I finished this story an hour ago and I'm still trying to compose myself. Was not expecting to cry today. This was a legitimate adventure, a journey, that you took us on in 3000 words, and you used every single one effectively. I NEED to know how you came up with this idea.

There are a LOT of great writerly things going on in this story (I'm gonna name just a few, but know that there are much more): First, the use of past and present tense throughout the story was so well done. Foreshadowed well with "And something happened. Happens," and then it really dominates the latter part of the story, and the immediacy of that present tense is so potent for this type of narrative where time is a critical element for the characters. Love the decision to switch tenses - cannot stress that enough.
Dialogue: Fantastic (as were the main characters). Wouldn't change a single line of it. Felt very authentic, like real people were actually having a conversation. Plus there are as many fun, cheeky moments ("They're studying politics, they only hear what they want to hear," LOL) as there are tender and heart-breaking/warming ("Love found a way").
Plot: Super original. You know this, I know this, everyone who read knows this.

I've been trying to get better at constructively critiquing people instead of just unerringly praising their stories, but I genuinely can't find anything here that didn't work for me. You used the word count effectively and the character development flourished because of it. Seriously, great job, Rachel. Good luck in the contest!

P.S. My favorite line was: "Arthur, who’d shuffled forwards at the wrong moment, was now slotted between his chair and the table, his coccyx throbbing." (Love the use of the verbs "shuffled" and "slotted." Plus, it's just freakin' funny.)