Download Complete.

Then came the scene. The rain. The forge. Thor taking the full force of a dying star. Leo had tears in his eyes. “You’ll die!” “Only if I die.” Yes. This was cinema.

On Thursday night, before they left, he’d started the download. “Avengers.Infinity.War.2018.IMAX.2160p.mkv.” The file was a monster—18 gigabytes. The hotel Wi-Fi had chugged along, reaching 92% before his mom had yelled at him to pack the car. He’d paused it, praying the cosmic rays or a Windows update wouldn't kill it.

Leo just pointed at the screen, which still showed the dust on Vormir’s cliff. His dad watched for a silent minute. Then he whispered, “I read the comics as a kid. But they did that ?”

Leo stared at his own reflection in the dark tablet screen. His heart was a drum. He felt hollowed out, raw, and strangely alive. He had just experienced the most devastating blockbuster ending of his life, alone, in a sleeping bag, under a canopy of stars that didn't care about the Snap.

Leo offered his dad the other earbud. His dad hesitated for only a second, then took it.