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Rigby peered through the glass dome wall. An unforgiving cosmic void stared back.
Outer space’s black jaws stretched wide, greedily swallowing stars and specs of light like appetizers before the main course.
The main course being the park and everything in it.
Anxious tremors surged through his bones as he pressed his face to the glass, staring at the expanse of cold black nothing. The dome walls closed in every day. Pretty soon, they’d be pressed against each other, choking on the last bits of oxygen before succumbing to the airless void.
Upon this viscerally horrifying discovery, Rigby ran to Skips. He’d know what to do, right? He’d work his magic, and the walls would return to their rightful place.
But Skips had laughed, telling him to stop watching those shitty horror movies from the Space Tree’s junk closet.
So Rigby carried this alone. Every night (day? It was impossible to tell in space.), he slipped out while his friends soundly slept. Someone had to keep track of things, and if Rigby had to be that person, so be it. He pulled his face from the glass, forcing himself to tear his gaze from the petrifying galaxian vacuum. It was time.
Wrestling with his backpack, he pulled out a notebook and measuring tape. He kicked the backpack under a bush and got to work.
After nearly an hour of tireless measuring, Rigby wiped his brow and leaned against a tree. He dared to peek at his results.
Yep. They were dead for sure.
His dejected cry echoed in his ears. He crumpled to the ground, sobs wracking his body like irregular electric shocks. Through blurry vision, the gaping abyss smirked at him. The end is coming. And ya know what? There’s nothing you can do, asshole.
The flow of tears continued like a raging, uncontrollable river. If only Skips had listened. If only they’d never pressed that stupid button.
If only he and his friends had more time.
“Okay, you win!” Rigby wailed. He chucked a rock at the glass wall. “You can have it all! Just…make it quick for them, okay?”
“...Rigby?”
For a moment, he thought outer space had responded. But as he wiped his eyes and his vision cleared, he caught sight of a bluejay in the glass.
Shit.
“Dude…who are you talking to?” Mordecai inched closer, his steps hesitant. “And why are you throwing shit at the wall? You’re gonna break it.”
Rigby froze. That could happen?
The stars glittered coldly. As Rigby stared at them, a horrifying realization settled in. Of course.
The closing walls had just been a red herring: something to throw him off the trail. While he’d messed around with measurements, the void had other plans.
Of course the walls could break. Any day they’d shatter and everyone would die, all because Rigby had barked up the wrong tree.
“Hey! Are you even listening to me?” Mordecai gave him a shove.
Rigby leaped at his touch. Instinctively, he whipped around.
“Whoa.” Mordecai retreated a few paces. Worried lines formed on his face. “What’s the matter?”
What? Nothing. Except you’re gonna die and there’s nothing I can do about it. There were probably cracks in the glass already, sucking the precious oxygen from the park and into the abyss. That would explain why he couldn’t breathe.
Mordecai rushed to his side. “Shit, claustrophobia again? Dude, I told you not to come out here at night. It's okay. Just try to relax.”
“No!” Rigby wrenched away. “It’s not claustrophobia! We’re all gonna die!”
“Nobody’s gonna die.”
“You don’t know that!” Rigby fixed him with a teary glare. “Skips thought I was crazy, but the walls have gotten smaller! I have the measurements to prove it!”
He shoved the notebook into Mordecai’s hands.
Mordecai took it reluctantly. He flipped through the pages. “I don’t get it, dude.”
“I’ve been taking measurements from the dome wall out to certain objects in the park,” Rigby explained rapidly. “Like that tree over there. It’s definitely closer to the wall than it was yesterday!” He gasped, fighting for breath. Shit. Were the cracks already that big?
“Hey, hey. Relax. You’re freaking me out a little. Let me see that measuring tape.”
Rigby tossed it to him. He ran his fingers over the glass wall. No cracks there..
Turning the measuring tape over in his hands, Mordecai studied it closely. He glanced at Rigby’s notes. Suddenly, he burst out laughing.
“Stop! There’s nothing funny about this!”
“No, dude.” Mordecai wiped his eyes. “While I applaud you for trying to be mathematically accurate, you forgot something.”
Rigby froze. “What?”
“That you’re a fucking idiot. Dude, you’ve been switching sides of the tape. That’s why the numbers are changing.” Mordecai rolled his eyes.
Rigby snatched the notebook. He paged through it, anxiety growing with every second. “No…no…I knew it!”
“Rigby?” The smirk dropped from Mordecai’s face. “The measurements are wrong, dude. The park’s fine.”
“No, you don’t get it!” Rigby snapped. “You know what this means? The measurements were a red herring. The walls have cracks!” He clawed at the glass. If the void wanted him that badly, he’d go on his terms.
“Dude, stop!” Mordecai curled his hands around Rigby’s waist, wrenching him from the wall. “You sound insane!”
Rigby fell limp in his grip. Dully, he raised his eyes. Again, the stars were laughing at him. “I’m not insane.”
Mordecai let go. He sat cross-legged in the grass, gesturing for Rigby to join. “Chill out for a bit, okay?”
Reluctantly, Rigby joined him. The claws squeezing his lungs released just a bit, allowing him to breathe easier.
“Remember when we went to Lookout Mountain for that meteor shower?” Mordecai leaned back, gazing placidly at the sky. “When I kissed Margaret? Eileen was probably talking your ear off about constellations.”
“She still does.” Rigby smirked despite himself. “Living in space is a dream come true for her.” He searched the void, but he didn’t recognize any constellations. Maybe they weren’t even in the same galaxy anymore. Who knew? Space all looked the same.
Mordecai shot him a glance. “So that’s why you didn’t tell her about the closing walls. Dude, I thought you liked living in space.”
“Yeah, that was before we learned about all this Anti-Pops junk,” Rigby snapped. “How are you so chill about this?”
“We’ve been through some pretty crazy shit. Things have always turned out okay; why is this any different?”
“‘Why is this any different?’” Rigby sputtered, his eyes widening with indignance. “This battle has happened a million times! Each time, the universe gets reset. So the odds are already stacked against us. Also,” he continued before Mordecai could jump in, “nothing against Pops, but do you really think he could beat a god? We’re all gonna be erased!” He gasped, clutching his chest so his throbbing heart didn’t escape. The void blurred into indecipherable lines of purple and black.
Something touched his shoulder. Mordecai. “Nobody’s getting erased,” he said gently. “We’re all still here, and we have plenty of time to figure things out.”
“No, we don’t,” Rigby whimpered.
“Dude, did you see that training montage? Pops is totally shredded now. He’ll kick Anti-Pops’s ass, and we’ll be home before you know it.”
Unusual softness coated Mordecai’s words. Normally, he’d roll his eyes at Rigby’s paranoia. Their possible doom must’ve been weighing on him as well.
Rigby let out his breath, his heart rate slowing. Mordecai’s touch jerked him from the horrific future, grounding him in the tranquility of the present. “I could’ve sworn the walls…am I going crazy?”
“No, man. You’re just stressed.” Mordecai kicked Rigby’s notebook under a bush. “You need to relax. This isn’t good for you.”
“Well, how am I supposed to relax, smart guy?” Rigby spat. “What if these are the last few weeks of our lives?”
Mordecai winced. “You make some good points.”
Rigby buried his head in his trembling hands. Tears soaked his arms.
“I guess this really could be the end,” Mordecai murmured, almost to himself. “Maybe you weren’t wrong to be prepared for it. Man…I never got to say goodbye to Margaret. Or my parents . I mean, if we all get erased it doesn’t technically matter, but still…I didn’t know that could’ve been the last time I saw them.”
A morbid wistfulness laced his voice, and Rigby grimaced. He hated when Mordecai got into one of his macabre moods. “Hey, like you said, things could still be okay.”
“What if they’re not, though?” Mordecai asked heavily. “I’m not ready to die!”
“Me neither,” Rigby admitted. He wiped his eyes. “At least we’ve done some cool stuff, though, right? We’ve fought demons, babysat for Death, almost got murdered by an evil blonde cult…”
“I guess,” Mordecai sighed. “But there’s still so much I wanted to do. I feel like I haven’t achieved half the things I should’ve by now.”
Rigby sat up. “That’s bullshit. I’m happy just to have graduated high school, and…” he coughed, “I’m not half the person you are.”
“That’s not true.”
“Yeah, it is,” Rigby said. “Living in space has been cool, but it’s kinda made me realize how stupid I was back on Earth. I did a lot of messed up shit.”
Mordecai glanced over at him. “Yeah. But you graduated high school, and now you have Eileen. You got there eventually.” He smiled at Rigby, sad and nostalgic. “You know, if we do end up getting erased…I’m glad you’re the one I spent my life with.”
“Ugh, stop.” Rigby rolled his eyes, but he couldn’t help the smile that spread across his face. “You don’t gotta say it like that… all sad and junk.” He paused, the stars glittering in the corner of his eye. “…But I feel the same.”
“Ha! I knew you’d admit it.” Mordecai shoved him. His expression shifted as he caught Rigby’s gaze. “Are you okay, dude? Still thinking about the walls?”
“Nah. I feel like an idiot now, though,” Rigby said. “Thanks for snapping me out of it.”
Mordecai shook his head. “What would you do without me?”
Rigby shoved him back. He didn’t want to think about that.
“Seriously, though.” Mordecai stood. He offered Rigby his hand. “You shouldn’t come out here at night. You’re probably overtired.”
“Sleep is overrated.” Rigby took his hand. As he stood, he glanced out at the star-covered abyss.
Again, he felt Mordecai’s hand on his shoulder. He let out his breath, his muscles unclenching under his friend’s touch. Together they watched the stars pass by. The void wasn’t nearly as cold and merciless. Even if Anti-Pops erased everything, Rigby wouldn’t look death in the eyes alone.
He leaned his head against Mordecai’s arm. Mordecai flinched at the unusually affectionate gesture. “You okay?”
Rigby thought the question over. A silver field of stars winked at him through the glass. The spacious abyss stretched infinitely ahead, purple and black hues mixing to create a richly beautiful sky.
He’d been beaten over the head with the notion that he wasn’t good enough. He was an irreparable screw-up and a dangerous black hole to anyone who strayed too close.
Rigby had just begun to dismantle that idea. Maybe he didn’t have to be the screw-up everyone expected. Maybe he could help his friends instead of hurting them.
After years of soul-searching bullshit, he’d finally done things he could be proud of. At least he had that. If the universe disappeared tomorrow, at least he had that.
Plus, now he helped hold the universe’s fate in his hands. Rigby smirked. Take that, Dad.
“Yeah…I’m okay. You know, whatever happens, I think I’m ready.”
Mordecai cocked his head. “Really?”
“I mean, as ready as I can be for the universe dying and everyone dying with it.” Rigby shrugged.
“Morbid as hell,” Mordecai said. “But for real, Pops is gonna kick ass.”
“Oh, for sure! He’s gonna send that loser crying back to his little space cavern.”
Mordecai snickered. “It’s gonna be sweet.” He turned, starting toward the house. “Come on. Let’s try and get at least some sleep before Benson gets on our asses.”
Rigby sighed. “Fine.” Before following Mordecai, he gave a final glance over his shoulder.
The void stared at him through the glass wall. Amongst a feeling of placid control, Rigby smirked and stared back.