Beneath The Chaos Above

chapter one

Above the chaos

Sarah

The thick fog below shields us from the real world. The warning sign on the TV reminds us to stay indoors and to wait for help! We were blinded by the chaos that was unfolding beneath the fog mask. Minute by minute, hour by hour, the city grew quiet. Looking out the window, her view below is blocked by the fog rising from the ground up, which stops at the 16th floor of the two skyscrapers. Everything else is hiding under the layers of fog. The streets were quiet; there were no sounds below the busy rush hour of traffic. Is it possible that everyone else is trapped in their homes too? It's only been 24 hours since it all started.

Finally, the curtains open up from across the way, she feels relieved to see his face, and she smiles at him. Tyler starts to write something down on his whiteboard. It became our only line of communication since the phone lines went down early this morning. The same warning message plays on repeat on all channels, saying the same thing: "Stay inside, keep all windows and outside doors locked." Sarah watches her mom flip through the channels, hoping something had changed. The same message with the same face of a woman reporter speaking played on repeat for all channels. Sarah looks back towards the window.

She sees Tyler's facial expressions turn into fear. She knows his worried. Sarah quickly changed the subject to something else.

Sarah erased her board once more and asked Tyler "How are things between you and Kylie?"

Maybe it wasn't the best subject to talk about. She didn't want to ask about his parents. For all she knows the could be elsewhere.

Before he could reply. Kylie shows up, giving Sarah the middle finger before closing the blinds shut. She has always thought Kylie was never good enough for Tyler. She can keep counting on her fingers how many times she has seen the girl be picked up by another since the two have gotten together. Sarah had just seen her with another guy just the other day, who picked her up in a red sports car. It had become a routine every Thursday or even Tuesday sometimes, while Tyler is in school or working.

Sadly Tyler will never  open eyes to realize what type of person she truly is. He too in love with Kylie to admit it. I wanted to yell at him and tell him he could do far better!

In the past 24 hours, she has learnt more about her neighbors' lives than she has ever done in person. She barely spoke to them while crossing one another while in the hallway or on the street. She would turn every  evening like a tv show to observe her neighbors. She would watched them as if they were part of her personal science project.

She didn't know any of them other  than Tyler well before they were all quarantined in our homes. The apartment next door to Tyler's is owned by Faith and Kennedy; the two have a teenage son named Tom. The family might also be into something illegal. Sarah witnessed Faith counting a large stack of money on her piano the other night. It would've explained how the family could afford the condo in the first place.

Above Tyler is the penthouse owned by Mr. Quinn, whose wife or ex-wife recently moved out with their teenage daughter Rumor and son Max into the apartment below Tyler's place. The two were always fighting, followed by make-up sex in the hot tub. Then there was Quincy, who would often have model-looking women over. Let's just say his nightlife is rather steamy.

"Sarah!! Stop watching the neighbors! We got the Wi-Fi to work," said Kerri.

My sister Kerri, along with our next-door neighbor Greg, have finally restored our internet connection. Greg is becoming a computer prodigy. You might frequently find him inside his room, creating new gadgets! Mean while mother is doing what she can by keeping our younger siblings busy in the family room with a 50,000-piece puzzle. Part of me believes my parents are aware of the situation but refuse to discuss it.