Morse

Chapter One

Ever since I learned Morse code, it's been difficult to think about much of anything else.

I stayed inside my cramped apartment for thirty-six days, watching and listening. The clock's ticking. The erratic flickering of the kitchen light. The patterns of the little line of ants across the coffee table. H. D. W. E. Another W. So many letters.

Eventually my mom forced me out. She called me on the fourth of September at 8:14am and told me, in her usual demanding voice, that I needed to get coffee or she would stop delivering me food. I agreed, but for the wrong reasons—I was thinking about all the new places I could find letters out in the world. So I put on a sweater and left the apartment.

Lucky Penny Bakery was two blocks from my house. M.

As I walked down the sidewalk, a bicycle and three cars passed me on the street. J.

When I reached the coffee shop and entered, I was overwhelmed by visions and sounds. Three puffs of the espresso machine—S. A man's order cost $20.01—U. A woman with her child stood in line—N. Everything was dots and dashes, beeps and clicks, flashes and numbers.

I ordered. I don't remember what. I don't really remember if I was even speaking coherent English or not. Nevertheless, I got my coffee and sat down at a table close to the window.

Across the room was a man, about my age. I didn't really notice his features at the time, just the way he was typing on his laptop with a completely neutral face. I tried to ignore it. At this point all the letters were getting a bit jumbled in my head and I was becoming overwhelmed. But I couldn't help it.

Click. Click. Click. Click. Pause. H.

Click. Pause. E.

Click. Hold. Click. Click. Pause. L.

Click. Hold. Hold. Click. Pause. P.

Wait. H-E-L-P. What did that spell again? It was something important.

I was too far away to see the letters he was typing, but I could hear the sounds. Help. I remembered.

Suddenly he looked up and straight at me. I jumped at the first eye contact I'd experienced in more than a month before I regained my wits. I let my hand rest on the table and used my fingernail.

Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Pause. H.

Tap. Tap. Pause. I.

He turned back to his keyboard, still no emotion on his face.

Hold. Hold. Hold. Pause. O.

Click. Click. Hold. Pause. U.

Hold. Pause. T.

OUT.

Then he looked back at me.

Without thinking, I took my coffee and purse and got up, leaving the bakery and waiting on the sidewalk. Seconds later, the man appeared and walked past me without acknowledgement, turning abruptly into a dark alley right of the coffee shop.

Now, I may have been a bit—unhinged—at this point in my life, but I hadn't completely lost my mind. I was not about to follow a strange man into an alley in the outskirts of Brooklyn because he had typed some letters in Morse code. It turned out I didn't have a choice, though. Right then I saw my landlord, a senile old man who was surprisingly on top of rent dates, walking straight toward me—thankfully turned to look at a donut display. Without thinking, I skirted into the alley.

"Please don't fight it," the man said immediately as he caged me against the wall and pressed his lips against mine.

A/N: Another new story because apparently I literally cannot stick to one :P Thanks for being here, hope you enjoy! 

...And if you've read my stories before you're most definitely tired of me saying this, but I have to for the new folks :) My stories and writing style drastically change every week so I can guarantee there will be one for you on my profile. Trust me. <3

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