Everything became kind of a blur. I sat down and tried to gather my thoughts. Zack turned up the volume on his CD player and walked off. Angeline started to cry and she was comforted by Nick who had uttered something that sounded like "Oh, God."

And everyone took it differently. Most just collapsed to the ground but a few began to cry gently or sob hysterically. Very few consoled others, though. I guess they were just trying to deal with it themselves. More than I could count just up and left, either heading for their cars to escape or about their everyday lives to just pretend nothing had happened. Kyle Bumgarner, First string kicker for the Husky football team, began to yell uncontrollably about the rapture and angels, despite the desperate attempts from Nicole and Chris to calm him. The hack circle became chaos as people scrambled away from the unholy spot and a few people rushed outside to see the cause for the commotion.

I looked up to the sky and noticed it really was a beautiful day. The sky had only a few cottony clouds swirled across the blue plain and the suns beams lit them up spectacularly. A hawk circled lazily about a mile off and a 747 flew by loudly.

Someone kept shaking my arm telling me that we had to leave, to get out of there, but I didnt pay much attention. I think it was Arum. And someone asked me what had happened but I didnt answer.

And then, as if to end the chaos, the bell rang.

***

In my daze, my mind went into autopilot and I gathered my stuff as I went into the building. The usual crowd surged into the building, a little shaken up, but mobile. At one point I was talking to Nick about whether not I was going to his house after school. And then I was in class. A substitute for Mrs. Arce trying to give us some busy work to try keeping us from being disruptive. Well, it didnt work. Hernon set about making a squadron of paper airplanes as did Gena. And when the sub turned his back, they would engage in dogfights with their fighters.

And then I was in another class. And another. And then on the bus ride home. The bus driver was crying, I remember. And then I was home, and I walked through the door. Unlocked. How odd.

I dropped my back pack by the door and walked through the dimly lit house. No one appeared to be home, but it was already 5. Mom shouldve been here by now, and Steph was always home. Where was Derek, for that matter?

I served myself a glass of tea and glanced at the note on the fridge.

Dear Robby,

Went to see family in Dallas. If you want to join us, buy a plane ticket.

Love,

Mom

And then there was an envelope with a few hundred dollar bills in it. With a sigh, I put the envelope on the table and went to turn on my computer. I didnt want to go to Dallas. If the world was gonna end, I would see it from here.

But on the bright side, I did have about $300. I picked up the phone on the way to my room and dialed Oscar. A few rings, and then the answering machine. Damn it. And then, the phone rang, scaring the bejeezus out of me. I answered and low and behold, it was Oscar.

"Hey man. Whats up?" I asked leaning against the wall.

"Nada much, senor, but what are you doin later?" I caught my breath and wiped my face with my hand, trying to clear my thoughts.

"Um no idea. You?"

"Well, theres this party in downtown. And, you being Irish and all, I was wonderin if you wanted to go."

"Yeah, sure. What time? And me being Irish has nothing to do with me wanting to go."

"Sure it does, you little alky. And it starts at eight, so Ill pick you up at around 8:30."

"Cool. See you there."

"See ya."

I set the phone down on the desk and sat on the bed. Over the TV was a crucifix with a figure of Jesus in agony. Living in a Catholic home, there was one in every room, so I could do little to escape him.

Well, I could get out of my house. And I made up my mind to do just that, and I turned off my computer with a sigh. The house seemed dead, anyway. Lonely. Like it was abandoned. Left behind.

I grabbed my jacket on the way out and didnt bother to lock the door. Let someone steal something. Nothing was of much value without someone there to enjoy it with.

The screen door slammed a little and the wind nipped at my exposed skin, but after putting on my coat, it didnt bother me so much. A few kids rode their bikes down the street and two other passed a football between them. Some cars rolled along slowly down Clark and a few old men walked on to Good Times. I stuffed my hands in my pockets and began to walk down the little walkway to the sidewalk. A cat ran out from under the bush when I walked by and scurried into the neighbors yard. It glanced back once and then disappeared into her shrubbery.

Before I knew it I was lost within the sprawling expanses of my suburbs. If I wanted to, I could figure out where I was and find my way home, but I didnt really want to. I was content to go aimlessly around these streets and wave to elderly folks sitting on their porches and nod at peers who passed by.

And then I found myself at the church. The sun shown on it brilliantly and it seemed abandoned. The traffic seemed to become sparse here and it looked as if there wasnt any movement in sight. I considered what else I could do and finally went up to the chapel. Through the courtyard and past the school, I reached the huge, wooden double doors and went through the one that was ajar.

"What the hell." I whispered to myself. "Lets try my hand at salvation."

Almost immediately I was pushed aside as a girl that looked to be a year or so older than me walked by with cardboard boxes collapsed and stacked.

"You here to help?" she asked. Without waiting for a reply, she continued. "Theres some boxes that need to be thrown out over there and some old flowers over there. Throw them out, too."

And then she was gone, out the door and leaving me to wonder what I was supposed to do. I wandered in the direction she had vaguely pointed to and found a group of three girls gossiping around a pile of boxes.

"Hey, um-" was all I got out before they gave more directions.

"Youre a volunteer. Well, you can start with these boxes." said the first one. I stood there and waited for one of them to get some, but none did. "You stupid or somethin? Boxes, trash. That simple enough for you?"

I glared at her and got a few boxes. The first girl I had seen had come back now to gather some more and I waited for here to gather some trash. She didnt disappoint and soon we were off.

We went through the barely open door and down the steps. Across the parking lot was an overflowing dumpster and we aimed for that, me almost tipping over with my unbalanced load, her walking along as graceful as an angel.

"Why arent those other girls helping?" I asked as I threw the first collapsed hunk of cardboard over the lip of the dumpster.

"Well, they are what me and my peoples call lazy." she said throwing the first of hers. "Theyre here for community service hours, and all they have to really do is show up. They know I wont narc."

"Why not?"

"Whats the point? I was gonna do this by myself anyway? I dont care if they stand there or not."

"Good point." I said as I tossed the last one. She was soon done and we walked back to the church with a good pace. "Im sorry. I didnt catch your name."

"I didnt throw it. Its Steph. Nice to meet you."

"Stephanie. Pretty name."

"Yeah, it is. But my names Steph."

"Oh thats a pretty name too."

"Nice cover, Chief. Real smooth."

I laughed and we entered the church to get more boxes.

"So, why are you doing this? Community service?" I asked.

"Nope, just outta boredom really. And the desire to help out my local parish here."

"Oh, youre a holy roller."

"That last bit was sarcasm, Chief. Dont get me wrong, I believe in God, but I dont go door to door preaching. I just helped out because the church needs help every now and then."

"Throwing out boxes?"

"The church needs help."

"I have a feeling you dont mean volunteer work."

"Nope. The church is seriously corrupt, but its heart is in the right place, for the most part. God is good. Organized religion is more of a complicated issue."

"Ah. Well, lets do our part then." I said with a smile. She gave a weak grin and we went back for the last of them. The three girls werent there but neither were the flowers, so that was good news. I found it hard to believe they would have thrown them out willingly, so I accepted in my mind that someone had come by and forced them to earn their hours.

I picked up most of boxes remaining and she got the last two, slinging them over her shoulders like you would to a coat. She went out the door and I followed, making sure to keep the boxes balanced and an eye on her. She really was beautiful. The way she held the boxes, they spread out to the sides, flattened and dirty. Like wings.

She did look like an angel and I a bumbling trash man, but then she turned around and smiled. And as horrible as the world is, I found then that a girls smile could make it all better. Make it all go away. She turned away and we threw away the last of the boxes.

We sat on the church steps for a while and watched the sun set completely over the mountains. The fountain gurgled to our right and the gentle, distant hum of traffic on the highway provided enough background noise to tell us we werent alone.

"So, what are your plans for tonight?" Somehow, I knew she wasnt gonna invite me anywhere. She was just starting conversation.

"No idea. Wait, I have a bash or something to appear at. You?" I asked looking over at her. The sun caught her trendy glasses and she took a moment before answering.

"Im gonna stay home and watch TV."

"You wanna go to the bash?"

"I think someone invited me, so well see. But the Monday night line up waits for no one."

"Its Tuesday." She turned towards me and smiled.

"Is that right?" and thats all she said. She got up and made her way to the door. Turning around halfway, she called to me and I turned my head to her direction.

"Why are you here?" I smiled and shrugged.

"Sometimes the world needs a little help." she grinned satisfied with my answer and walked through the slightly open door. I sat there for a bit more as I saw the sun disappear fully behind the jagged peaks.

I got up slowly and began to walk in the general direction of my house. With a start I realized that she hadnt gotten my name throughout that whole conversation. As short as it was, I had a lot to take from it. My neck tingled as I mulled over what she had asked. Why are you here? For some reason, I knew she wasnt talking about being at church.

I walked down the street, kicking nonsensical thoughts through my head, but it all came back to that. What the hell was I doing here?