"Good meeting today. Let’s catch up next week on the backlog and figure out how to push some of that into production," Calvin said. "Shane, drop me a message with those reports we were talking about. I’ll take a look by Monday."

Calvin left the conference room and a great weight was lifted from him. That was the last meeting of the longest day of the longest week. Now there was only one thing left for him to do. He needed to drop by Amy’s desk and rescue her from this fluorescent office hell. They had trivia night to get to.

"Hey Cal!" Amy's voice rang out over the cubical walls, "We’re going to crush them tonight right? I’ve been watching Jeopardy all week and that free beer has our names written all over it!" A smile crept across Calvin's face. Her enthusiasm was contagious.

Their friendship had a comforting familiarity - Amy was the yin to his yang. Where Calvin obsessed over details, Amy saw the big picture. Her compassion balanced his competitiveness. He found himself relying on her refreshing outlook more lately as work intensified. In fact, he had started to wonder if his feelings for Amy were more than friendly. She certainly was beautiful, at least in his eyes. She was at least a head shorter than him, but he'd always liked shorter women. She had flowing auburn hair, which in the right light had the intensity of a roaring fire. She mostly kept it tied up at work which was a shame, but office politics were a bitch sometimes.

Calvin had a little bit of an entrepreneurial spirit as well. He’d really wanted to go into business for himself but had never really found the spark to stick with an idea long enough to bring it to fruition. He was certainly skilled in many ways but always seemed to lose interest a few weeks into building his next mega business empire. He’d always blamed it on work. His life was already full of decisions and stress and metrics, and just adding to that pile didn’t always leave him feeling the best. Ultimately, all of his efforts went into his professional career as a project manager.

Calvin continued down the hall towards his office, his mind trying to free itself from the shackles of his week. His office on the fourth floor overlooked the bay, a serene view often lost in the chaos of emails and reports. Today, the sun reflected off the water like a sea of diamonds, boats danced, and crowds enjoyed the sunshine. It was a great place to work, though Calvin rarely had time to appreciate it. This week, his focus had been on the looming product release, and his meeting on Monday morning involved delivering unwelcome news of a potential delay.

Calvin plopped his laptop on his desk in an act of solidarity against work. In that action, his mind shifted straight into the weekend. He unconsciously ran his hand through his impressive and well-groomed beard. It was the hallmark of hipster tech workers. Work was over, it was time to get to the good stuff.

Amy was standing in the doorway of his office, anxious to get rolling. She had already let down her long auburn hair after having it bunched up all day in a 'professional' bun. She'd clocked out physically and spiritually. This was her favorite part of the week. They didn’t usually get to hang out on weekdays, since Calvin was typically in the office late or bringing his work home with him. The weekends were reserved though, and as much as Calvin sometimes tried to fight it, she ensured he took the time to relax.

Tonight, their previously undefeated trivia opponents faced a reckoning.

“See Cal, I told you it would pay off. I’ve got a big trivia brain now.” She clanked her glass against his, reveling in their haul of free beer. Holding her glass aloft she called out to their defeated opponents, “Better luck next time fellas!”

Calvin loved coming out with Amy. She was fun and had an aura of joy about her. She felt like… home. Seeing her take in the world, full of smiles always tugged at Calvin. She saw positivity everywhere and her happiness was contagious. Today he sank into her smile. He was fully free of the stressors of regular life and found himself deeply in this moment now. These Fridays had been a tradition for them for the better part of a year, and honestly, he wanted to do more of it.

“Hey, let’s get out of here Cal. I’m itching to get my feet in the sand and catch the sunset.” She said, grabbing his arm.

“Lead the way.” He tossed some cash down on the table, gave a salute to the other team, and followed Amy out into the warm summer air.

And away they went. Calvin being led by Amy's exuberant energy. In the office, she was fun but professional. Out here, in real life, she lived in the moment. Her energy was infectious, and while Calvin usually stayed pretty serious, he couldn't help but find himself taken in by the experience. She lightly skipped along the boardwalk, pointing out various stalls and people as they passed by. Amy was such an adventurous spirit and Calvin often wondered how the mundane allure of a lifestyle app company had drawn her in. He was glad it did, otherwise he'd never have met her.

The beach was close and soon, the planks of the boardwalk gave way to an expanse of golden sand. This was Amy’s cue and off came the shoes.

“Here, hold these.” She gave Calvin a wink and set off into the sand. She hadn't really asked Calvin to hold them, she ordered, and Calvin was all too happy to comply. She could be a little ass kicker when she wanted.

The sun was dipping low on the horizon now, and the duo found a quiet bench to sit and take in the scene from. The calls of the seabirds mingled with the low echoes of the splashing waves as they sat there waiting for the day to slowly close to an end. Calvin wasn’t really a sunset watcher, but, hell, if Amy wanted to sit and watch paint dry, he’d be along for the ride.

She looped her arm through his as she sat and rested her head on his shoulder. Her hair draped over his arm.

“Thanks for coming out here with me. It feels really nice to be out here with you.” She looked up at him with adoring hazel eyes.

“Of course Amy. You did win me free beer after all.” Calvin said as he gave her a playful nudge with his shoulder.

Their moment of comforting peace was interrupted by a low thrumming vibration. Calvin wasn’t sure if he was hearing it or feeling it, but it began to rapidly grow in intensity.

Amy looked around for the source of the noise, “What’s that?” She asked.

“Not sure, maybe a big ship?”

As if on cue, the sky began to darken and then took on a haunting orange hue. Punching through the atmosphere above them was something completely out of this world. Possibly literally.

A gargantuan structure broke through the sky, slowly lumbering over the bay toward the city. The leading edge was wreathed in roiling flames as the friction of its passage began superheating the air around it. Calvin looked up in paralyzed silence at the event unfolding before them. The structure was easily dozens of miles across, and they still couldn’t see the entire thing. It was solid black, and smooth across the entire surface. Quite honestly it resembled a perfectly smooth, polished skipping stone Calvin might have skipped across his family cabin’s lake as a child. Except this stone was scaled up by like…. A factor of a gazillion.

The two of them stood, staring at the craft, panic and confusion warring within them. Their instincts told them to get the hell out of there, but their bodies simply would not listen.

The situation was the same everywhere Calvin looked. People who had been strolling down the boardwalk or splashing in the shallows of the bay all stood in silence. Many of them with their phones out documenting the oddity before them. A few people pushed their way through the crowds in a well-concealed retreat as they took their opportunity to get the hell out of dodge.

A passenger jet, moments away from landing at the local airport, found itself dangerously close to the colossal floating structure. The pilots desperately attempted to steer clear of it, but with one blinding flash of blue light, the jet plummeted from the sky like a stone, exploding into a shower of debris upon impact with the bay.

Panic started to build in the crowds. Loud murmurs of surprise and grief rang out through the thrumming vibration.

Suddenly, the air around them sounded like it would tear itself apart in a roaring whistle.

Overhead, a formation of F-35s from the local Air Force base screamed toward the structure, followed moments later by a second formation. The panicked crowd seemingly found just a small bit of comfort in the presence of the mighty United States Air Force.

Several things happened all at once. First, the leading formation of fighters began circling the monolithic structure. Second, multiple blue flashes of light engulfed these leading craft, sending them crashing into the water below. Third, the second formation unleashed a devastating barrage of ordinance at the structure. Finally, and probably most importantly, the structure straight up fell apart. One moment, it was a hulking, solid monstrosity and the next it seemed to become a billion tons of black sand falling from the sky.

‘Falling’ may not be the right word to use. Because the ‘sand’, began to undulate and move under its own power like writhing tentacles in the air. The apparent tentacles swatted the missiles right out of the sky, causing them to completely disintegrate. Not in an explosion though, they simply fell apart as the structure had.

The scene immediately fell into chaos. Beachgoers ran for their lives back toward the city. Pedestrians sprinted heedlessly across lanes thick with gridlocked vehicles, drivers and passengers alike abandoning cars to flee by any means. Sheer animal panic gripped the growing crowds scrambling from the harbinger of doom occupying their skyline.

"What the hell is happening, Cal?" Amy asked, her voice trembling.

Calvin shook his head, trying to process what they just witnessed. "I have no idea. But we need to get the hell out of here."

Grabbing her hand, they raced towards the street, their hearts pounding in their chests as they pushed through the panicked crowd. Calvin's mind was racing with fear and confusion, but he knew he had to stay strong for both himself and Amy.

As they stumbled onto the street, they were quickly engulfed in pandemonium, the volatility of the scene before them only intensified. People were screaming and shoving past each other, desperate to escape the looming alien tentacles above. People were being shoved to the ground as others plowed through them in a bid to get to safety first. Order had completely collapsed and it was every man or woman for themselves now.

Behind them, the otherworldly mass of ‘sand’ smashed into the bay and began… crawling to the shore. Flashes of blue lights illuminated the buildings around them at a rapidly increasing speed.

Amy clung to Calvin's arm for support as a man barged through them, dragging two crying children along with him.

"Hey, watch it!" she yelled after him, but he paid no attention.

Calvin pointed towards the city center, his thoughts racing. "Let's go to my place and try to figure this out."

Amy nodded wordlessly, still in shock from everything that was happening. As they fought through block after block of violent, surging crowds, Amy found herself clinging even tighter to Calvin's arm. His unwavering strength gave her a sense of security amidst the madness.

But little did she know, inside Calvin's mind was just as chaotic and conflicted as the world around them.

What is going on? This can't be real. Saving my work crush from aliens? It sounds like something out of a movie. Come on, focus! But no matter how hard he tried to rationalize or deny what was happening, the reality of it all kept hitting him in waves.

After what seemed like an endless journey, they finally arrived at Calvin's apartment. His husky Freya greeted them with excitement and stressed energy, but even her frantic yips couldn't distract him from the turmoil inside.

"Freya, calm!" Calvin commanded, his voice tense but gentle. Freya reluctantly settled onto her bed, her eyes tracking their every move with concern.

As a puppy, Freya had been a handful for Calvin to train and raise. But now she was his loyal companion and source of comfort during times like this. And as he looked into her trusting blue eyes, Calvin couldn't help but feel conflicted about what the future held for all of them.

With Freya calmed, an eerie silence descended on the apartment. The loss of adrenaline suddenly left Calvin depleted, struggling to process how their world had crashed into flaming ruins within hours.

He flicked on the TV, but only static appeared. "What should we do?" Amy asked shakily. "Should we call someone?"

Calvin sighed. "Honestly I don't know. The roads look hopeless and the police are probably overwhelmed." He saw Amy's rising panic and steadied his voice.
"But for now, let's start gathering supplies. I'll grab first aid stuff and clothes." He forced a small smile. "Don't think I've got much that'll fit you though."

Calvin took two steps towards his bedroom when all the windows abruptly exploded inward. He dove to shield Amy as glass sprayed through the room. Freya erupted in fierce barks, placing herself protectively between them and the windows.

"C'mon, let's get to the bathroom! Away from the windows!" Calvin urged, helping a dazed Amy up.

Then, just as suddenly, the entire apartment flashed a blinding blue light. Calvin pulled Amy against his chest, wrapping his body around her as a shield and cradling her head into his shoulder.

"I've got you. It's going to be..."