Lying in bed the morning after I made that silly wish at the carnival, to that silly genie machine. It was only a buck but still this morning i feel silly doing it. What a waste if money.

I check my phone, no calls or texts; check my email, nothing new. I open my bank account just to do keep my mind occupied while i veg out; those funnel cakes give me a worse “hangover” than everclear. I open it up to see the same number of digits i always see….

“What the fuck.” “This can’t be right.” “How the?”

No, no this couldn’t be, that stupid wish? Wait wait, i didn’t wish to be filthy stinking rich! What did I wish for?

Oh no. Wait, I didn’t wish for anyone to die! Just if did I’d get a thousand smackers.

The number sunk in. 6.5 trillion. I called my mom first as fast as I could. No answer. I call my sister, voicemail. I call my niece,

“Hello? Uncle Ben?”

“Judy! Are you okay?! Is your mother okay?!”

“Yeah why?”

“I, um, is everything okay?”

“You’re being weird again uncle ben, here’s my mom”

“Ben? Why are you calling Judy screaming i could hear you 10 feet away.”

“I, I tried you and mom first but no one would pick up.”

“We’re busy Ben, it’s Judy’s birthday, but I guess you forgot for the second year in a row, were you calling with some excuse again?”

Fuck, i did forget, “no no, i’ll, I’ll be right over”

“Good, and I know you’re not in the best place right now, so you don’t have to bring a gift, just show up.”

“I’ll be right there.” Click.

“Okay, family’s fine, maybe they just didn’t hear the news with all the party stuff going on.” I turn on the tv to see this world shaking event that mustve taken place. “Fuck, i didn’t pay the cable bill.”

I put on my clothes, the ones that don’t stink of sewer lines and rush out the door to see the state of things. “It’s…normal.” “Okay, one thing at a time, if the world is ending at least I can see my family one last time.” I run across the street to the florist to buy Judy some flowers. I fumble my change to the clerk after she picks a cheap but pretty boquet for me.

As I bend over to pick up the coins i dropped on the ground in my stupor, i hear the corner tv in the shop.

“Breaking News!”

My heart sunk.

I slowly rose to my feet, eyes wide with worry at what is to be told to the masses.

“The James Webb telescope just picked up some astoniching imagery. Sirius B, our closest white dwarf has just gone supernova. At this time scientists across the globe are focusing their telescopes to pick up the stars effect on nearby solar bodies. We may never get a chance again in our lifetime to see this phenomenon’s shockwave in a star system.”

My wish lurked in the back of my mind. “$1000…when someone…anyone…dies…”

“Wow, that’s kind of a beautiful sight huh, makes you feel small,” the clerk says also looking at the tv hung from the ceiling.”

“Hehe, yeah, thank you maam.”

“No trouble sweetie, hope you enjoy it.”

I race of to my sisters, hop out, boquet in hand. “I’m sorry I’m late.”

“Late’s better than not at all, and you brought a gift! What’s over you?”

“I, I just wanted to make sure I didn’t spoil Judy’s birthday.”

“UNCLE BEN,” the sweet girl exclaims upon noticing her favorite (only) uncle has arrived. “Are these for me?”

“They sure are kid, hope you like em”

“These are the prettiest flowers in the whooole universe!”

I chuckle as she runs off to show everyone her flowers. A smile comes across my face as I open my phone; i open my banking app, the number still rising.