The alarm blared through the quiet suburban neighbourhood, jolting Gilbert out of his deep sleep. He groggily reached for his phone to check the time, and as he did, he saw the notification for the home security app on his phone. The alarm was coming from his own house. Gilbert’s heart pounded in his chest…
“This damn curfew…”, uttered Dennis as he made his way to his apartment; carefully skipping pot-holes, not to let mud ruin his designer jacket. He was almost home, a few minutes shy to the curfew time enforced by the local government to ensure the deadly pandemic was put in check. As he ran towards the estate entrance, he couldn’t help but wonder if his girlfriend had made it home in time. He wished he had accompanied her home but she lived with her grandmother who was a tough nut to crack. It was thoughtful to have ordered a cab for her ride back home. It was definitely a faster and safer option too, furthermore it would have saved her from the drizzles that would have eventually ruined her hair. If there was one thing that Dennis knew to heart, it was that Queen’s hair was not be messed with.
The clock struck sharply at quarter to 1 a.m. It was pitch black with nothing but the whistling of trees and the gushing of wind, furiously creaking into the window panes and the empty space that was her sound but silent apartment. Squinting her eyes, careful not to let the sweet call of slumber fly away, she decides to switch her bedside lamp on, turning a bright luminescent shade of white light that fills her room, and leaves the roaches of the night scampering to safety.