Suddenly, a white pigeon crashed into an office window, startling Tiberius and distracting him from the monitor he was looking at.
"Damn it, how many pigeons are going to crash into this window?" he said, annoyed. Every month, at least one pigeon would crash through his office window, annoying him as if they were doing it on purpose.
Not making it a big deal, he continued his search for a rental car for his vacation, which was not going well. Because the majority of the cars were either too expensive or not what he was looking for. He had spent the majority of his money on plane tickets, housing, and other expenses but had forgotten about the car.
He was holding the mouse with his right hand, scrolling through the website, and with his left hand, was aggressively tapping on a sheet of paper.
Looking closely, they were his vacation papers. The paperwork was completed, and all that remained was the boss's signature, allowing him to take his one-month vacation to the village, close to a forest, so he could enjoy nature to its fullest.
There was supposed to be no problem since he had spoken with his boss a few days prior, and because he is one of the best in his field, his vacation was approved, at least as a promise.
While looking for a rental car online, he would look outside through the glass panel that separated his room from the hall like a wall to see if his boss had arrived at the office. And a few minutes later, the man he expected passed by.
"Sir," Tiberius called as he stood up and grabbed the vacation papers.
The boss turned towards him. He had a sad expression on his face, like something had gone wrong. Seeing him with the papers, he raised his hand.
"Give me 5 minutes," he said before walking away.
Tiberius smiled and nodded before sitting down.
He did feel that something was off, but he couldn't care less about anything else. Now, all he had to do was wait for five minutes, get his papers signed, and enjoy a month of vacation in a place far away from the city.
He gave up searching for a car and began checking the time on his laptop. Every minute felt like an hour, but he waited patiently.
As five minutes passed, he took the papers and walked toward the door. Then he left the room after checking the sticky notes on his whiteboard across the room, making sure he had done all the work he was supposed to.
Arriving at the boss's room, he knocked on the door and waited for an answer.
"Come in."
Hearing this, Tiberius entered the room.
"Sir," he said.
"Yes, Ty, what is it?" He said while looking at his laptop's screen.
"Sir, the papers are ready; the only thing needed is your signature."
"Vacation?" he asked, moving his gaze away from the screen and looking at Tiberius.
"Yes, sir, my vacation permit," Tiberius agreed, handing them over.
"Oh, about that…" He looked at the papers.
He then leaned back in his chair, pinched his eyebrows together, and let out a quiet sigh.
"I wanted to talk to you about this. I really wish I could approve this, but…" He put the papers on the table. "... We landed on a big new project, which might be a turning point for our company. So we can't spare anyone right now."
Tiberius felt a little annoyed, but it wasn't something he did not expect to hear.
"Sir, we have talked about this, and you assured me that no matter what happens, I can take my time off. You already canceled my vacation last year for another project," he said in a single breath.
"Look, I do understand, but you are an important part of our company, and we can't just let this chance slip between our fingers. For the company, and also for you, this is a huge opportunity. And…" He leaned forward, put his elbows on the table, connected his fingers, and smiled. "...If we successfully complete this deal, you might get a promotion, maybe with a huge bonus."
Until now, Tiberius had been trying to maintain a smile. However, hearing these words made it disappear. He stepped forward and took a deep breath.
"Sir, respectfully, I couldn't care less about the promotion if my vacation is at stake. I have been planning this trip for months now. Everything is scheduled and prepared. So I'd rather take my vacation than get a promotion."
The boss wanted to respond to his words, but he acted quickly and continued.
"And if something needs to be done, I can still do it. According to company policy, once the vacation paperwork is signed, I must complete my ongoing work within the next 5 business days. So if there is any work related to that job, I can complete it during that time."
"Well, that will not work, unfortunately. The project will take two months to complete at the very least, and having you off for a month could cost us the entirety of it."
Tiberius sighed and took the papers from the table. To properly align them, hit their side against the table and rolled them into a cylinder. Then he coughed a little to clear his throat and took a quick breath.
"So let's do it this way..." He stated, "...from now on, you don't have me on that project. Not only on the project, but also on the company."
"Excuse me—"
"I quit!" he exclaimed with no hesitation.
"You're going to quit your job over a stupid vacation?" the boss asked, frowning and raising his voice.
"Yes. I'm going to quit my job over my legal vacation that is taken from me." Tiberius said. Then he opened the door and left the room.
"I do not intend to rot here," he murmured and hurriedly walked toward his room.
People in the office had heard their conversation a bit, so they were looking at him curiously. "Why would he quit his job for vacation?" was on their mind. At least Tiberius thought this way, but he didn't mind. He would always prefer a peaceful life over wealth.
Suddenly he started to hear a whispering in a language he did not understand. He looked around, but there was no one nearby, just office workers a few meters away.
A black mist surrounded him before he could reach his doorway. From head to toe, he was enveloped in a fog, which he had no idea where it came from.
"What is happening?" He asked, beginning to panic, "What is this?"
But he began to lose his voice, but not in the sense that he became mute. He still could scream, but no voice would come out, like screaming into an endless void. He was completely inside the fog, without any source of light. He could move, but it was useless, since it did nothing but waste energy.
A few seconds later, strong wind cleared the black fog from beneath his feet. With that, he noticed the blue sky around him. When he turned his gaze downward, the scene transformed his panic into fear.
He was high in the sky, falling over a crowd of people.
"HHHHGHGH…" he started to scream, but because of the wind, all he made were inhuman noises. His breathing was also out of control from all the wind and air, which started to suffocate him every second.
He was swinging his limbs nonstop in fear, trying to balance himself.
Every second, the air crushed harder against his ribs. Tears ripped sideways from his screwed-shut eyes.
For a split second, all his life went before his eyes. Every moment, every event. This was his brain's last resort to find an escape route, but it was nothing but a waste of effort.
After the brain did its last desperate move, Tiberius saw nothing but death. He didn't understand how or why he was here. A crowd of people were looking up to him, and he was falling over them.
Just before smashing into the ground, he covered his face and pulled his knees toward his chest. He started to say any prayer he knew, because only God or a miracle could save him now. He continued, until…