Elaine had been alone in her apartment for what felt like an eternity since the Halili family left to evacuate to the quarantine zone. Her plan to stay behind, to avoid the chaos of the outside world and the dangers of the outbreak, seemed to isolate her even more than she had anticipated. With a heavy heart, she turned to her computer, hoping for some semblance of connection.
As a social media influencer and streamer, Elaine's online presence had always been a source of comfort. She surfed through her social media profiles, reading through the flood of messages from her fans. They wished her safety, sent words of affirmation, and reminisced about her last stream at the mall. Despite the outpouring of support, there was a deafening silence from her own family. Not a single message or call.
"At least contact me to see if I'm safe," Elaine muttered to herself, feeling the sting of their absence. Her parents, now separated, seemed worlds away. Her mother, remarried with a new family, and her father, single and working abroad in Qatar, were both absent from her life when she needed them the most. She scrolled through their profiles, feeling more disconnected with each passing moment.
To escape the loneliness, Elaine picked up her Switch and immersed herself in video games, trying to drown out her worries. Hours passed, but the underlying anxiety lingered. The sweat and stickiness from the day's stress clung to her, prompting her to take a shower before bed.
In the grimy bathroom, she stood beneath the shower head, letting the cold water cascade over her. As the droplets hit her face and trickled down her freckly, slender body, the haunting memories from the mall replayed in her mind. The sound of running water morphed into the sharp ring of tinnitus, echoing the gunshot from the revolver. She could still see the infected mall security guard, Irene, whom she had been forced to kill. The scene replayed over and over, a relentless loop of trauma.
The ringing in her ears grew louder, a constant reminder whenever she wasn't distracted by the internet or video games. Elaine covered her ears, desperately trying to shut out the noise and the memories. Tears mingled with the water flowing down her face, her body trembling as she struggled to overcome the overwhelming sense of guilt and sorrow. Alone in her apartment, the weight of the outbreak and her actions pressed down on her, and she realized just how much she needed someone to hold her and tell her that everything would be okay.
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Elaine dried herself with a bath towel, wrapping it tightly around her body before stepping out of the bathroom and heading to her bedroom to get dressed. Clothes were scattered across her bed, remnants of a week where each day blurred into the next. She picked out some underwear and began dressing, when suddenly, a noise outside caught her attention. Footsteps and the clanging of metal were followed by the sound of her curtained window sliding open.
Startled, Elaine turned to see a man in a silver windbreaker, blood staining his nose and a bloody kitchen knife in his hand, appearing at her bedroom window. Elaine screamed, her voice piercing the air.
"Who are you? What are you doing in my apartment?!" she shouted, grabbing anything within reach and hurling it at the intruder, one arm covering her breasts. "You creep!"
"Ouch! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to intrude!" the man stammered, turning his head to avoid the barrage of objects. "It's not what it looks like, I swear! I can explain."
"Are you here to rob and hurt me?!" Elaine demanded, her hands shaking as she pointed a hairdryer at him like a gun. "I'm warning you, you're not the only person I'll kill today!"
"I'm not here to harm you," the man replied, almost laughing at the sight of the hairdryer. "My name's Rio. It's just... the knife. It's for self-defense. It's dangerous out there with all the infected. I had to protect myself." He dropped the knife and kicked it towards Elaine to show he meant no harm. "In fact, I'm being chased by an infected and just happened to pass by here on my way to the quarantine zone."
Elaine's panic spiked. "There's an infected chasing you, and you brought it here?!"
"No, don't worry. It's across the roof. It couldn't keep up when I jumped to your emergency fire ladder and climbed up," Rio explained. "By now, it must have given up and targeted someone else with all the noise outside. If I made you feel threatened, I'm truly sorry. I can leave now if you want—"
"I—I believe you," Elaine interrupted, seeing the distress in his eyes and feeling a pang of sympathy. "Are you sure you want to go? You look like you're in bad shape. You can rest here for a while."
"Really? I can do that?" Rio's face lit up with relief.
"But maybe let me finish getting dressed first?" Elaine suggested, blushing with embarrassment. "Creepy dude breaking into someone's apartment in the middle of the night!"
"It's not like there's much to see anyway," Rio quipped, still looking away.
"Ahem, go wait in the living room!" Elaine snapped, insulted and flustered. "And do something about that nose. You're bleeding."
"Okay, miss. Thanks for letting me stay," Rio said, heading towards the door to the living room.
"One more thing," Elaine called out, stopping him.
Rio paused, his hand on the doorknob.
"You said you were being chased by an infected. You're not bitten, are you?" Elaine asked seriously.
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"No, I'm not," Rio reassured her. "People turn in one to four minutes after being bitten. I wouldn't be talking to you if I were infected."
"Right, I see that. It's just... with everything happening, it's hard to trust anyone," Elaine admitted.
"I understand. No offense taken," Rio said, opening the door and stepping into the living room, closing it gently behind him to give Elaine her privacy.
As she dressed, Elaine's mind raced. Had she made the right decision letting this stranger stay? She slipped on her bra, shorts, an oversized t-shirt, and finally her glasses. She took a deep breath, trying to steady herself.
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As Rio stepped into the living room from the bedroom, he couldn't help but notice the state of disarray. Elaine's apartment looked like a snapshot frozen in time, cluttered and unkempt. Everything was strewn about, reflecting a life interrupted. But who was he to complain? He was more than lucky to have a place to stay, even if just for a moment.
He made his way to the bathroom, hoping to clean himself up. The sight that greeted him was even more disheartening. Mold clung to the walls, the floor was still wet from recent use, and the trash overflowed with discarded tampons, tissues, and other hygienic products.
"Is she for real?" Rio thought to himself, a mix of disbelief and resignation washing over him.
Rio stood in front of the sink, turning on the faucet. He placed his hands under the running water, watching the blood and dirt swirl away. The cold water stung as he washed off the dried blood from his nose, the pain now registering as the adrenaline wore off. Finished with the immediate cleaning, he looked up into the mirror. The face staring back at him was one he could barely stand to see. Guilt gnawed at him, the memory of what he had done to his mother haunting him. She had begged him to protect himself, even from her, when she turned. He had done it, but the self-hatred was almost too much to bear.
He resisted the urge to shatter the mirror, instead sighing deeply and turning away. Accepting that he had done what he had to do didn't make it any easier.
As he stepped out of the bathroom, Elaine was waiting, a towel and some cute band-aids in her hands.
"I figured you might need this," she said softly, handing him the towel and band-aids. "My name's Elaine, by the way."
"Thanks, Elaine," Rio replied, taking the towel and drying his face. He hung the towel on the bathroom wall hook after using it, then looked back at the mirror one more time. He took a band-aid and carefully placed it over the injured area on his nose.
Elaine watched him, a mix of curiosity and empathy in her eyes. "You must have been through a lot," she said, her voice gentle.
"You could say that," Rio responded, his voice tinged with weariness.
Elaine nodded, understanding the unspoken weight of his words. "Well, you're safe here for now. If you need anything, just let me know."
"Thank you," Rio said, genuinely grateful. For a moment, the chaos outside felt a little more distant.
…
In the living room, Rio settled down in a chair, trying to catch his breath after the chase and everything he had been through. Meanwhile, Elaine was in the small kitchen, preparing to cook herself some dinner before bed.
"Hey, are you hungry?" Elaine called out.
"I am quite hungry, actually," Rio replied. "I haven't eaten since this afternoon..." His stomach grumbled loudly, punctuating his statement.
Hearing his stomach roar, Elaine chuckled. "All I have is instant noodles. Wanna eat?"
"Sure, instant noodles will do as long as they aren't seafood-based," Rio said, setting down his backpack and taking off his windbreaker. "Let me help you."
Surprised by his offer, Elaine felt a little awkward and blushed, stepping aside to give Rio some space in the kitchen. Rio, however, didn’t seem to notice her reaction and busied himself looking for the cooking pot.
"Where's your cooking pot?" he asked.
"It's in the cupboard above you," Elaine replied.
Rio retrieved the pot and, considering the state of the apartment, washed it thoroughly before filling it with water. Elaine opened the packs of instant noodles, and Rio placed the pot on the gas stove, turning on the fire to boil the water. Elaine prepared the large bowl, mixing the condiments and powdered flavoring with a fork.
As they waited for the water to boil, Rio took the empty sachets and, seeing the overflowing trash can, asked, "Have you always lived like this?" He stomped on the trash, pressing it down to make room for the new ones.
Elaine jumped at the question. "What do you mean?"
"It's like you've been living in the apocalypse even before the outbreak happened," Rio remarked, glancing around the cluttered apartment.
"Oh, you're rude!" Elaine exclaimed. "You don't know what it's like for me. I stream all day just to pay the bills and get something to eat. I don't have time to clean. So don't judge the way I live!"
"I'm sorry," Rio said, scratching his head. "I didn't mean it that way. You should at least take out the trash. It will make you sick if you leave your apartment like this."
Realizing he was genuinely concerned for her well-being, Elaine calmed down. "You're right. It's been like this since I started living on my own. I don't see the point in cleaning when it gets dirty again after a few days."
The water began to boil, releasing steam into the air. Rio put the dehydrated noodles into the pot, discarding the empty packs in the trash.
"When I was a kid, my mother used to say we need to look after our home because it shows we care about ourselves and the people we live with, though that house wasn't ours but belonged to my aunt, we are—were freeloaders," Rio said, his eyes distant with memories. "Anyway, even if you're alone, you should take care of yourself."
Elaine was touched by his sentimentality. "You're lucky to have had such a healthy household," she responded, thinking of her own broken family.
...
"I think they're ready," Elaine said, looking at the noodles in the boiling water. "I like my noodles firm."
"Same here," Rio replied, turning off the stove and picking up the nearby hot pads. "Can you pass me the colander?"
Elaine handed him the colander, and Rio placed it over the steaming pot, draining the water into the sink. He then transferred the noodles to the large bowl where Elaine had prepared the sauce.
"Okay, now we mix it," Elaine said, stirring the noodles into the sauce with a fork.
Once the noodles were thoroughly mixed, Elaine brought the bowl to the table. She set out two smaller bowls, one for each of them, and another fork for Rio. With everything ready, they sat around the table, ready to eat.
"Thank you for the food," Rio said, serving himself a portion of noodles.
Elaine did the same, and they began eating together. As they ate, Rio noticed Elaine's glasses fogging up from the steam of the noodles. He snickered a little, finding it endearing. Elaine laughed too, a sense of normalcy and companionship settling between them despite the chaos outside.
In that small, cluttered apartment, amidst the turmoil of the world outside, they found a moment of connection and warmth, sharing a simple meal and the comfort of each other's company. For a brief while, the grim reality of the world beyond those walls seemed to fade, replaced by the simple joy of human connection.