I sat back in the chair, trying to picture what it must have been like to be here a long time ago. A woman sat at the front desk in my imagination. Her hair was up in a loose bun and she was engrossed in a conversation on the phone. Her arms waved wildly as she told a story that I could not hear. The windows were clear and bright sunlight streamed through the glass, showing a vibrant, bustling street outside. I leaned into the microphone, pulling the little knowledge of radio shows that I had gathered from books to the front of my mind. 

“Welcome back to Rainy Day Radio,” I said, closing my eyes so I couldn’t see the cobwebs hanging from the microphone arm. “I’m your host, Lux Bennett. As far as news goes this week, my girlfriend was brutally murdered yesterday and I am great at running away from my problems. In traffic, try to avoid the bridge on your way to work today unless you want a bunch of crazy assholes to chase you and threaten to throw you off the side. Also there’s a giant hole in the middle of it, so if you were hoping to make it to that early morning meeting on time, you're shit out of luck.”

“I don’t think you’re allowed to curse on the radio.”

The voice startled me. I jumped away from the microphone and looked around the room, but there was no one else there.

“Hey, sorry if I scared you,” the voice came again. He wasn’t in the room, but he sounded like he was right next to me. “Are you still there?”

It was coming from the headphones. 

I leaned back towards the microphone carefully, like it would shock me if I got too close. “H-hello?” 

“Sorry about that,” the voice said again. “Sometimes I forget that this isn’t normal for everyone else.”

“Who is this?” I pulled on the headphones cord and it came out from behind the desk, its end frayed like it had been chewed through by an animal. “How are you doing this?”

“My name is Oliver,” he said. “And as for how I’m talking to you… it’s a long story. Maybe I’ll tell you in a little while. Most people don’t understand.”

I glanced back out at Ezra. He was still asleep. I wanted to wake him up so he could tell me there was no one talking to me through a pair of broken headphones and a radio station that hadn't seen power in over a decade, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. He looked so peaceful. I didn't want to add my crumbling mental state to his list of worries.

“So this is what my brain decides to do for its mental break,” I said. “I knew it was coming, but I didn't expect it to come in the form of an imaginary friend.”

“You’re not going crazy, promise. I’m real,” he said. His voice was soft, caring. I kind of wanted to believe him. “What was your name again?”

“Lux,” I said, “Lux Bennett.”

“Well, Lux, I thought I was crazy the first time this happened to me, too. I know how you feel right now.”

I was silent for a moment, not exactly sure what I was supposed to say, whether I wanted to ask questions or just start screaming. 

“Where are you?” Oliver said, his voice quieter now, like he realized that he was talking to a wounded animal and that any sudden noise would scare me away.

“I’m in the city,” I said. “Are you… from one of the outposts?”

“No,” Oliver said. “Which city?”

“Savannah.”

“For real? Me too!” he said, forgetting his quiet tone in his excitement. 

“Wait, you’re not with those Rusters, are you?” I said, a spark of anxiety running through me. They said they could find us anywhere. What if they hadn’t been lying?

“No, whatever those are, I promise you I’m not one of them,” he said. “I’ve never connected with anyone who lives in the same place I do. Usually they’re pretty far. One time I even got a guy from Estonia! How crazy is that?”

“Yeah,” I said distantly, trying and failing to remember where Estonia was. 

“Those Rusters you mentioned, are they the ones who tried to throw you off the bridge?” Oliver said. He changed subjects so quickly it was hard to keep up with him.

“Yeah, last night,” I said. “Do you know what their deal is?”

“No, sorry,” he said, then he paused. “Hey, I’m going to ask you a weird question, okay?”

“Sure,” I said, although I felt as though he was going to ask regardless of what I said. 

“Awesome, okay,” he said. “What is the world like? Like, you mentioned an outpost and a big hole in that bridge and these Ruster guys. I guess what I’m trying to say is…”

“Did the world end?” I said.

“Yes!” he said. “Sorry I know that’s a bonkers question.”

I looked down at Riley’s journal, tracing my fingers over the embossed R on the cover. “Yeah..” I said. “I guess it kinda did.”

Through my headphones I heard Oliver get up from his chair and listened to his footsteps circle around the room as he whispered “holy shit, holy shit, holy shit, holy shit” under his breath over and over again before he plopped back down.

“Holy shit, Lux, I’m so sorry,” he said, and he sounded like he meant it. “And you said your girlfriend died, too. Holy shit.”

“Okay, Oliver, seriously,” I said, feeling silly as I leaned into the microphone so that this imaginary guy could hear me more clearly, “you’ve got to calm down to tell me what the hell is going on before I tell you anything else about myself.”

“That seems fair,” he said. “But I don’t think you’re going to believe me.”

“Try me,” I said.

Oliver took a deep breath and let it out slowly, buying himself a moment to collect his thoughts. “I’m from a different world,” he said. “It’s like yours, but… different.”

“What does that mean?”

“Sorry, I’m always so bad at explaining this,” he said. “I have this thing that happens to me where sometimes I just connect with people from other dimensions. I don’t know how it works, but usually it happens when someone needs help. The metaphorical phone rings, and when I pick it up, there’s someone on the other side from another world.”

I was silent for a while, sorting through his words in my mind. It couldn’t be true. I didn’t know what book my brain had pulled this convoluted plot from to fuel its breakdown, but there was no way. It was impossible.

But this wasn't the only impossible thing I’d seen that day: the dog that had flickered in and out of existence, the message in Riley’s journal, the strange device that weighed heavy in my pocket, and the pictures it contained.

“You don’t believe me, do you?” He said. “I get it. I know it sounds insane, but it’s true. I swear.”

I didn’t know what to say. 

“Are you still there?” he said

“Yeah.”

“Are you okay?”

“No, not really,” I said. “But I do believe you.”