The Storm

The storm was coming. He could see it before his eyes. But, would it be more destructive, than the one brewing inside? The people ran in fear. He glanced outside and the sight resembled that of a buffalo stampede. No one even stopped to think about others. They all thought about themselves.

He got up from his armchair and calmly played some music from his phone. He selected a playlist at random and walked around the house, humming the tune of any song that came up.

The entire town must be empty, he presumed. He suddenly heard someone knocking. The bell had malfunctioned a month ago and he never bothered to repair it. The person must have been standing outside for at least a few minutes. He slowly opened the door and listened to the young man standing as he rambled on and on about how they had to leave as soon as possible. He couldn’t believe it. There was actually someone in this hellhole of a town who thought about others. He didn’t say anything to him though. He quickly walked to his room, picked up his wallet and gave it to the young man standing at the door. The young man stared at him with a bewildered expression, and watched him slowly close the door.
He once again sat down on his armchair and decided to play the voice messages she sent before she…before she passed away. Never before had the beep sounded so loud.

He silently listened to each of the three messages he had received. The first, when she had reached the hotel. The second, where she was at the hospital. And the third, when the doctor was the only one who spoke. Once the messages ended, the tears started flowing from his eyes. He looked outside and saw the storm rushing towards him. He started counting down, so he would know how much time was left before he could join her.