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Quarantine Stories

Quarantine Stories #4: Heather & Ellis

April 19, 2020 by jackiecthomas Leave a Comment

Three dots blinking, that means he’s typing. Heather thought to herself.

Heather chewed her bottom lip as she held her phone, its glow the only source of light in the dark bedroom. Her husband, Chris slept snoring softly next to her. Heather looked away from the blinking dots on her phone at Chris as he rolled over. She examined her conscious, quickly, searching for guilt but it wasn’t there. She turned back to her phone. The three dots turned into a message that read:

“I love you too. He’ll be back to the rig tomorrow. Stay strong beautiful.”

Heather read it greedily twice before she deleted it. As much as she would have loved to keep the message on her phone she didn’t want Chris to see it. She plugged her phone back onto the charger and set it screen side down on the nightstand. She sunk further down onto the bed thinking of his hands, not her husband’s hands, but his best friend’s hands on her body. It felt physically painful to be sleeping next to a man she no longer loved. Trying to push it away, she thought of laying in Ellis’ arms, safe and loved as she drifted off to sleep.

The next morning Chris’ alarm went off at 4am. He had an early start to get back to the oil rig that he worked in the Gulf. Heather hated that he had chosen to work away from home so much. Chris was well educated and could have easily worked for the company in a myriad of other ways, that kept him closer to home. She roused at the sound of the shower turning on. Although they had not slept together in almost eighteen months, she kept up the rouse of his wife. The lack of intimacy had been a point of contention in thier marraige.

As Chris showered, Heather made coffee, and brought two mugs for back for them into the bedroom. She handed Chris his, as his towel hung around his hips. Heather couldn’t help but stare, her husband was built like a cover of a romance novel. His tan skin, curly chestnut hair, and muscular body, was once her source of pleasure, now the sight just left her with an empty feeling.

The lack of intimacy started slowly. It started when Chris came home a little over a year ago. He was normally on the rig for six weeks and then home for three. She had grown used to not leaving their bed for the first three days he was home, neither of them able to get enough of each other, but it stopped. He returned from one shift and Heather sat waiting for him, her hair done, makeup on, and new lingerie. Her face lit up as he walked in, but she could see on his face something wasn’t right. He had told her he was ill, showered and climbed into their bed. He slept for almost two days. Heather tried to nurse him back to health, even though he didn’t show any symptoms of any sort of illness. As soon as he looked like he was in better spirits Heather, tried to entice her husband, it had been a long time for both of them. Chris feigned illness again. Over the next three weeks, they slept together once before he went back to the rig. The whole ordeal left Heather confused. She chalked it up to stress and didn’t bring it up with him before he left.

They talked a little less than they normally did while he was away, and when he returned home again, Heather pulled out off of the stops to entice him and welcome him home. While this time upon his return he wasn’t ill, he complained of exhaustion and put off her advances saying he was too tired. The harder she pushed, the harder rebuffed her advances. Finally fed up, she confronted him, wanting to understand what was happening. Pressed for an answer he told her had changed his mind about starting a family, he wasn’t ready after all. They had been trying for almost six months but with Chris’ work schedule they both knew it could take a little longer. The news surprised her, he had led the charge to start a family. The last night he was home, she suggested they use protection, he told her he was too tired and rolled over. She laid in bed that night upset, as her tears wet her pillow. This was not the man she had married, who was kind, loving and affectionate.

Chris went back to the rig and Heather knew she had to find out what was going on. She couldn’t go out to the rig, that was unheard of. Concerned that perhaps there was another woman, she sought out Chris’ best friend Ellis. She wondered if Chris had confided in Ellis. He had agreed to meet her at a local tavern. That night as they ate and caught up, she asked him if he had noticed anything different about Chris. Ellis said that he had not, and Heather didn’t want to go into details about what was going on in her marriage. She chickened out asking about another woman, not sure if she was ready for an answer to that question. After dinner, Ellis walked her out to her car. The orange light glow from the tavern sign lit the parking lot and in that light, she thought Ellis looked handsome. He had always been Chris’ best friend, so she had never allowed herself to look at him as she did now. There was a moment before she got into her car where she thought he was going to kiss her.

As she drove home from the meeting she hated that the thought of Ellis kissing her in the parking lot aroused her so much. She had never been untrue to Chris. Ellis called to check on her twice while Chris was away, something he hadn’t done since Chris had first started the job. At first, the calls set her on edge. That next break when Chris came home she didn’t pressure him but intimacy had not happened either. He returned back to the rig after only a week home. Something inside Heather crumbled after he left that time, he had not touched her, kissed her, or hugged her for almost six months.

Heather continued to try to connect with any way she could. She emailed him, knowing that he’d read it since he said he was too tired to talk most nights. That January while Chris was away a record-setting blizzard hit. Heather had prepared for it and hunkered down alone. During the storm, a coating of ice had formed before the snow hit and took a large pine tree down across the driveway. She emailed Christ to tell him, and he had actually written back saying he’d ask Ellis to come over and help with it. Ellis had continued to call and check on Heather while Chris was away, and she found that she talked to him a little longer each time he called.

The afternoon he came to cut up the tree that had fallen, Heather slept with Ellis. She had not intended for it to happen. She had hated herself for it, but her body had devoured the intimacy. That night she laid in her bed racked with guilt, and still aroused from the sex. She hated herself for being unfaithful. She cried herself to sleep as she thought of Chris and the state of her marriage.

Over the next six months Ellis provided more than physical intimacy, he had become something so much more. Chris had returned home on his normal schedule but never made any advances towards Heather. She still tried each time and had even suggested that they see a marriage counsellor. His reply to the argument about the counsellor was to return to the rig early. She took this action by Chris as his intent for their marriage. From then on, she allowed herself to fully feel any emotion she wanted about Chris and Ellis.

The last time Chris was away, Ellis stayed most nights. She found it odd that she now dreaded Chris’ return, not for seeing him, but for Ellis having to stay away. The whole time Chris was home Heather wanted to tell him she wanted a divorce but she couldn’t bring herself to do it. There was something holding her back, even though nothing had changed between them. Heather told herself she’d give Chris an ultimatum, that they were intimate or she’d leave. The night before he returned to the rig, she made her stand. With tears streaming down her cheeks, she pleaded with Chris to explain what was happening, why wouldn’t he sleep with her? Why wasn’t he returning her calls and emails when he was on the rig. Chris grabbed his bag and left without answering. When he left Heather called Ellis hysterical.

“Honey, I love you. I want to be with you. He doesn’t deserve you. Let him go,” Ellis said trying to calm her. That phone call changed her life. She realized he was right, Ellis loved her and she loved him. Clearly Chris did not want to be in a relationship any longer. They decided that she would leave Chris the next time he came home. She insisted on telling him in person that she was leaving him. She felt guilty enough for going out on her husband with his best friend, the least she could do was to tell Chris the truth to his face, not email him like a coward.

She now watched him get ready to leave again and knew it was time, to tell the truth. She had to, she had promised Ellis that she would. Besides, the secret she hid growing under her nightgown would be noticeable soon enough. She and Ellis had been careful, but apparently not careful enough. He was thrilled at the news she was pregnant and she was happy too. This is the last hurdle she told herself, cut Chris loose. At breakfast she told herself, at breakfast, I’ll tell him.

Her hands shook as she dipped the bread in the eggy mixture for french toast. Chris brought his empty mug back in and refilled it before taking it into the living room. She could just hear the news on if she tried to listen. She flipped each piece of french toast, making sure they were golden brown. The phone rang, and the noise of it made her jump. She heard Chris answer and wondered who would be calling so early. A streak of fear ran through her wondering if it was Ellis, coming clean, thinking she had chickened out. Nervously, she turned down the flame on the cooking breakfast and went to grab her own phone. She took a deep breath, relieved that there weren’t any texts from him.

As she walked back into the kitchen Chris stood in the doorway.

“Who was on the phone,” she asked?

“The Foreman. We’re all staying landside. There’s a quarantine, that stupid virus.”

“A quarantine for where?”

“The whole damn country, for the next 6 to 8 weeks.”

Heather felt her stomach flip as she grabbed onto the counter. Chris turned and walked back into the living room to continue watching the news. Heather picked up her phone and texted Ellis.

“I’m telling him now, and then I’m on my way to your house. He’s staying landside with the quarantine. I can’t stay here with him. I love you. See you soon.”

Heather took the french toast out of the pan and plated it, squeezing maple syrup over it. She brought it into the living room with a glass of juice and handed Chris, who barely said thank you audibly enough to be heard. She turned and walked back to the bedroom and got dressed. She placed her bag next to the door on her way back to the living room. Chris looked up from his breakfast as she walked back into the room.

“Are you going somewhere?”

“Yes.”

“You can’t go out, there’s a quarantine. We have to stay in.

“I am going to be staying in, just not here and not with you. I’m leaving you Chris. I don’t love you anymore.”

He stared at her blankly and said nothing. She wanted to shout at him, to provoke a reaction from him. Anything that would show that he registered what she was saying. Instead, he sat further back in his chair and put another piece of the cut-up french toast in his mouth.

“You have nothing to say? After eight years of marriage? Chris did you hear me? I am leaving you.”

“That’s your choice.”

Pure rage coursed through her veins.

“I’m pregnant, the baby is Ellis’. We are getting married.”

This jarred his attention, as the next bite of french toast fell off of the fork. Before she could answer she turned and walked out of the house. She trembled the whole ride to Ellis’ house. She pulled into the driveway and before she could get out of her car, he had already come out of his house. She walked from the car, leaving the door open and into his arms.

“I am so glad you made it, they are shutting everything down. I was afraid you wouldn’t make it here in time before lock down.”

“I told him. It just didn’t seem to register. I am so glad that is done now.”

“I am proud of you, I know how difficult that was. Did you mention me? The baby?”

“I did. When I told him I was pregnant and the baby was yours was the only time it seemed to register with him.”

“What did he say?”

“Nothing, he didn’t say a word. It got his attention thought.”

Ellis hugged her tightly and she clung to him, grateful that life now showed promise. That night as she fell asleep in Ellis’ arms with their child growing inside of her, she thought about how strange life was. She had never thought she would have fallen in love with her husband’s best friend, let alone want to spend the rest of her life with him.

Three days after she had left, she was served with divorce papers. Both she and Ellis joked that divorce lawyers were still working. She did not contest the divorce and was eager to do what she needed to be free of Chris. Together she and Ellis settled into a quarantine routine, grateful that they could both work from home. It surprised them that Chris had not shown up for any sort of confrontation.

As the quarantine lagged on, and their baby grew, the divorce came through. The next night over dinner, Ellis got down on one knee.

“Heather, I love you and you have brought so much more to my life than I could have ever envisioned. I give you my solemn vow that I will always treat you with the love and respect you deserve. Will you please do me the honor of being my wife?”

With tears of happiness in her eyes, she threw her arms around Ellis and kissed him, slamming her lips so hard into his, she worried she might split one of their lips. He kissed her an pulled away.

“So that’s a yes then?”

“Yes. I love you Ellis McCarthy.”

“I love you future Mrs. Heather McCarthy.”

If you liked this story, check out the Quarantine Stories book with 5 never before published stories.

Filed Under: Quarantine Stories Tagged With: Quarantine Stories

Quarantine Stories 2: Ally & Lex

April 16, 2020 by jackiecthomas Leave a Comment

“So you’re staying here then,” Ally asked?

“Yeah, I guess, better than going back to my place. If I have to spend the next God knows how long listening to my upstairs neighbor practice for whatever theatre show she’s hoping to be in, I’m going to blow my brains out.” Lex made a gun gesture, pointing it to his head.

“Alright but you get the couch.”

“The couch? Ouch.”

The silence between them lingered a second longer than was comfortable.

Allie threw a couch pillow at Lex and giggled. He loved it when she smiled, and her laugh melted his heart. He wondered how he was going to quarantine with a woman he was madly in love with, as he deflected the flying pillow coming towards him.

“I’ll grab blankets and clear some space for you so you can unpack your bag. I’ll set it in my room for now.” Allie got up and walked into her bedroom to fetch blankets.

Lex picked up the pillow and silently screamed into it silently. Ugh, why can’t I just grow a pair, and tell her? I love you, Allie, see simple. Ahhhhh, he thought to himself. He pulled the pillow quickly as he heard her footsteps reapproach.

“You know, I’m kind of glad you came to stay. Who knows how long this is going to last. I don’t think we’ve spent more than two days apart since we met,” Allie said as she set the blankets on the coffee table and began to make the couch into a bed. ” We both know we would have gone crazy not being able to hang out. I don’t know what…” she trailed off.

“What don’t you know,” he asked?

“Nothing, nevermind. Here you are.” Allie gestured to the makeshift bed on the couch. “I’m going to turn in.” Allie stood, tucking a long, brown, curly lock behind her ear.

Lex couldn’t be sure, but he felt that she had lingered a moment longer than was normal. Is she sending me signals here and I keep missing it? Dude this is Allie, your best friend, he thought to himself. Allie took a step towards him and wrapped her arms around him, he embraced her. Before she let go, she placed a quick kiss on his cheek. Her lips on his skin felt like an electrical current through his body.

“I’m really glad you decided to stay. Good night Lex,” Allie said still standing in his arms. She pulled away and walked into her bedroom, shutting the door behind her. Lex took off his sweatshirt pants and socks, staying in his boxers and t-shirt. He had spent plenty of nights on Allie’s couch, through illness and break-ups. Lex climbed into the bed on the couch and stared up at the ceiling, the yellow street lamp cast a warm glow through the living room. It made him crazy that just on the other side of the door Allie laid in bed alone. He wanted to hold her in his arms and listen to her breathe softly.

Lex thought back to the night Allie had literally stumbled into his life. She tripped and fell off of the last step of the large porch at a college party. He had helped her to her feet, as Allie looked up to say thank you, she vomited all over him. Despite that, he helped her back to her dorm and left her with her mousey roommate, Ellen. Allie had utterly forgotten about Lex until she sat next to him in a public speaking course two days later. Lex had been cool about it and laughed it off. From that point on, the two of them had been inseparable but only as friends, nothing more. Both of them had been okay with that arrangement until recently. Lex found his feelings had grown into something more, but he was terrified to tell Allie. He worried about what would happen if she felt differently.

After graduation, Allie took a job in Seattle and Lex followed her. His parents died in a car accident during his senior year. As an only child, he was left without a family so, she became his family. Allie promised to stay in his life. They had spent their twenties building careers, and their friendship had been enough for both of them. Sure, there had been romantic relationships for both of them, but the relationships never lasted.

Lex finally fell asleep on the couch in the early hours of the morning. He woke to the smell of brewing coffee and the smell of Allie’s shampoo. He opened his eyes, registering it was morning but, he was still tired from the lack of a full night’s sleep.

“Here, coffee.” Allie held out a cup for him.

He propped up and grabbed the hot mug of coffee.

“Thanks.” he mumbled groggily.

“So how do you want to do this? I know we both have to work. I can take the bedroom, and you can use the kitchen table or the desk over there? I know you have to work too. I have a conference call here in a few minutes. Then maybe we can do lunch together? I have a veggie curry that I have been dying to make.”

Lex sat there not quite awake. “It’s your call. I mean put me where you want me. That sounds yummy. Lunch at noon then?”

“Sounds like a plan. Do you have any calls for work? Open plan living is great until it isn’t. Must remember this for the next place, it must be quarantine approved.” Allie joked.

Without thinking Lex reached up and grabbed her hand gently. She looked down at him.

“Thanks again for letting me quarantine with you,” he said.

Allie’s thumb rubbed over the back of his hand, it was a slight gesture but on that his body registered.

“Of course.”

She let go of his hand and turned back towards the kitchen. If he had not known her better, he could’ve sworn he saw a hint of embarrassment on her face. He shrugged it off, and picked up his phone and saw he didn’t have to start work for an hour.

“Why do you start out here? I’m going to grab a shower and then I can log-on to work from the bedroom if that’s cool,” Lex asked as before he took a sip of the hot coffee.

“That will work.”

Lex stood up and set the coffee down on the tabe. He began to fold up the blankets from the bed on the couch when he noticed Allie staring at him.

“Just leave’em. There’s no use in putting it all away, unless you really want to.”

“Are you sure? I don’t want to leave a mess in your livingroom.”

“You mean your, bedroom.” Allie smiled.

He smiled back as he made his way to the master bathroom; the other bathroom in the apartment was only a powder room. He shut Allie’s bedroom door and walked into her bathroom. Turning on the water, he held out his hand to test the temperature. There was something so intimate about being her private space that Lex tried to push out of his head as he washed. He stepped out of the shower and dried himself, hanging the towel on the back of the bathroom door. She had left his bag just inside the door of her room, so it wasn’t in the way. He stepped into the bedroom to see Allie standing in the bedroom with tears in her eyes and a look of surprise on her face.

“Oh sorry, I thought you were still in the shower,” she said as she turned around quickly.

They had been close enough to see each other in various states of undress, but neither had seen each other completely naked until now. Lex darted back behind the bathroom door and grabbed the towel from the back, pulling it around his waist before he reemerged. In that quick moment, Allie had made her way out of the bedroom. He dug a t-shirt out from the top of his bag, a pair of boxers and a pair of jeans, and threw them on quickly. Lex walked out into the open-plan living, dining, kitchen area. Allie stood at the kitchen counter with her back to him.

He walked up to her softly asking, “Hey Al, are you okay?”

She turned to look at him, his initial read of her face correct. She wiped a tear from her cheek. “Sorry I thought you were still in the shower. I was looking for the employee handbook for my company. I’ve been fired. No warning, just done. Four years with them, and now I’m out on my ass. Lex, what am I going to to do?’

“It will be okay. You’re a brilliant grant writer and if this whole quarantine and economic depression are going to be as bad as they’re saying, babe, your brilliance is going to be in high demand. We’ll get through this together.”

Allie turned and hugged him tightly. There was something different about this hug than the many others they had shared before, although Lex couldn’t put his finger on it. He held her as she cried, reassuring her again that everything would be alright. She stayed tightly cradled in his arms.

“Al, your my best friend, I’ve got you, if you need it. You will land on your feet, I know you will.”

“Thanks but, Lex you’ve got responsibilities too. You cannot support me.”

“Al, my parents left me a mountain of money.”

“No! No way are you spending your inheritance to support me! No way, I mean it!”

“I make enough from my job alone to support both of us. Look at me,” he tipped her chin up, something he had never done before as he still held her in his arms. Her teary blue eyes and soft pink lips took his next statement out of his mind. All he could focus on were those eyes. Without warning, she leant up and kissed him. A real kiss, her tongue brushing over his lips gently.

He felt her push out of his arms as she backed away.

“I.. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that…” she said embarassed.

Lex stepped forward and pulled her back into his arm, this time kissing her. He searched her body for any sign of resistance but found none. In fact the deeper he kissed her, the more her body seemed to melt into his. Breathless, they stepped away from each other.

“Woah where did that come from,” Allie asked with an embarrassed smile on her face.

Panicked that he had misread the situation he wasn’t sure what to say.

“I.. Al.. I.. Are you mad?”

She tucked a curl behind her ear as she stared at him.

“What was that,” she asked?

Tell her you coward, tell her you love her, his inner voice screamed.

“It was.. Why?” his replied, not making sense.

“Because baby this changes everything,” Allie said as she wiped a new tear from her cheek. “I’ve wanted you to do that for so long.”

Without waiting for her next word he pulled her back into his embrace and kissed her again like he had crossed the desert and her mouth was a cool spring. Almost fifteen years of pent up passion lived behind their lips. He never wanted to stop kissing Allie, ever again but he knew he had to tell her. He stopped and pulled his lips away from hers, still keeping her in his arms.

“I love you Allie Brookman. I have for so long. We don’t know what the future holds with this quarantine, but I am by your side. Where you go I go. I love you.”

Her face lit up as she smiled at him, her smile sly with a hint of mischief. He looked at her quizzically.

“I love you to Lex. This quarantine is going to be fun. Come on,” she said as she grabbed his hand leading him into her bedroom.

If you liked this story, check out the Quarantine Stories book with 5 never before published stories.

Filed Under: Quarantine Stories, Uncategorized Tagged With: Quarantine Stories

Quarantine Stories: A Creative Exercise

April 9, 2020 by jackiecthomas 2 Comments

Hello all, sorry I disappeared for a bit, but with the state of the world, I think it is excusable. As the global pandemic rages on, and I begin my fourth week of self-quarantine. I have learned two things about myself. First, stress and creativity do not go hand in hand for me. When I am really stressed creativity turns off. The second thing I have learned how unusual circumstances can lead to interesting story prompts. This brings me to Quarantine Stories. Right now we are living through a global event, time will be measure as before and after the pandemic. All of this being said, I want to say thank you so much to all of the front line workers, doctors, nurses, law enforcement, package carriers, mailmen and mailwomen etc. Bravery is stocking shelves, delivering mail, and caring for the sick without proper PPE these days. Thank you to these stoic individuals who are keeping the basic necessities functioning.

As I said earlier, the thought of quarantine started to percolate my creativity. I thought of fun, heartbreaking, and awkward scenarios where characters are effected by quarantine. I had this thought two weeks ago and my brain gnawed on the idea. So the more I thought about it, I think this might be an interesting creative exercise to write a series of very short stories where the only rule of the story is that the characters must be stuck together in quarantine. The quarantine rules do not have to match current laws set by global governments, there is a bit of creativity here. I do not mean for this to be a disrespectful exercise in any way. Like most of us globally, I am looking for a way to fill my time. My goal is one story a week. We’ll see how it goes.

So let’s begin:

Quarantine Story #1: April 8, 2020 (Mark & Gemma)

Gemma woke as Mark’s arm pulled her in closer to him. She opened her eyes not believing it was morning again. She surveyed the yellow walls of the studio apartment, from the futon where she and Mark had spent all weekend in each other’s arms. She rolled over slightly and his eyes opened.

“You’re awake,” Mark said, his voice still raspy from sleep.

“Mmm, I am. I need to get moving or I am going to miss my flight.”

“Nope, I’m not letting you go, you’re my prisoner,” he joked.

“Well, I can come to be your prisoner next time I am in St. Louis. I need to go home to England.

Gemma watched Mark’s playful smile pierce with a pang of sadness, and she felt remorse for it. This is insanity she told herself. She followed Mark home after a wild night out and proceeded to have the wildest sexual experience of her life thus far. They had only left the bed to eat and shower. They binge-watched old kung-fu movies, both finding a true fan in each other. Gemma sat up and looked for her phone. She had not checked it since Saturday morning. Her job was high stress and she knew everything could wait for one weekend of fun.

Mark propped up as he watched Gemma walk around the small apartment, naked. He found her boldness and confidence incredibly sexy. He could not pull his eyes away from her petite frame, that was curvy in all of the best places. It didn’t hurt that her black hair swayed across her back as she walked towards her purse. Mark tried not to salivate at the thought of sleeping with Gemma one last time. As she dug in her purse for her phone he got off of the futon and pulled a t-shirt over his head.

“At least let me make you breakfast first,” he said as he walked over to the tiny kitchenette.

He poured began to make a pot of coffee as he realized Gemma had not answered him.

“Gemma?”

She still ignored him. He turned around and saw her standing still naked as she held the phone in one hand scrolling through her phone and her other hand over her mouth. Reading her face, Mark knew something awful had happened. He walked over to her.

“Are you okay,” he asked.

Hearing the concern in his voice, triggered her attention.

“My flight’s been cancelled. The borders have been closed. I…”

“What? Why? What happened?”

“It’s this virus. All travel has been shut down. My mum and dad are back home in the UK, my auntie, and friends.”

“Does it say how long?”

“I don’t know I haven’t gotten that far yet.”

“Here, let me look,” Mark said as he turned around looking for his own phone.

“Turn the telly on,” Gemma instructed.

Mark grabbed the remote on the nightstand and clicked it on. President Malcolm stood at the podium, in the middle of a speech. Gemma came over and sat next to where Mark sat, both transfixed by the American President declaring the borders of the United States were now closed, as globally travel was banned due to a rapidly spreading global pandemic. Gemma reached back and pulled the blanket from the futon around her. Mark wrapped his arm around not sure if it was to comfort her or himself. As the President concluded Gemma looked down at her phone.

“I have to call parents, would that be okay?”

“Of course, I’ll shower to give you some privacy.”

Mark stood, and realized he should probably call his own family. He grabbed his phone and walked into the bathroom, shutting the door behind himself. With his apartment being a true studio, the bathroom was the only enclosed room, where one could give and get privacy. He turned on the shower, hoping the noise would block out his own calls home. He talked to his parents who were isolated on their farm in rural Illinois and were prepared. They urged him to head to the farm, and it sounded like a good idea, but he wasn’t sure yet. He wasn’t going to just leave Gemma in his apartment.

He showered in record time and put a towel around his waist as he walked out of the bathroom, hoping he wouldn’t disturb Gemma. She sat on the futon her head in her hands. Mark walked over softly and sat down next to her. She could smell the scent of his shampoo and could feel the moisture evaporating off of his skin.

“Were you able to get ahold of your parents and your family,” he asked.

“Where am I going to go. Your? President said that the borders are closed for the next six weeks at minimum. I’ve called my hotel and they are requesting guests check out. I guess they called over the weekend to alert me to this, but the one weekend I put my phone away, the world ends.”

She wiped a tear from her cheek as Mark stood up.

“You’re going to come home with me. My family owns a farm just across the state line in Illinois, in Berlin. It’s tiny, they have a big farm with plenty of room. I called them when you made your calls and they invited me, us, out.”

“You told your family about me?”

“Not exactly, but you are welcome to come along.”

“I’m a stranger to them.”

“You’re not to me. I know this really isn’t the time for this, considering all that is going on but I like you, I mean, I really like you. That being said you don’t have to feel the same way about me, I know how nuts that sounds as we’ve only just met. The offer stands no matter your feelings for me.”

Gemma wiped both of her cheeks. There was something about her curled up in his blanket, upset and afraid, that compelled him to lean down and kiss her but he resisted the urge. She looked up at him, with her piercing green eyes, and tear-stained cheeks.

“I couldn’t it’s rude.”

“Not here, I promise you. The city is going to get nuts, you have nowhere else to go. I’d offer to let you stay in the studio but I don’t have food here, and I don’t think it will be safe. Please come with me?”

Gemma sat considering her options. She hadn’t said it but she felt the same way about Mark. She chewed her bottom lip, thinking through her options, while she looked at the perfect specimen of a man standing in front of her. The night she had found his dark curly mop of hair adorable the night she had met him, and his chocolate-brown eyes seemed to melt her insides in all of the best ways. He was clean-shaven on the night they had met, but he now had the beginnings of a beard. His muscular build reassured her that he could protect her in the new reality they had woken up to.

“Are you sure it won’t be an imposition?”

“No way. My parents would be thrilled. Here I can give you the address that way you can tell your family where you’ll be if that helps?”

Mark bent down looking at her squarely.

“My mother’s name is Betty and my father’s name is George. They’ve lived in Berlin their whole lives. The family farm has been in my family for three generations now. I am their only son, my sister Carina lives in Florida with her husband. She is staying down there to be near her in-laws. You’ll actually be doing me a favor, my parents are almost in their seventies. It would be nice to have someone my own age to talk to. I promise you it is the safest place on the planet, there is almost a three-mile square perimeter of corn around the entire farm.”

Mark reached up and tucked a long piece of her bangs behind her ear.

“All right. Thank you. Are you sure?”

“Absolutely. I promise you we’ll be safe there.”

Gemma stood up and began to look for her clothes. She dressed in Friday night’s club attire that she had worn to Mark’s apartment. Her bags had been packed up and were waiting at the concierge the hotel had instructed her.

“I’m sorry but can we please go to the hotel for my bags before we leave town?”

“Of course.”

Mark zipped the suitcase that sat on the futon and pulled it off of onto the floor, the metal wheels of it clicking on the wood floor.

“Ready? We’d better get on the road, so we are in our shelter place by 5 pm. as the President said.

Gemma nodded that she was as Mark pulled the suitcase behind him. He reached out his hand for hers and she took it as they walked out of the apartment into the unknown.

 

If you liked this story, check out the Quarantine Stories book with 5 never before published stories.

Filed Under: Quarantine Stories, Romance, Short Stories, Writing Tagged With: Inspiration, Quarantine Stories, Romance

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