The Hottest Day Of The Year [FICTOID]

They speculated what it would look like, what it would feel like.

They weren’t religious, so they met at the playground just before dawn.  Might as well let the kids enjoy themselves, they thought.

The dogwoods along the avenue blossomed in full bloom, lending a grand but futile beauty to the proceedings.

Someone brought a case of Didier Dagueneau Silex and said, “Been saving this for a special occasion, guess it isn’t getting any more special than this, huh?”

They passed the bottles around, a few people wiping the mouths clean then laughing at the pointlessness of doing so.

There was just enough for all the adults to get two or three swigs.  “Everything in moderation,” one said with a laugh before bursting into tears.

Another adult handed out THC candy to the kids.  “Yummy!” they said.  The adult smiled and checked their watch; the kids wouldn’t be feeling any pain when it happened.

“The suspense is killing me,” another adult said.

Someone laughed sardonically.  “It won’t be the suspense that kills you.”

“Maybe there’s still a chance,” one panicky person said with as much bluster as they could summon.  “Maybe we can hide in a basement, wait it out…”

Their voice trailed off as the others smiled sadly at therm.

As the first glow of dawn appeared, someone began playing classical music:  “Thus Sprach Zarathusa.”

“Here it comes!” someone shouted needlessly as the supernova rose over the horizon and peeled their skin off.

© Buzz Dixon