Hiya, guys, you all miss me? Well, no worries, here is the first side story to be published following the completion of the main story. It takes place a few years after the epilogue. Hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: The following is a non-profit work of fanfiction. The Office is the intellectual property of NBC. Please support the official release.


"Are they good?" Andy asked.

"Sound asleep," Erin replied.

"Alright," Andy said in relief. With the twins asleep, he and Erin had a good couple hours to get some TV watching in. "So, which should we go with tonight? We've got Once Upon a Time, Black Mirror, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Sherlock, and House."

"We haven't watched Black Mirror in a while," Erin pointed out after a moment of mulling on it.

"Alright then," Andy nodded, turning on their TV and selecting Netflix. "Next episode is called San Junipero. Ready?"

"Ready as I'll ever be," she replied, opening up a bag of Doritos and cuddling closer to Andy on the sofa. He pushed the play button and sat back.

Over one hour later…

For a minute, they were both quiet, taking in what they just watched.

Black Mirror wasn't the lightest of shows, but Erin had found herself enjoying it surprisingly. It was a smart and slick show with all kinds of interesting themes. And while most episodes were dark, they were understandable. The darkness was there for a reason, in a way that got the viewer thinking.

But this episode, "San Junipero", was something else entirely. It was pulling her in two different directions.

On one hand, the love story between Kelly and Yorkie was sweet and adorable. And the fact that a happy ending actually occurred on Black Mirror was kind of beautiful in itself, where technology was being shown to create something great rather than cause suffering.

But on the other hand, it also made Erin realize something horrible and painful. And she couldn't hold it in.

"Andy… this episode… it just made me realize something. One of us is going to die before the other!" Erin cried in horror.

Andy flinched. That was certainly a hard realization to come to. But before he could say something, Erin was still going.

"I mean, I always knew eventually that I'll die and it sometimes bothered me and sometimes it didn't, but now… I don't know why, but this really scares me!" Erin continued, her voice rapid and panicked. "What would I do, or how would I survive when you're gone? Or how would you survive if I go first?! And-"

"Erin, calm down!" Andy interrupted her, his voice and grip on her shoulders firm as he shook her out of those thoughts. She quieted down, but she was clearly not calm, so Andy added, "I mean, okay, yes, that'll happen, but not for a long time."

That didn't really comfort her. "Doesn't the thought scare you though? That one of us is going to outlive the other?"

Andy looked off to the side and replied, "Well, yeah, I guess a bit. I mean, I'm not really scared of dying itself, but I am scared of it being painful or humiliating."

"But it's not really the dying that scares me," Erin elaborated. "It's more about who would be left behind. I mean, if I die first, then you'll be alone, and Eddie and Ellie won't have me around either, and our friends would all be missing me too. And if you die first, I'd be alone and the kids won't have their dad anymore. And I definitely don't want to outlive Eddie or Ellie like how that happened to Kelly and her husband with their daughter. Either way, no one wins."

Seeing that her eyes were getting wet and she was looking like she was on the verge of hyperventilating, Andy tried again to calm her down.

"I get what you mean, Erin. Really, I do," Andy said to her sincerely. "But you know it's going to happen, so there's no use in freaking out over it and we don't know what comes next for that matter.

"Well, that's the thing - I know it's going to happen, but I never really gave it any serious thought. I mean, I guess it would be nice if there was an afterlife like how the pastor at the church I went to when I was little described heaven, or maybe reincarnation. I kinda always liked the idea of being reincarnated into a cat," Erin replied, a small laugh punctuating her last statement.

Andy chuckled at that, remarking, "Yeah, actually, being a cat wouldn't be too bad for the next life."

"And I remember that Gabe is an atheist and he believed that when a person died, they were gone and that was that," Erin reminisced. "I've thought about that, and… well, I suppose I accept it as a possibility, but to be honest, I don't really like it."

Andy nodded along, a sad but understanding look on his face. "Yeah, I know what you mean. I… actually kind of had a hard time with that for a bit when I thought about the possibility."

"But even then, it's not really the thought of it all being over that makes me sad, though," Erin said. "I mean, if there really is nothing, then that would mean everyone I know and love who dies before me would just be gone and I'd never see them again."

That was certainly a sad thought. But then Andy remembered something.

"You know that scientist Carl Sagan?" Andy asked.

Erin racked through her brain trying to figure out who that was. "Um, sort of? Like, I've heard the name before but I don't think I really know exactly who he is."

Andy replied, "He was a pretty famous scientist back in the day. Basically, after he died, his wife Ann said that they didn't believe in anything after death or that they would see each other again once she died, but for her, the fact that they got the chance to meet each other, fall in love, and be happy together for over twenty years was more than enough. She appreciated every minute she had with him and was happy just to be with him, and those memories were meaningful enough on their own."

Erin thought about that for a moment. The kind of commitment those two must've had, the love and care they had for each other, the way Ann cherished the memories she had built with Carl and how that carried her through her grief, even though she didn't believe she would see her beloved again. Erin smiled a little at that and remarked, "That's actually… really beautiful."

"It is," Andy agreed. "Maybe death isn't the end and we could meet each other again, be it in the afterlife, or the next life, or what have you. Or maybe when we die, that's literally it, but that doesn't erase away what we have now. Either way, the fact that we're here, together, right now, is great in itself, and we should value every day we have."

"Yeah, we should," she nodded in agreement. Her expression was still melancholy, however, as she added, "Still though…"

"Well, think of it like this," Andy said to her gently. "If you were to die before me, how would you want me to live out the rest of my life without you?"

Erin was quiet for a moment. She really didn't like thinking of unhappy things, especially a heavy subject like this. But it was something that needed addressing, an unavoidable fact of life, and she had to to be truthful with him.

"Well…" Erin slowly brought herself to say, "I guess if I were to die before you, I… I want you to keep living and be happy without me. And if that means you do fall in love with someone else, then… you should do it."

He smiled at that and replied, "And I'd want the same for you if it was me who died first. And if something like San Junipero does become real, you have my permission to upload yourself permanently there and make out with a woman that looks like Angelina Jolie."

"Angelina Jolie? Really, Andy?" Erin asked him with a raised eyebrow and a little smile, snorting out a small giggle.

"Hey, she's still looking hot," Andy argued.

"I'd rather go for Lupita Nyong'o, honestly," Erin said.

"Not a bad pick either." He then picked up the remote and said, "How about we close it out with something a bit lighter? Put on a comedy? I think we both need that." Erin nodded, so Andy put on some funny videos from YouTube to lift up their spirits.


A couple hours later, they were in bed. Andy was fast asleep, but Erin was still wide awake and felt unsettled. The subject of her and Andy's post-Black Mirror conversation still weighed heavily on her mind. She hated the thought of him dying and leaving her alone, even if it couldn't be avoided. She couldn't even begin to imagine the pain she would feel when it happened. And the reverse, her dying before him and leaving him alone, felt just as painful. And then there was the fact that it could happen at any time too; whether it was from something sudden like an accident or an illness, or would happen decades from now due to the inevitability of old age. And she especially really did not want to outlive either of her children for that matter.

She knew there was no use in letting those fears rule her life. She still had so much more to experience, to live for. And she wanted to be around for as long as possible and share every moment that she could with the people she loved. But still, the finality of it all, the fear of the unknown…

Curiosity overtook her and she reached for her phone, opening up the internet browser and looking up Carl Sagan and Ann Druyan. The first thing Erin could see in the pictures that popped up was how they both looked at each other with so much love and care in their eyes, truly invested in one another, and it was admittedly really cute and sweet to see how happy they clearly made one another.

(In an odd sort of way, it was funny when she found that Carl's resting place was here in Ithaca. She also made a mental note to herself to possibly read some of Carl and Ann's books.)

She then saw a quote from Ann, the one Andy told her about. How she coped with her grief following Carl's passing.

When my husband died, because he was so famous and known for not being a believer, many people would come up to me - it still sometimes happens - and ask me if Carl changed at the end and converted to a belief in an afterlife. They also frequently ask me if I think I will see him again. Carl faced his death with unflagging courage and never sought refuge in illusions. The tragedy was that we knew we would never see each other again. I don't ever expect to be reunited with Carl. But, the great thing is that when we were together, for nearly twenty years, we lived with a vivid appreciation of how brief and precious life is. We never trivialized the meaning of death by pretending it was anything other than a final parting. Every single moment that we were alive and we were together was miraculous - not miraculous in the sense of inexplicable or supernatural. We knew we were beneficiaries of chance. That pure chance could be so generous and so kind. That we could find each other, as Carl wrote so beautifully in Cosmos, you know, in the vastness of space and the immensity of time. That we could be together for twenty years. That is something which sustains me and it's much more meaningful. The way he treated me and the way I treated him, the way we took care of each other and our family, while he lived. That is so much more important than the idea I will see him someday. I don't think I'll ever see Carl again. But I saw him. We saw each other. We found each other in the cosmos, and that was wonderful.

Tears came to Erin's eyes as she read that, internalizing every word. She hoped she could be half as strong as Ann was when the time came.

Regardless of whatever was waiting on the other side of the veil, what was important was what was here and now. Her and Andy, together, taking care of each other and their family, experiencing life and the world and all its wonders, with their friends behind them.

Nevertheless, Erin still felt the need to hold onto Andy a little tighter tonight, and eventually, she slowly relaxed and fell asleep.


AN: Ah yes, death. A thing most of us don't like to think about but is still there, a fate awaiting all of us - rich or poor, good or bad, famous or unknown. I think we've all had that moment when we learned just how fragile our lives can be in the world. Some people take it well, others (like myself) tend to be a bit more afraid yet also curious as to how death works. Admittedly, this was based on some personal experiences of mine with my own realization of my own mortality as well as the discussions I've had with my fiance about the subject, particularly what the other will do when one of us goes as well as what comes after. It deeply terrified me and I felt lost and confused, which is reflected in how I wrote Erin here. I had nightmares, tried to find answers, and even entertained the notion of uploading myself into a computer if something like the technology from "San Junipero" became a reality. Nowadays, I'm no longer in paralyzing fear of it, mostly thanks to some spiritual and philosophical research I did in my free time and I'll accept it once the time comes while making sure I make the most of the time I have on this Earth, but I can't entirely escape my curiosity of it. Maybe that's why I loved The Good Place so much.

Leave a comment, follow this if you like it, and let me know if you have any suggestions for future side stories! Upcoming ones I'm currently formulating include Andy and Erin each confronting their own fears and anxieties about becoming parents, cute moments of them as a family, fleshing out their kiddos, and possible future appearances of the other Office characters.