered why his family had broken down, why he was the sole survivor. The guilt and sorrow that had become his constant companions ever since, and… 

He remembered the moment when the broadcast had first intruded upon their lives.

"I'm so stupid. How could I forget..."

Ignoring his mother's continued reprimands, he bolted towards the door, haunted by the memory of his little sister, the catalyst for their family's tragic downfall.

Please, be safe… Luna