Neil hadn’t been happy in a long time. In fact he couldn’t remember the last time that he was happy. He’d spent countless nights trying to figure out when the weight of the world had collapsed onto him, and he didn’t quite have a hold on that either. He thought it had happened about twenty years ago, back in Junior High…but he wasn’t sure.

So, he didn’t know what to think when he found the button and the note in the man’s pocket. He didn’t remember the customer, not quite, he only knew that it was a man and that was all. It had been a busy day at the dry-cleaners, and Neil rarely remembered a customer. Maybe if it was a pretty girl, but that was often forgotten by the end of his shift.

There was no name on the bag. No sign of who it belonged too, it was like it magically appeared on the front counter. There wasn’t anything peculiar about the clothes. A few undershirts, some white, some black. A few pairs of underwear, and a few pairs of jeans. And then there was the button and the note.

The button looked was on a narrow piece of plastic and it looked like a remote for a fan or maybe a small electronic device. The note was handwritten on a piece of lined paper, like the kind he used in school. It was written in pencil, and the penmanship was nice. It read:

Press To End The World

Neil scanned the empty dry-cleaners in hope that the owner would emerge from the bathroom or from behind the pole with the fire extinguisher. But he was alone. He checked the other jeans for some form of identification. Or more importantly a check in slip, and found nothing. Eventually, his focus returned to the button and the note. Pressing the button wouldn’t end the world right?

Now, to be clear Neil wasn’t a cynic, not entirely at least. But he had thought about what would happen if the world abruptly came to an end. He wasn’t against it…and in most cases he welcomed it with open arms. No, his life wasn’t where he wanted it to be, not by a long shot. And yes…he thought he was insane to have those thoughts, but he never took them seriously.

His eyes went from the note to the button. Admiring the penmanship, and then zoning in on the round black button surrounded by white plastic. The entire concept was absurd right? Pressing that wouldn’t destroy the world, and this was all a prank…

Right?

He pressed it. Before he had more time to think. His skin tightened around his frame as he broke into a cold sweat. Nothing happened…not yet at least. He didn’t hear any catastrophic explosions in the distance. No screams from down the street. He closed his eyes and chuckled to himself.

A prank. That’s all it was. A stupid little pr-