"Phone Me in Central Park"

"Phone Me in Central Park" by James V. McConnell is a science fiction story focusing on the stark experience of loneliness after a devastating plague wipes out humanity, leaving Charles as the solitary survivor in a desolate New York City. Dealing with profound grief and confusion, Charles journeys through the empty city, searching for signs of life and answers about society's collapse. The story follows his psychological decline as he confronts the reality of his complete isolation and embraces the futility of his existence, ending with a powerful meditation on life, death, and the bitter irony of being the last man on Earth.