A morning joke took a different meaning by the afternoon.

This happened yesterday.

It was 8 am, and As I was leaving my chemistry teacher's house(where I go for my tuition), I asked if I should come for the extra class later, that’s usually scheduled for 4 pm—just to confirm. With his usual joking, family-like nature (especially with me), he replied with something like, "Sure, come on over! Like I could stop you from coming, right?"

Fast forward to 3:40 pm. I was just about to get ready to leave when my mother came into my room after attending a phone call. She told me the class was canceled. My teacher had called to ask for me to not come today—apparently, a family member from his wife’s side had tragically passed away in an accident just a few hours earlier.

The irony, and the fragility of our everyday interactions hit me hard.