6:45 a.m.
Phone alarm chirped. Atlas slapped it off and stared at the ceiling.
"Get up," he told himself.
He slid out of bed, stretched, did a few swipes to his messy unkept deep brown hair, brushed his teeth, splashed water, and pulled on a hoodie, jeans and shoes. Backpack. Keys. Phone.
Rei: You alive?
Atlas replied: Barely.
He locked the door and headed across campus.
Outside, the sky looked tired. Buses sighed. People shuffled. Coffee lines wrapped around the building.
In the lecture hall, Atlas took his usual seat near the middle. Mira Voss waved from two rows up.
"Morning," she said.
"Morning."
Mira Voss, Atlas' best friend since the beginning of the college semester, she's the pinnacle of all that is good in the world. If there was some that was beautiful inside and out, it would be her.
Natural light honey brown skin, with jet black perfectly trimmed bobcat that stop right at her shoulders with one pink highlight, hypnotic golden eyes and a body that would make the greek goddess jealous and the gods commit to monogamy.
"You just gonna sit there and goon or are you going to finally make a move after all this time?" Rei whispered in Atlas' ear.
"Do you have to sneak up on me like that?" Atlas said, annoyed.
"Gotta keep ya on your toes, y'know?"
Rei Minagawa, Atlas' best friend since middle school, always testing Atlas one way or another. He favors tech gear versus Atlas' more casual taste.
Which suits pretty well against Rei seeing that he's an albino, which works in his favor against his generic styled anime hair and red eyes.
Rei slid into the chair beside him. "You look like you lost a fight with the bed."
"I did. The bed won on points."
"Tragic," Rei said. "Closed decision."
Mira leaned back over her chair. "Study group still on later?"
Atlas nodded. "Yeah. After econ."
"Good," she said, smiling. "You explain supply better than the slides."
Before Atlas could answer, Professor Caldwell walked in with a stack of papers and zero patience.
"Phones face down. Laptops only if you must. If you are multitasking, you are lying to yourself," Caldwell said. "Economics is choices. Choices hurt. If it does not hurt, it is not a choice. Today, we face trade-offs."
He scrawled on the board: Scarcity. Opportunity Cost. Incentives.
"Everybody wants more with less effort," Caldwell said. "News flash. The bill arrives. It always does. Your time is a budget. Your attention is a currency. Spend it like you mean it."
Rei whispered, "He woke up and chose violence."
Atlas bit back a laugh.
Caldwell continued. "Think about your life. You scroll for an hour. You could have rested, learned, called your mother, cooked a meal. Every yes is a no to something else. If you pretend otherwise, the market will correct you and reality will charge interest."
Mira raised her hand. "What about people who cannot choose? Like when all options are bad?"
"Then you prioritize survival," Caldwell said. "Start with food, safety, shelter, the basics. You cut luxuries. You say no to people who waste your life. There is nothing cruel about protecting your future. Any other questions?"
A few hands went up. Atlas listened, wrote notes, and felt the words land. Choices. Budgets. Interest.
Class drifted into examples. Rent versus savings. Part-time jobs versus internships. Caldwell pulled no punches.
"Stop pretending you will start later," he said. "Later is a myth."
Rei scribbled, "Later is a myth," and underlined it three times.
When the hour ended, chatter filled the hall. Caldwell wrapped up.
"Read chapters four and five. Office hours are real. Use them."
Mira turned to Atlas. "Coffee?"
"Yeah."
They filed into the corridor with the crowd. That was when it happened. Two guys from the back row, varsity jackets, easy smirks, moved in like they owned the hall.
"Hey, Garner," the taller one said. "Heard you're the human calculator. Do my problem set?"
Atlas kept his tone light. "I charge premium rates."
"Cute," the other said. "Do it for free."
Mira stepped in. "He said no."
The tall one laughed. "Relax, Voss. We're asking nicely."
Atlas lifted his hands. "I got plans, man. Ask Caldwell. He loves office hours."
"Look at him," the second said, leaning closer. "Hero escort needed?"
Atlas smiled. "I get lost easy. Signs help."
They stared, waiting for a flinch. None came. Atlas kept the same easy smile. He did not raise his voice. He did not fold.
After a few seconds, the tall one clicked his tongue. "This is boring."
"Yeah," the other said. "Later, calculator."
They drifted off, already joking about something else.
Mira exhaled. "You good?"
"I'm fine."
"You should not have to deal with that."
"I know. It is easier to be boring than to fight over nothing."
Rei fell in step with them. "He gave them the slow wall. Brutal."
Mira nudged Atlas. "Still. Tell me if it gets worse."
"It won't," Atlas said. "They crave reactions. I do not carry those around."
"Wow," Rei said. "Philosopher."
They grabbed coffee and found a bench under a crooked tree.
Rei cracked open a bag of chips. "Study group tonight. I bring snacks. Atlas brings brains. Mira brings heart."
Mira sipped. "I bring color pens."
Atlas nodded. "I bring a whiteboard app."
Rei pointed at the sky. "And I bring weather reports. Chance of academic pain at ninety percent."
Mira smiled. "Bring ice." As she holds out a cup of tea.
They walked to their next classes, split at the main path.
"See you later," Mira said, tugging Atlas's sleeve for a second. "Text me."
"I will."
The day slid by in fits of lectures and corridors. Atlas took notes, ate a cheap burrito, and swapped jokes with Rei about a group project that did not exist. A professor canceled a quiz. A line at the printer moved like molasses. It was ordinary and a little tired.
Evening settled. Study group ran for an hour. Mira asked sharp questions. Rei made everything funnier than it should have been. Atlas explained graphs until they made sense.
Outside the library, they said their goodbyes.
"Walk safe," Mira said.
"You too."
Rei saluted. "Try not to major in stress."
Atlas waved and headed toward the corner store. Fluorescent lights. A radio station murmured near the register. He grabbed instant noodles, a protein bar, and a bottle of tea.
At the counter the cashier glanced up. "Student discount with ID."
Atlas handed it over. "Thanks."
"Midterms soon?"
"Soon enough."
"Stock up," the cashier said, sliding the bag across. "Trust me."
"Working on it."
Atlas crossed back to campus. The dorm lobby smelled like old carpet cleaner. Someone argued softly about game night. A door shut somewhere down the hall.
In his room, Atlas dropped the bag, kicked off his shoes, and set his phone on the desk. He opened the laptop, reviewed notes, then closed it when the lines started to blur. He put on a show he had seen a dozen times, watched five minutes, and let it play while he scrolled.
The group chat on his phone lit up.
Rei: Caldwell is a boss fight.
Mira: I already started chapter five.
Atlas: Overachiever.
Mira: I like understanding things.
Rei: I like snacks.
Atlas: Scavenger.
He flipped to a short video, then a campus thread, then a gear review. Time went slippery. He was awake, then heavy-eyed, then halfway under.
The show whispered from the laptop. The phone rested warm in his palm. His fingers slackened.
Eyes closed.
A single tone cut through the room.
He stirred, blinked, and brought the phone close. A new icon sat where there had been none. Clean white, simple text
Atlas was already fading fast, he placed his phone on a wireless charger and immediately passed out.
As he closed his eyes his phone stayed lit up with the words.
"World Survival."