I opened my eyes and heard a knocking against my wall. The room… was oddly familiar. A bed sat empty across from me and I jumped up to feel the carpet beneath my feet. This… was my dorm room.

The calendar on my wall marked the day. My alarm clock hadn’t gone off but it was early morning. I found my phone and immediately dialed my parents. “Mom, can you find out if dad is free anytime in the next two weeks?” I asked.“I’d like to have dinner and discuss something important with you.” While in the world of Yetera I had decided if I ever got a second chance, I wouldn’t continue to make myself unhappy on Earth by studying something that was of no interest to me. Being at college didn’t me happy, didn’t make me feel alive. I was determined instead to find something that did.

I moved to the dorm window and pulled the blinds up and looked out. For a moment my breathing stopped in anticipation of the scenes of the apocalypse I had previously watched. Everything was calm, everything was normal. People walked to class carelessly while barely paying attention to their surroundings. There was a cheerful carelessness I hadn’t seen in such a long time.

I couldn’t look away from the smiling faces. Theirs was such a foreign emotion: the vigilance and anxiety I had carried for so long was still with me, even now. It was hard to shake the feeling this wasn’t real, but I knew this was a second chance and one I couldn’t miss.

The doorknob behind me suddenly rattled and I felt my body jump. I was on edge even now. A moment had passed for this world… but for me, years had passed. No doubt an unscarred youthful appearance would stare back at me in the mirror, but those hidden scars would remain.

My eyes remained locked on the doorway as Slob entered the room. His hair was a mess and judging by the redness of his face he was hung-over. It wasn’t an unfamiliar scene to me, but my next actions were unfamiliar.

“I’m glad you are back.” I stood in front of him before he could do his usual flopping onto the bed and passing out. “There’s a bunch of things you need to clean up,” I said while pointing at the scattered clothes and left-out dishes.

He looked at me in confusion, “Can’t you clean it up?” It was what I would have done before, to be fair.

I caught his eye with hard determination that made it clear I wasn’t asking. “Nada, I have things to do. Clean it up before I get back so the room doesn’t smell like shit.”

My forwardness took him aback, “Is everything okay?” he asked.

“Things are better than ever,” I said while briskly sliding by him, “get the room in good condition before I’m back.” There was no room for discussion.

I didn’t have plans to go to class, not anymore. Truthfully, I just wanted to walk around. To find anything that would tether me to this place called Earth. To show me this was real, that this was reality.

My feet were moving before I could even decide on a destination, and before I knew it I had took the stairs upward another floor. I walked slowly along the hallway; many of thedoors half opened. Faces rushed by me, some heading to class and others heading to the showers.

My body was here, but my mind wandered elsewhere. I was an obstacle in this hallway, but most people managed to move around me. One unlucky person exited a door and bumped directly into my chest before falling backwards.

The sudden collision focused my attention, “Ah, I’m sorry.” I said while looking down. Blood rushed to my head and for some reason I felt I would faint. It was Veronica sitting there, her, wearing the same cartoon character pajamas as on the day I had met her.

I reached out and grabbed her hand and helped her up. “Are you okay?” I asked. It felt like I couldn’t look her in the face or I would cry, so my eyes focused on that cartoon picture plastered across her top.

“Sorry, I’m fine…” she replied. Her voice didn’t sound quite as I remembered, but it had been some time since I last heard her talk. My memory wasn’t infallible. “Are you a fan?” she asked suddenly.

“Sorry, A fan?”

“Yeah, a fan.” She pointed at the cartoon character on her shirt, “you’ve been staring at it the entire time.”

“Oh, a little bit.” I lied. Somehow I didn’t want to disappoint her in that moment, even though my answer was only a half-truth.

“Most people don’t even recognize it at all,” she laughed, “and the ones that do usually say it’s childish or stupid.”

“You like what you like, nothing wrong with that.”

She gave a smile at my response.

“Actually, do you have a pen and paper?” I asked.

She looked at me in confusion for a moment, “I can get one if you wait here a moment.” She turned back into the room she had come out of. In less than a minute she handed me both pen and paper with curiosity in her eyes.

Whatever she might have been speculating about me, my actions weren’t at all mysterious. I simply wrote my phone number down. “This is my number,” I said, “I’d like to talk again if that’s okay with you. This way there’s no pressure if you aren’t interested.” Ihanded the paper back to her and the pen with it, then carried on along the corridor.

“Wait,” she said behind me, “I didn’t get your name.”

I almost wanted to kick myself, but in my defense I already knew her name. I turned around with a smile, “I’m Joseph.”

“Veronica,” she responded.

“Good to meet you Veronica. I hope you’ll call me. I think we have a lot in common.” Then I continued on my way. Three years of death-defying adventures and this was maybe the most nervous I’d felt in all my life. My heart was beating out of my chest as I made it down the dorm stairs.

There was one more place I wanted to check, one more face I hoped to see. Eleven was early for me, but for many people this was lunch-time. The cafeteria was packed with people and I was craving some normal food for once.

Two slices of pepperoni pizza and a dream. I walked slowly through the cafeteria while scanning every face. It looked as if I was finding a place to sit, so no one gave me any pause. Two minutes of careful searching later and I found who I was looking for.

There was Aaron sitting alone at a booth, his red hair and tall stature stood out from the people around him. He wore a jersey that had the number twenty-three on it. His face was locked to a phone screen while a bowl of Mexican food was standing on the table in front of him.

I approached and stood directly in front of his table, “Do you mind if I sit here?” I asked.

His eyes looked up at me, and then at the numerous other empty tables around us, “Sure thing,” he said without a care.

I pulled the chair and sat down in silence for a few moments, but just a few, “Twenty-three is a good number,” I said.

He looked at me curiously for a moment, “You know what it symbolizes?”

I wasn’t into sports and there was nothing in my appearance to suggest I was, but I knew a bit from my previous conversations with Aaron.

“Basketball,” I replied, “the greats.”

“Right,” he said. “Jordan or Lebron?” Aaron suddenly asked. I couldn’t help but smile at his question, because he had asked me this previously.

Originally, I had not been able to offer any opinion, but he had given me his answer during our journey on Eastrath. “Lebron,” I answered.

His smile grew from ear to ear, “I have this weird feeling you and I are gonna be great friends.”