Infectious

Chapter 3: Bennett

7:00 a.m.

My alarm barely goes off and I'm crawling gently out of the bed. I try my hardest not to wake my tired wife laying next to me. With success, I make my way into the bathroom. Wasting no time turning on the shower to the hottest temperature my body can handle. I drag myself over to the rustic vanity waiting for the shower to warm itself. I see a scruffy beard in need of trimming, dark sunken eyes, and many new worry lines reflecting back. The weight of the world slumps my broad shoulders.

As the water comes to temp my reflection disappears behind a haze of fog. Breaking my trance I step into the scalding water. Letting it slightly burn my skin I become lost in thought. Today marks the beginning of a new world. Hopefully, the darkness of the next few days, or weeks, will all be for the best.

It hurts me knowing the people of Orchard Hills will not receive any warning. Nothing to allow for preparation. Today is the start of one of the worst events to occur in mankind's history. I am one of the lucky few as my job is within the Government Population Control (GPC). Our population has become overwhelming to the environment. My team of brilliant minds and I work daily trying to find a way we can gain control over the damage we create. It took us nearly 15 years to find it. A solution. We tried the idea of a virus we could leak into the public, one that would target the weaker groups. The idea wasn't welcomed with open arms at first, but once they ran out of the nicer methods it became the only method.

Stepping out of the shower I put on my maroon-colored suit before walking back to our bed. Leaning down I lightly kiss her forehead as a goodbye.

"Leaving so soon Mr. Graham?" Quinn asks in a groggy voice.

"Yeah, I'm hoping to get in early today."

"Early?"

"I have a lot to get done today if we want to leave for a weekend away."

"Hmm," she smiles broadly curling her fingers around the back of my neck. Pulling me down for a long sweet kiss. "Have fun at work." I let go as she rolls back over.

"I always do." My voice dripped with sarcasm. I leave her softly breathing in the dark room. Hoping against all odds the preventative I gave her holds up against the virus. Only the elite had access to virus prevention, but no one knows if it will work.

Roughly fifteen minutes later I jump onto the front car of the L train. Every train has three sections to it. The front three cars are full of maroon, the next two are for middle-class green attire, followed by four cars of working-class blue. Those in grey clothing are not permitted access. I find a seat towards the back as it fills up quickly. A buzz goes off in my pocket. A text read-

'Bennett, release time has been escalated. Please report to the meeting hall upon your arrival this morning. Thank you.'

I sink in my seat a bit worrying more than I probably need to.

"Bennett?" A tall man tries to see over the crowded train in my direction, "Bennett! Hey man!" He managed to push through them plopping down beside me. Xavier, an old friend of mine from grade school. Growing up together in separate social classes made for rocky friendship. We made it work somehow becoming thick as thieves. "Why are you slouching? You don't slouch."

"What do you mean? I'm sitting normally." I say sliding back upright.

"Uh ok," he gives a small chuckle, "anyways... have you seen the news lately?" I shake my head no. Knew full well what he was about to say. "An old lab got broken into last night. Things- sorry vials- were taken. I guess they held some kind of unknown deadly... deadly something," he snaps his fingers together trying to remember, "hmm, I can't think of it. I'm sure it will come to mind, but more importantly, four scientists were murdered, shot point blank trying to protect those damn vials. They died a week ago. Bennett the government employees- such as yourself," he gives me a pointed look, "tried to cover it up. Somebody decided today they would leak the information they had to the press. News stations are claiming we have nothing to worry about..." I feel my face lose color, no one was supposed to know. Not yet. "Do we have something to worry about?" I don't enjoy lying to him, but I have no choice.