The sun shone on the horizon, the sky was so clear that the only clouds were the smoke from chimneys that occasionally appeared in the distance. As he walked towards school, Marcos thought:

– I'll stop by the convenience store. I need to grab something to eat since I'm not going to the cafeteria today.

Even though he was heading toward Silverbrook, Marcos didn't plan to go to school. In fact, he wasn't even wearing his uniform; he just had his black backpack that he used to carry whatever he might buy along the way. In his last year of high school, the thought of being forced to attend school tormented the boy. It's not that he was dumb or didn't appreciate the importance of education; in fact, he considered himself above average, reflecting on how much of a waste of time it was to be in an environment where most people didn't care about the lessons. "I'd learn so much more if I studied at home," he thought. Perhaps these ideas were just his way of coping, even if poorly, with the problem that social environments were for him. Still, he couldn't just suddenly stop going to school, so he decided to tell his parents that, this year, he would walk to school. One step at a time, he started planning what he would do in the morning:

– Well, yesterday I checked out the snake museum, but it's not like that suits me. I think today I'll do something more relaxed, maybe take a walk on the beach or something like that.

Before he could finish his thought, a boy interrupted the calmness of the scene by shouting:

– Damn it! I'm going to be late, that driver is such an asshole, he could have waited for me for just 5 more minutes!

With his emotions running high, the boy who was running didn't notice Marcos's presence, crashing into him at full speed. The impact threw Marcos toward the road, where some cars were speeding by. As he felt the jolt behind his body, the seconds seemed to stretch longer, and as he was airborne, the lack of control over his body became more apparent.

– Ugh!...PUFF!

In a failed attempt to regain balance, he crashed hard onto the road. His arms shot forward to cushion the fall, and feeling the texture of the asphalt under his fingertips, when he turned his head, his blurred vision was replaced by the imposing figure of a car speeding toward him. The world spun. Time stopped. He didn't know what to do. Swallowing hard, his thoughts scrambled in his mind, and with time frozen, a deep silence highlighted the only thing that felt real: the imminent collision. Amidst the panic, a quick flash of his whole life passed before his eyes, leaving a bitter taste in his mouth—the feeling of not having taken full advantage of everything life had to offer:

– If I had tried harder… Damn, is it over?