"Ethan, the deadline is tomorrow. Please stay behind and get it done. You know how important this feature is for our customers. It can’t be posponed."


    It was already ten o’clock at night. Ethan had packed his bags and was about to leave. But his manager’s words stopped him. He was fully aware that it was not a request.


    “If it’s so important, where are the other team members? Why do I have to stay back and finish everything myself?” Ethan wanted to scream out. He looked at Helena, her manager. She was a fine woman with above-average looks. Although she was on the wrong side of forty, her sharp features and well-kept appearance masked the years.


    Helena looked tired. Dark circles shadowed her eyes behind thick glasses. Ethan realized she was also working late hours. Due to the company''s policy, female employees cannot stay in the office past ten o''clock at night. She would log in again once she reaches home. It was not her fault. The pressure was on her as well. Ethan did not say anything, just nodded in agreement.


    “Thank you, Ethan. I am going home. Please email me when you are done.”


    Ethan took his laptop out of his bag and started working again. The office was almost empty. The sound of keyboards clacking and other employees'' low conversations slowly faded. All of them left one by one until the only sounds were the occasional flickering of the overhead lights and the quiet hum of the air conditioner. The office felt different when it was empty. It was colder, more lifeless. The chairs were abandoned, and the monitors were blank. It was as if they also had clocked out for the night.


    Running a hand through his hair, Ethan returned to his computer screen. Lines of code scrolled in front of him. He focused on his work.


    Ethan kept working on the problem until his fingers ached from typing and his shoulders tensed from sitting too long. He submitted the changes and deployed his code. Finally, he was done. Ethan looked at the clock, it was two o’clock in the morning. He let out a sigh—another sleepless night for him.


    Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.


    His coffee had gone cold hours ago, but Ethan took a sip from the cup anyway. The bitter taste of coffee felt like ash on his tongue. He felt a familiar dull pain in his chest as he lay back in his chair, waiting for the code to get executed. Ethan had been feeling this pain for a few months now. “I need to get myself checked. I have been neglecting my health," he murmured to himself.


    Ethan relaxed his muscles until the pain subsided. He completed his code execution, emailed Helena, and packed his bags. When he reached the parking area, it was already half past two.


    Ethan got into his car and started driving. The chilly early morning wind felt soothing to his face, so he decided to keep the car window open. The roads were empty at this hour, and Ethan was hitting the accelerator pretty hard. Suddenly, the pain in his chest returned. This time, it was much more substantial and sharper.


    “Ahh…” a groan involuntarily came out of Ethan’s mouth. It was becoming more challenging for him to drive. Ethan clenched the left side of his chest with one hand. His vision became blurry, and his fingers spasmed against the steering wheel. The road in front of him dissolved into nothing.


    Almost blinded by the pain, Ethan somehow steered his car to the side of the road and desperately pressed on the breaks. He fought against the weight pressing down on his chest and tried to dial the emergency helpline number. But his body betrayed him. Ethan’s hands gave out. His vision darkened, closing in like a shroud. His heartbeat pounded in his ears, each one slower than the last.


    As Ethan sat in the driver''s seat, his consciousness was slowly slipping away. The realization hit him: he was going to die here, in the middle of this dark, empty road. His entire life flashed before his eyes. He had worked hard his whole life. He studied diligently in school while others laughed and bullied him. He juggled two part-time jobs to pay for his studies while his classmates partied with pretty girls. He earned a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and landed a well-paying job. Ethan worked tirelessly, working late hours to pay back his student loan while his co-workers enjoyed their lives. He repaid his late parents’ debts and even bought an apartment for himself.


    Ethan was a free man now; he could finally enjoy his life. But his life was being cut short abruptly. All the efforts he had made throughout his life would be in vain. A deep anger coursed through his veins. Is this what they call ‘God’s plan’? Has God placed only hardship in his life and no rewards? This is unacceptable; this is injustice. In a fit of rage, he wanted to strike God in the face.


    “No! This is not fair. I refuse to accept this.” Tears pricked his eyes as his consciousness faded. “If…if only I got a second chance….”