INK [ongoing]

5: Late Doesn't Sound Too Bad

"Hey... uh Andrew?"

Andrew's lips curve as he hears Sean's shaky voice talk over Aubrey's favorite song, What's Up by 4 Non Blondes.

"I'm guessing you're in the car with Aubrey?" The boy pets his Collie who lies curled up over his lap on the sofa.

"Yeah... we're almost there."

"Alright, see ya then." Andrew taps the phone to end his call and places it right beside him. The house it utterly quiet, and in a way, he prefers it that way. He's no where near asocial; rather, just enjoys the peace and quiet. He'll have a rude awakening if he expects to get any quiet time through the city life.

"I'm not going to leave you here alone, bud." Andrew pets Caine's head, "Your life is probably more boring than mine."

Caine's only response is to start licking the furniture thoroughly.

A few minutes later, their silence is disturbed by a honking outside. Caine's ears shoot up and he races to the door with an angry bark.

"Caine, relax!" Andrew slides on his shoes and grabs Caine's dog leash, "It's just Aubrey and Sean." He opens the door and the dog sprints to the car he's used to seeing by now. Andrew closes his front door and locks it with the key under the mat.

"Will you hurry up already?" Aubrey shouts out her window in a playful tone.

"Jesus Christ, give me a second." The boy makes his way over to the back seat and opens the door for Caine to crawl in before taking the seat right behind Aubrey. "Hello, you beautiful humans."

"It's already 9, we're going to be a tad late." Aubrey mumbles as she pulls back on to the road.

"Late doesn't sound too bad." Sean shrugs from the front seat.

And the three went on with the short drive, often bickering or singing like loud drunks. But when the car pulls into the school parking lot, they're struck quiet by a scene they don't quite expect. Three heavily armed men, bearing guns the three have only ever seen in movies, block the path of the parking lot.

"Holy shit." Andrew mutter while staring through the window.

Each has their own unique shocked expression, unable to think of what to say or assume what happens next. But as the soldier strolls over to the window he motions for Aubrey to push it down and she obeys.

"There's a legal temporary statute placed on this town. No one is allowed to leave their homes unless stated otherwise." His deep voice can almost be interpreted as stressed or anxious.

"May I ask why?" Aubrey's hesitant voice disrupts the man's temper.

"All you need to know is that the government has enforced a curfew. If you don't want to follow it then you will be detained. Stay indoors." The man finishes his sentence and doesn't wait for a response from the three, instead he goes back in line with the other two soldiers.

"What could've happened?" Sean looks around the windows for any sign of danger.

"I'll call my mom. Maybe she found something out at the hospital." Andrew states while tapping on his mother's name on his phone. But instead of her voice, he only hears a constant beeping. "The phone lines aren't working."

"I've got a bad feeling about this guys." Aubrey pulls out of the parking lot and back onto the road. Cars are still driving back and forth, meaning they aren't the only ones who missed out on the memo.

"Well no shit sherlock." Andrew replies, "What if there was a terrorist attack or something?"

"A terrorist attack? In Edenton?" Sean asks rhetorically, "I don't think that makes much sense, Andrew."

"Whatever it is it has something to do with the water cutting off-" Aubrey is cut off by Andrew's train of thought.

"And the helicopters. They have to be looking for something right?"

"Let's not start cooking up conspiracies," Aubrey sighs, "We'll go straight to Andrew's house since it's the closest. You have a landline, right?"

Andrew nods his head.

"Let's hope it still works so I can call my parents. And Sean's too."

"You'd think there'd be more of a scene out here." Sean says while looking through the window: and he's right. There's no soldiers in the streets or helicopters shining spotlights in the air, the town is as quiet as it always is.

Why would they enforce a rule that no one knows is in place?

"Do you think maybe those guys were fake?" Andrew asks, but as the sound of blaring sirens and the flashing blue and red lights pass their sedan, they know there's something wrong. Five or six police cars speed by at top speed, dragging all of their eyes away from the road.

"Aubrey, the road!" Sean yelps but by the time the cheer captain's eyes make it back in front of her the car slams into a figure in front of the road.

"Holy shit!" Aubrey slams the breaks hard, causing the group to jerk forward.

"You fucking hit someone!" Andrew yells as his dog whimpers from the rough stop. He quickly un-clicks his seatbelt and rushes out in front of the car.

A woman lies in the road, covered in a liquid which Andrew only imagines is blood.

"Oh my god I'm so sorry!" A now crying Aubrey rushes to the woman's side to see she's still breathing.

Andrew places his hand on the woman's bloody chest to check for a heartbeat, "Hurry, let's get her to the hospital my mom can treat her—"
He stops talking once he lifts his hand off the girl. A sticky texture clings to both her and Andrew, definitely not the blood Andrew was used to seeing. He'd seen his mother covered in blood before from the late shifts at the hospital; hell, he's even been at the hospital to see these tragedies.

"Guys... we need to go. Remember we're not even supposed to be outside." Sean barely stands outside of the passenger seat as if he's resisting to see it, "If we're going to help her we need to now."

There's no calling 911 with the phone lines dead. This is the only option.

"Help me grab her." Aubrey commands amidst her sobbing.

The two pick up the body rather awkwardly and carry it towards the car. It isn't too difficult because the woman is thin and frail. The woman moans and groans with each step the two take, but Andrew notices they aren't pain-filled; rather, as if she's having a bad dream.

"She doesn't sound too good." Aubrey states, not letting up on the tears.

Sean gets up and opens the back door so the can pull her in. Caine climbs up over to the front passenger seat, stealing Sean's spot. Andrew gets in the back once more, this time letting the girls head rest on his lap. Sean somehow positions himself so the dog sits in between his legs and Aubrey takes the role of driver once again.

They couldn't all help but wonder why this woman was walking across the road?

"Aubrey keep going to my house, my mom keeps a few things that can help her. I don't even think she's bleeding or anything." Andrew states as she continues driving again. The road is empty now, maybe everyone finally got the memo.

"I felt blood all over her Andrew." Aubrey replied rather condescendingly, "Oh god, I'm gonna go to jail."

"Sean, turn the car light on." Andrew demands and Sean obeys. The faint yellowish light flicks on in the back, revealing the woman in a horrid state. Her curly brown hair and white evening gown are covered in black. Even her skin is painted with the paint-like mixture.

"Maybe she was sleep walking, ya know? Maybe it's not really my fault—" Aubrey begins to ramble and rant incoherently.

Andrew pokes his finger at the black tar and rubs it against his thumb.

"Maybe it's oil." Andrew mutters to himself, "But how on earth do you get oil all over yourself?"