If there had ever been a more harassed looking person in the world, Dom didn’t know who it could possibly be. He thought Elijah would win the prize. What that prize would be, Dom didn’t know. It certainly wouldn’t be coffee. Elijah didn’t need to be more jumpy than he already was. In fact, if Dom hadn’t known better, he would have thought Elijah had taken up snorting heroin. The fact of the matter was, he did know better. Actually, he knew Elijah better than anyone else and it was quite safe to say, Dom thought, that Elijah had simply gone off his rocker.

So to speak. As far as Dom could see, there weren’t any rocking chairs in the vicinity, but that age-old expression seemed to fit Elijah’s current veneer to a tee. He was smoking like a chimney, one cigarette after the other; his fingers were tapping against his knee uncontrollably and his leg was jiggling up and down. He was either really scared, or really high. Dom figured it was the former, as Elijah wasn’t in a fit state to get high.

The Australian sky was a bright blue, with a sporadic dusting of clouds; it was one of those days that people put on postcards with big letters splashed across them saying “Wish you were here.” Dom and Elijah were sitting outside on a bench by a random beach they’d come across near the airport. They weren’t dressed particularly for the beach, but neither of them cared, even when every passerby gave their jeans and long-sleeved t-shirts strange looks.

“You should probably slow down,” Dom said gently, pulling the cigarette pack out of Elijah’s vice-like grip.

Elijah flicked his lighter, for lack of something better to do. His eyes darted to and fro across the horizon, not really taking anything in. He just wanted out of there. He wanted to be out on the ocean, looking for Charlie, as soon as possible. Every second that past could mean another second of Charlie in complete agony somewhere. Dom told him he had to wait until the following morning. Not only because it would be dark soon, but because Elijah had just spent twenty-four hours on a plane and he was obviously exhausted. Not just from that, but from the last couple of emotionally draining days as well.

“I’m going to get us some food.” He stood up, tucking the cigarettes into the back pocket of his jeans. “Want something? Fish and chips?”

Elijah made a face and shook his head. Fish and chips, for some strange reason, reminded him only of Charlie, and it hurt to breathe when his mind made the connection. He fought to get images of Charlie’s smiling face out of his mind, and very nearly succeeded. “Just a coke. And a sandwich of some sort.”

Dom nodded slowly and started walking away, running a hand through his windswept hair. He didn’t know what he could possibly do for Elijah now. Except be there.

*

He was not what you would call a morning person. For early call times, he’d wake up and go to the set, but it wouldn’t be without incident. Incidents such as swearing up a storm, stubbing his toe or wishing he could intravenously get coffee into his system.

The following morning, however, Elijah was up at four am, ready to go. He didn’t need someone to wake him up eight times, nor did he need seventy-five alarm clocks going off. He was up on his own, and didn’t even complain about the sun not even being up.

He’d ordered a boat last night directly after they left the airport, but he couldn’t take it until eight. He wasn’t sure what to do in the four free hours he’d found himself with, so he just sat on the edge of his neatly made bed, staring at the wall while Dom slept soundly in the bed beside his. He was already showered and dressed, his hair drying and curling slightly at the ends, against the nape of his neck. Dom had stashed his cigarettes somewhere the night before, so he couldn’t even pass the time with the little cancer sticks he loved so much. He needed them, but contented himself with biting his nails until he bled.

When Dom woke up, it was because Elijah was jumping on his bed and singing at the top of his lungs to some music video on some music station. It was seven am, and Dom was not terribly happy. Elijah at this very moment was like a five-year-old, but Dom wouldn’t complain aloud, or voice his opinions that perhaps Elijah was losing his mind; at times like these, it was often best to just keep quiet.

“Lighe,” Dom mumbled into the darkness, covering his head with a pillow and pulling the covers up to his neck. “Go back to bed, it’s the middle of the night.”

Elijah stopped bouncing and looked at his tired friend; the glow of the TV was casting blueish shadows on whatever part of Dom Elijah could actually see. Which wasn’t much. Only his fingers splayed out across the pillow, holding it into place.

“It’s time to get up,” Elijah stated evenly, getting up and crossing to the huge window.

“Elijah, don’t!” But it was too late. Elijah had already thrown open the curtains, nearly killing Dom with all the bright sunlight. Dom suddenly felt he knew what it was like to be a vampire. But at least he didn’t turn to dust when the sunlight hit him. Or did he? He checked to make sure, but found he was in one piece.

He crossed the room and pulled open the door, casting Dom one last glance. “I’m going to find Charlie.”

Dom bolted out of bed, pillows falling onto the floor in all directions. “I’m coming with you.” He started pulling on any piece of clothing he could get his hands on.

“It’s too dangerous, Dom,” Elijah stated evenly, his eyes bright with unshed tears. “I have to do this alone. I can’t risk your life as well as my own.”

Halfway through getting his leg into a pair of Elijah’s discarded pants, Dom looked up. “You’re not doing this on your own. It’s much more dangerous for you to go alone.”

“But you don’t know what’s out there. It’s the ocean…it’s filled with all sorts of things and we’ll be going pretty far.” Elijah sighed, running a hand through his hair in agitation. “Just let me do this.”

Dom took a step toward him, placing a palm on the door so Elijah couldn’t escape. “Not unless you let me come.” He leaned his head closer to Elijah, lowering his voice. “Elijah, I love you. I’m not going to let you be an idiot on your own. I’m going to be an idiot with you.”

A smile tugged at Elijah’s dry lips, but he couldn’t fully smile. Not in the current conditions, when he was about to go into the middle of an ocean searching for someone he’d probably never find. It was a bit like a suicide mission, but it didn’t matter to him at that point; if he didn’t try to save Charlie, he’d never forgive himself. He couldn’t live his life in regret.

Two hours later, Elijah was standing at the helm of a rather large yacht, with Dom at his side. Both were wearing jeans, sweaters and raincoats as well as identical frowns. The man who had rented them the boat told them a huge storm was coming and they should make sure to be back by nightfall. Elijah had promised they would, and Dom had watched him lie to the man’s face and pretend like they were just going out for a jaunt on the sea.

They didn’t speak for the two hours it took them to get out into the middle of nowhere, with just ocean all around them, for as far as the eye could see. The waves started getting choppier the farther out they got, but luckily they knew pretty much where they were heading (thanks to Elijah’s research days before). The rescue workers had not found anyone who was lost, so Elijah was determined to look everywhere they hadn’t, no matter how much of a long shot it was.

Normally you could sense rain; the air would get a bit damp, in the summer, and would get a very distinct rainy smell if you bothered to sniff. Sometimes you’d know it was about to rain because the clouds overhead had suddenly become dark and gray and the sky had darkened quite suddenly from a vibrant blue to something more gray, as the wind picked up.

Neither Dom nor Elijah sensed the rain coming. In fact, there was no warning whatsoever. They were several hours into their journey when suddenly rain started pelting down. Huge droplets, the size of golf balls, struck them and nearly flooded the boat. The sky was immediately dark, and normally you’d get a slight drizzle before the downpour; there was none of that. It all started happening as if someone had pushed a button.

“Is this normal?” Elijah yelled over the sound of rain hitting the sides of the boat. “This end of the world type weather?!”

Dom looked at him, his eyes filled with fear and his mouth contorted in a perfect ‘o’ shape. Rather than say anything, he just shook his head. His facial expression said more than any words could.

The end of their world was most certainly upon them.