Eric burst through the water's surface, gasping for air, his lungs on fire as he fought to reclaim the oxygen he had been deprived of.

He had been standing in the underground subway station, hoping for a swift ride to his office. Well, that was until the ground started to tremble beneath him, distant explosions echoing from above. Seemingly in an instant, the pipes had ruptured, unleashing a torrent of water that engulfed the platform, plunging Eric into a struggle for survival.

As he lay upon the subway steps, heaving in heavy breaths, a black and white cat had come into view. The creature was seemingly calm, considering the absolute wasteland around them. The cat hummed out a purr as it approached Eric, soothing the man as his body slowly started to relax a little more. He swore his anxiety would be the death of him one day.

Eric gradually pushed himself up and made his way up the last few steps, his brown suit drenched and sending a chill through his body as he surveyed the scene around him.

Buildings lay in ruins, debris scattered across the deserted streets. What on earth had happened here?

A sudden sensation against his leg jolted Eric from his daze. He glanced down to find that same cat nudging him before it turned and began to walk away, beckoning him to follow.

It led him to a woman, to be precise. She was seated in an alley, her back against the wall, as the cat settled comfortably in her lap. The woman seemed rather mistrusting of his presence, given that she’d immediately scrambled to her feet to make her way out of the alleyway, the beginning of rain starting to patter down.

Though, instead of leaving her be, like most people would, Eric began to follow closely behind. Only stopping once the woman had slowed under a scaffolding, turning to face him.

“Stop following me.” She whispered under the constant noise of the rain pouring down.

Erics expression softened.

“Okay…” He murmured, anxiously wringing his hands. However, he never made a move to turn around and leave.