Liza Castellan had her head stuck in the clouds.  Not literally, of course, but almost—like right now, her neck was bent at an uncomfortable angle, and her face was pointing straight at the sky.  Currently, she was deeply immersed in studying the different cloud formations, something she wouldn’t usually spend time on, but nevertheless deemed necessary concerning her rapidly approaching end.  Perhaps “end” is too dramatic a word for it, she mused, with a wry expression twisted on her face.  But what would an appropriate word be?  How could she view the loss of something so vital, so crucial to her everyday life, with any emotion other than dread?  Yes, end certainly was the appropriate word.  If not end, then, her affliction could be described as the beginning—the beginning of the end.
Liza snapped her head back forward with the prodding of her dog, Kat, and bent down to pet her.  “Sorry girl,” she said.  “I’ll give you part of my cookie when we get to Last Chance.”  As Liza walked Kat down the familiar streets, she observed the cracks in the concrete, the graffiti on the brick walls, and the nameless faces walking past her.  She tried to savor the simple experience of walking down the street, something she would no longer be able to do without guidance, thanks to her condition, retinitis pigmentosa. 
She could already feel her peripheral eyesight slipping away.  Little by little, day by day, she began noticing fewer and fewer details of the world around her.  She had tried doing everything humanly possible to prepare herself for the day—the day when she would wake up with completely damaged eyes, a day that was rapidly approaching.  In Liza’s mind, the only thing scarier than the condition itself was not knowing when it would finally take over.  She hated the damn mystery of it all. 
The doctors said that her condition was extremely rare; they knew of very few documented people living with it.  The way the disease worked was unknown, and the only thing Liza knew for certain was that by the time it ran its course, she would end up completely blind.  There were special pills that she took each morning, prescribed by several of her doctors, but they served to prevent her from feeling pain—they did not prevent her from going blind.  The only way doctors knew to diagnose patients with this disease was by determining whether or not they had the tell-tale light specks in the irises of their eyes.  These specks were very noticeable.  They were vivid, light, piercing, almost electric.  Liza hated talking to people, because often times, it entailed making eye contact.  And once eye contact was made, it became obvious that Liza was not normal; rather, she was a marked person. 
A gust of wind startled Liza from her thoughts, and she found herself standing in front of her favorite coffee and book shop, Last Chance.  Kat barked as Liza tied her leash to the post right outside the shop.  Liza opened the door and as she briskly walked inside, the familiar scent of fresh coffee overwhelmed her nose.  Contentedly, she breathed in the comfort of the aroma.  She walked over to her usual spot, right in the corner near the wooden book shelf.  Except when she got there, someone else was already sitting there.  He was sitting in her seat. 
She took the time to observe this person, this rather attractive person—he had dark, thick, messy hair, and wore fashionable glasses, possibly meant for reading.  Liza took note of the smattering of freckles splayed across the bridge of his rather aristocratic-looking nose.  She inwardly groaned.  This would be so much easier if he didn’t have the bone structure of a Greek god.  Oh well, she grudged.  She loudly sighed, crossing her arms across her chest.  “You’re sitting in my seat.”
The boy looked up and smiled goofily at her, cocking his head slightly to the side.  “Sorry, I didn’t realize this seat has your name on it,” he said, his peculiar eyes sparkling with mirth.  Liza rolled her eyes in annoyance. 
“Haha, you’re so funny,” she said, “now move.”
“Sorry, not happening.”
“Why are you so annoying?”
“That wasn’t very nice.”
Liza huffed exasperatedly.  “You’re such a pain in the ass, Caleb.”
Caleb smirked.  “You know how much I love bothering you,” he said, while finally getting up from the seat. 
“And you know how it’s not appreciated,” Liza replied, a small smile sneaking onto her face.  She quickly moved and claimed her seat, fearing Caleb would change his mind. 
“You love it.  You love me.  Admit it,” Caleb said, taking the seat across from her.
“Sometimes you’re tolerable,” Liza allowed.  Caleb smiled and passed Liza a hot chocolate he had gotten for her, and took a sip of his own.  The two friends sat in comfortable silence, each seemingly deep in thought.  They watched as snow began to gently fall outside—a thin layer started forming onto the pavement—when Liza stood up suddenly.  “I should get going.  I left Kat outside and it’s starting to snow,” she said. 
Caleb stood up as well.  “I’ll go with you.  There’s actually something I’ve been meaning to tell you, but this isn’t the right place,” he explained, a serious expression forming on his features.  Liza gave him a puzzled look, but said nothing. 
Five minutes later, they were walking out the door of Last Chance.  Liza untied Kat’s leash and gave her a cookie, as promised, to which Kat barked happily.  Caleb and Liza walked the short distance to Liza’s apartment in a slightly uncomfortable silence.  It seemed like the further they walked, the tenser Caleb got.  Liza glanced quickly at Caleb and saw that he looked anxious, but when she racked her mind trying to think of what it could be, she couldn’t think of anything.  
She had no idea what was bothering Caleb, and that made her uncomfortable.  The two had been friends for years, after meeting at the doctor’s office.  Liza was shocked to find that Caleb’s eyes were identical to her own.  For so long, she had felt like she had no one to confide in, no one that understood her insecurities.  But then there was Caleb, Caleb who never seemed to be affected by the disease, Caleb with the easygoing smile and charismatic person.  Caleb was her rock; he was the one that did the supporting and reassuring and helping.  Seeing Caleb so distressed made Liza on edge.
They went up the elevator in continued silence, and when they got to Liza’s apartment door, Liza opened it without saying a word.  They watched as Kat trotted to the couch, eagerly grabbing her bone and gnawing on it.  Caleb coughed.  Liza gave him a look.  Finally, she broke the silence, “I don’t know what’s wrong with you, but you’re really throwing me off.  So would you mind telling me what the problem is?”
Caleb gave her a half-hearted smile.  “You sure know how to cheer someone up...don’t sound too sympathetic there, Liz,” he grumbled, taking a seat on the couch.  Liza plopped down next to him and rolled her eyes.
“Just tell me what it is.  I really am worried about you, you know,” she said, somewhat impatiently. 
Caleb fiddled nervously with his hands.  “Promise me you’ll hear me out.  Until the end.  Then you can yell at me, hate me, or whatever, but please just give me a chance to explain,” he said.  Liza bit her lip and hesitantly nodded. 
“Last week, someone reached out to me through email,” he started, “they asked me what I knew about retinitis pigmentosa.  Somehow, this person, who called himself Ryan, knew I had the disease.  I asked him how he knew, but he wouldn’t tell me.  What he did tell me was that he had also had the disease.  The difference was that he was cured.  At first, I didn’t believe him.  But then we scheduled to meet somewhere, and when I saw him at Last Chance, I knew he was telling the truth.  His eyes…Liza, I’ve never seen anything like them. 
At first, I couldn’t believe what he was telling me.  He told that there are actually many people with the disease, but the government is keeping it hidden.  The doctors give these pills to people with the disease, pills that we take, pills that make us go blind—the pills damage our eyes, Liza, they don’t help relieve any pain, it’s all a lie.  The government, the doctors, they’re all lying.  They know what happens to our eyes once the disease takes over.  And it’s not a disease we have either, it’s something in our genes that was passed on from generations and generations ago.  Apparently, everyone used to be like us. 
What I’m trying to say, Liz, is that these pills aren’t helping us, they’re making us go blind, they’re preventing us from opening our eyes—literally—to what we could be.  The government is making us go blind, so our eyes can’t fully develop.  I stopped taking the pills after I met up with Ryan, and I can feel my eyes changing so much already.  I don’t know how to explain it, but it’s like I can see more…and my eyesight isn’t disappearing.  My peripheral vision isn’t fading anymore.  Something is changing, something big, and I want you to be able to experience it too.”
It was completely silent after Caleb finished talking; Kat’s soft breathing was the loudest sound in the room.  Caleb hesitantly looked at Liza, gauging her reaction to his speech.  She looked unsure of herself.  “I don’t really know what to say to that,” she finally replied.  “Did you come here to tell me to stop taking my medicine?  Because if you did—”
“No!   Well yes, kind of, but—”
“Don’t cut me off!  I can’t believe you believe that guy!  You don’t even know him.  If you think you can just come in here and tell me what to do, then you’re wrong.  This disease has already ruined so much of my life.  I’m not going to stop taking the pills, because it’s just going to make everything worse in the end.  Don’t you get that?  I just want to live a quiet life.  I’ve accepted my fate.”
“Listen to what you’re saying,” Caleb pleaded, “you’re wrong.  The pills are making everything worse.  Please, don’t take them and you’ll know that Ryan is telling the truth…that I’m telling the truth.”
Liza sighed.  “Please, just leave.  I have a headache and I really don’t want to see you right now…or anytime in the near future, actually.”
Caleb looked like he was about to argue with her, but when he saw the pleading look on her tired face, he slowly got up from the coach and dragged his feet to the door.  He opened the door and looked back.  “If you try to find me later, I might not be there.  I’m leaving with Ryan a week from today.  He’s taking me to a safe haven for others that are like us.  If you change your mind before I’m gone...you know where to find me.”  With those last words, he left the apartment. 

*      *      *

It was cold, and Liza was shivering.  As she made her way to Last Chance Café, she observed the people around her.  She watched the pure white snow fall gently to the ground; she stared at the green of the tall trees lining the pavement; she savored the blend of the colors of the people passing her; the brown boots, the red scarves, the blue jeans.  It had been a week, yet she still felt like she was submerged in a whole new world, and sometimes, she the intensity of the colors made her dizzy.
She approached the door of Last Chance, preparing herself.  She hadn’t seen him in a week, the longest they’ve gone without seeing each other in years.  The smell of coffee wafted around her, the familiarity of the aroma filling her with warmth.  She delighted at the sight of festive Christmas lights that were strung around the café, finally being able to appreciate the vivid color.
Finally, she reached the seat.  Her seat.  “How many times do I have to tell you to stop sitting in my seat,” she said, a huge smile breaking out on her face. 
A slightly-freckled boy with dark, thick, messy hair looked up at her.  “You came,” he breathed out.  “I was just about to leave…for good.”  He stood up and smiled brilliantly. 
He offered her his hand.
She took it.