LIMBO

Prelude

Jan pushed her way through the crowd of dancing and moving bodies with determination as she reached for the front door of the condo. Lights flashed into her face and laughter rang loudly in her ears. Closing in on her exit she relived the fact - not for the first time - that she never liked parties to begin with. It had been Ryan who managed to persuade her to come along. With some of her friends of course, it had been the deal. She realized by the time the party hit off, however, that all of her so-called 'friends' had deserted her; and her boyfriend was nowhere to be found.

Not long after, she got tired of standing around and avoiding the boys who tried to flirt with her, so she made her decision - to cut her losses and leave. As she gripped the door handle and tugged it open Ryan materialized from the crowd, seeing her go, and he touched her shoulder.
"Hey Jan, where are you off to in such a hurry?" He asked with a calming smile on his lips.
Jan peered up at him. She saw his eyes were glowing from all the fun he was having - without her.
She looked back down grimly, "I'm going home."
Ryan's grin disappeared and was traded for a crease that appeared above his eyebrows.
"Hey, are you alright? Nobody tried to-," He stopped talking to look into the crowd. The multi-coloured LED lights shining in the lounge turned the smooth skin on his face into a melting rainbow.
"No, it's okay. I'm fine." She said, grasping his hand and quickly looking for a plausible excuse. I just want to get away from everyone.
She softened her grip and let her hand drop to her side. "I just feel a bit...overwhelmed, that's all."
He appeared to relax, but gave off a half-hearted shrug. "Okay it's cool. Do you want me to walk with you?"
"No. It's fine," Jan said shaking her head.
"You sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure," She told him. A forced smile appeared on her face, but it didn't reach her eyes.

Ryan nodded, slowly letting go of her as he did so. For a brief moment Jan laid a hand back against his chest, then she broke away to put on her coat. After looking at him for one more second, she turned away and stepped out into the cold wind.
The door closed in Ryan's face, leaving him to stand frozen in place, unsure of what to do. The desire to party all too suddenly vanished from his mind. Right then his friend Eric, who lived in the house, jogged up to him; an ice-cold beer was clutched in his right hand.

"Was that Jan?" He called before reaching the door.
Ryan turned to him, "Yeah. Listen, do you mind walking with me."
Eric came to a stand-still. "Walking? Where do you want to go?"
Ryan didn't answer.
"Do you want to follow her?" Eric asked looking out the window and at Jan's retreating frame.
"Yeah," Ryan repeated.
"So your girlfriend knows that you're a stalker then." Eric joked.
Ryan shook his head and pulled a face. "Come on, man. I'm being serious. I just want to make sure she gets home safe."
Seeing his friend full of concern, and being too empathetic for his own good, it didn't take long for Eric to give in. He rubbed the back of his head with his free hand. "Yeah...okay."
Ryan brightened. "Cool. Go grab your coat and we can head out."
Eric nodded and started to move backwards.
"Oh, and you should probably leave that beer behind," Ryan added.

****

Jan made her way across a street and entered the local park in the hopes of it providing her with a shortcut back to her house. As she tread further into the grounds, Jan noticed there was not a person in sight, and she welcomed this change in circumstances happily. The sky was beginning to darken, and the setting sun cast a warm orange glow onto the unkempt grass that grew on either side of the path that she was walking along. She secretly wished the world would give her more subtle experiences such as this. What she didn't know was those few minutes would be the last normal ones to come for a long time.

****

Ryan was lucky enough to catch a glimpse of Jan as she passed through the gates of the park, which lay close to Eric's condo. Ryan stood in the middle of the empty street and pulled his coat tightly over his chest, feeling the cold even under all the clothes he wore. He waited impatiently for Eric to catch up, but after a glance he saw his friend was still a few meters behind. Ryan called him over regardless, pointed across to where he last saw his girlfriend, and licked his dry lips before speaking
"She went into the park." He said.
Eric was gazing at his phone as he walked up to Ryan, apparently noticing neither the chilly wind nor his friend's restlessness.
"Okay, cool. So we found her." He replied distractedly.