AM13 Outbreak Shorts

Outbreak - Fifteen

I hop anxiously from foot-to-foot as I wait outside of Emma's home, my hand outstretched ready to knock. In my seat of warm contemplation on the beach I decided that this was the sort of conversation that I absolutely had to have face-to-face, but now that I'm actually here I can't help but wonder if a heads up might've been preferable.

My heart thunders noisily in my chest, my mouth feels sick and dry, I inadvertently bite down so hard on my lip that I can almost taste blood...but unfortunately this is the only option I've left myself. I can't come home now...

Can I?

The idea of sneaking back in, of lying down between the sheets of my warm comfy bed, of pretending the little nighttime runaway never happened is so utterly tempting, I can almost feel the sensations wrapping around me. If it wasn't for Dad and his plea, I might just give into it.

But I can't, I promised him.

Knock, knock.

My hand taps against the door so lightly I'm certain that no one will've heard it, but it was such a strain to just make myself do that much, I'm not sure I can do it again. Maybe I should take that as a hint that this isn't going to happen, that it's time to find other arrangements...

Ring, ring.

The shrill ring exploding free from my pocket causes me to leap into the air in shock. I curse myself, the phone, the entire world as I scrabble around trying to shut it off before it alerts everyone to it, but it seems to take far too long for me to get it. My fingers are slippery, my arms, trembling, my whole body slow.

Zac.

I only glimpse his name for a second before I hit the cut off button, I barely get a moment to process what that means, to wonder why he always seems to get in touch with me at the weirdest of times.

"Hey," Emma's curious voice breaks through my shock barrier. "Rae, what are you doing here?"

"I...I..." How do I work this? "I need help."

"Of course, come in."

She steps aside instantly, and ushers me towards her bedroom. As I tiptoe quietly up the stairs, trying not to grab the focus of anyone else, I'm so grateful to have met her. If I hadn't found her on that random day in the school...well, who knows what I would've done now?

"What's going on, Rae?" Emma asks, indicating for me to sit down on the bed beside her.

"It's been a nightmare," I admit, my exhaustion finally starting to catch up with me. "My Dad, he's infected with this virus, and he...he sent me away so I wouldn't get it too..." I try to explain this as simply as I can, without letting emotion get the better of me, but I don't succeed very well. "He wants me to stay away until he's, you know, better or whatever. I'm not sure...where..."

"You can stay with me," Emma replies kindly, while throwing her arms around my shoulders. "I won't let any harm come to you." She pulls back for a second, her eyebrows knotting together thoughtfully. "I promise. But, well I don't think my parent's will like you being here. They're all freaked out." Just like my mom. Only, she was right to be, I was in the wrong being so relaxed and naïve. "Maybe if I make you up a bed in the garage for a moment, just until I can find a way to bring it to them."

"Of course, whatever you need. I'm just so grateful to you for helping me at all. I haven't slept for ages, so I can sleep anywhere right about now."

With the current heaviness of my eyes, I know that I'm telling the truth.

***

Judging by the ache in my neck as I finally force myself into a sitting position, I've been asleep for far too long. I only intended to have a nap in this dark, damp place, but obviously that didn't quite happen.

I grab my cell phone off of charge, and check the time which informs me that it's just after 6PM, but that also alerts me to the fact that I have a text message from Zac, probably in reference to the phone call I cut off earlier.

'Rae, please meet me tomorrow, I want to see you before the quarantine kicks in.'

Despite myself I couldn't help the familiar twang in my chest, the desire to see him. After all, I'd lost pretty much everyone else in my life for the time being, and I certainly didn't want to spend weeks down here alone with no one to talk to. Emma would come down as often as she could, but there was still going to be a lot of loneliness in my immediate future.

'Yes, okay. At the beach at 8PM.'

Night time feels safer, there are less prying eyes then.

Once that's sorted, I move towards the door feeling the need for some fresh air right now. I don't want to be seen by anyone really, but a short escape into the outside world can't cause any trouble, can it? Now that I'm awake and standing I'm pretty sure that I'm more of a danger to myself than anyone else.

I push at the door, glad that it isn't making any noise, and I gulp in the cold air like it's a drug to me, like I'm an addict that can't get enough of it. It's hard to remember that it wasn't long ago that I was out here last.

I take a step, then another, a strange twisted smile forming on my lips. I don't feel any happiness inside, but I smile nonetheless, a weird sensation really.

I hear cars whizzing past, a slight howl in the wind, a police siren somewhere in the distance. The normal sounds for a city, not necessarily for here, but still I try not to look too much into it. For now, I just need a moment to breathe.

Bang!

That is until a gunshot rings through the air, stopping my heart completely.