dontravis.com
blog post #390
 |
| Courtesy of Pixabay.com |
After
the little ditty about Zack and Zel, it’s time to return to a proper short
story. You can thank my reader (and friend) from Palm Springs for the following
story. In an email exchange one day, he mentioned that all this social lockdown
stuff might provide material for a story. So here you have it. Blame him; not
me.
*****
COVID
CLOSET
Bruno Hadley fought
to keep his voice calm. “What do you mean I can’t leave?”
The college provost looked
comical decked out in full protective gear, including one of those powder blue
gowns. His navy pantlegs sticking out below the hem were capped by wood-brown
leather oxfords. The idiot had no sense of style at all. And why had he brought
the college doctor and a security guard with him? Or at least, that’s who Bruno
suspected lurked beneath the camouflage garb.
“Unfortunately, your
roommate has the COVID-19 virus,” the man replied. “Too bad it happened before
classes were dismissed and everyone went home, but that’s the way the ball
bounces, as they say.”
Bruno’s belly
knotted. The slug didn’t even attend college sports—baseball, basketball,
football—hell, even tennis tournaments—so how’d he know anything about bouncing
balls?
“So I’m going to be
cooped up in here?”
The doctor spoke up.
“You and Cooper will have to isolate for a while. You’ll have the run of the
empty frat house, but that’s all.”
Bruno snorted. “Hey,
man, I gotta be home by this weekend. My family’s got a big get together
planned.”
“Not anymore, they don’t.”
The doctor’s voice sounded downright sinister, making Bruno wonder if that was
really the medic hiding under that outfit. “Large gatherings are a banned now.”
“Even family
members?”
“The virus doesn’t
recognize family ties. It goes where the wind blows. Well, that’s not strictly
true. Probably—”
“Yeah, yeah,” he said,
eyeing the mute figure who hadn’t spoken a word yet. Probably Mickey Mahaney
hiding under all that gear. Bruno and the security dick ran afoul of one
another a couple of times this past term. Beer was usually involved in one
fashion or another. Bruno gave his nose a swipe. Might as well test things
right now. “Well, I’m going home, and you’ve got no right to stop me.”
That motivated the
Mick. “Got every right, Hadley. The governor issued a proclamation.”
Bruno almost
snickered. “So the governor can override the constitution with the flick of his
pen?” He turned to face the slight figure standing six feet to his right.
“Don’t you have anything to say, Cooper?”
Harry Cooper shifted
from one foot to the other and dropped his gaze to the floor. “Like they say,
we’re quarantined.” He raised his blue eyes. “For how long?”
“Ten days,” the
doctor said. “At a minimum.”
“Ten days!” Bruno
exclaimed. “No way.”
“Let me explain
something to you, my pugnacious young friend,” the doctor said. “Your roommate
is in the hospital. Like as not, in a few days he’ll be on a ventilator. Then
we’ll see if he survives.”
“Damn, I shoulda
left yesterday,” Bruno said, regretting his decision to remain on campus one
more day to be with Cherry, his cheerleader girlfriend. He grinned internally.
After last night, she’d have to come up with a new name.
“It wouldn’t have
mattered,” the provost said. “We’re contacting all the members of this frat
house and putting them in isolation, in situ, so to speak.”
“At least, I’d be at
home.”
“Where you could
infect your entire family,” the doctor said.
The skin prickled on
Bruno’s back. He’d have to rethink walking out the door the minute these three stooges
were out of sight. “You’re serious?”
“Dead serious. And I
chose that word deliberately. People you know are going to die from this
outbreak, possibly starting with your roommate.”
“Okay, so what do we
do?” Bruno asked, accepting the inevitable.
“Remain in the
house. One hot meal will be delivered each day. You can raid your fridge
between meals. Take your temperature first thing in the morning and last thing
before you go to bed. Keep a record of it. If it goes over 101 degrees, call
the infirmary at once. If you lose your sense of smell or taste, call. If you experience
any shortness of breath, call. In the meantime, go about your life as normally
as possible.”
“Yeah, right.”
The doctor indicated
Cooper. “You can interact but keep at least six feet between you. Cover your
mouth when you cough or sneeze. Call my office if you have any questions. Oh,
yes, wash your hands often. Thoroughly with warm water and soap. Wash at least
long enough to—”
“Yeah, yeah. I’ve
heard all the propaganda.”
Bruno watched the men
depart. Mahaney paused at the door and looked back. No doubt that was intended
to mean the Mick would checking on him. Once they were gone, Bruno turned and
looked at the guy standing to his right.
Christ, being
confined to the frat house for ten days was punishment enough. But to be shut
in with the college queer? That was cruel and unusual punishment.
Harry stared at the
handsome brute eyeing him from six feet away. The guy’s hostility was almost
rendered bearable by his physical appearance. A shock of honey brown hair that
curled at the ends. Greenest eyes he’d ever seen on anyone… ever. Wide, square
shoulders. Biceps rippling every time he moved. Pecs that took Harry’s breath
away. Six-two at least, giving him at least four inches over Harry’s five-ten.
He dropped his gaze. How would that translate in another inevitable
comparison? He was startled out of his inventory of his companion’s assets
by a gravely voice.
“Don’t get any funny
ideas, Harry.”
“Too late. I’ve had
them all semester.”
“Being locked up in
here with you doesn’t change nothing.”
“The door’s not
locked. You can walk out any time you want.”
“More’n likely I’ll
just throw your ass out.”
Harry smiled. “You’d
have to touch me to do that. Welcome to try.”
“Keep your distance,
you hear?”
“You come too close,
I’ll cough on you.”
Harry had the pleasure
of seeing the hunky guy recoil at the idea.
Bruno glared for
another moment and then stomped off upstairs. Headed for his room probably. Had
it occurred to the dumb jock that his room was where his roommate, another
jock, had spread the virus all over the place? When he went upstairs after
reading a few poems from a book in the frat library, Harry discovered Bruno
wasn’t as dumb as he thought. The guy had moved to a room that had been vacant
before the college was closed for the corona virus. Harry smiled broadly when
he recalled what he and Joe, the frat’s president, had done in that room—that
very bed—not a week ago.
Okay, so we’ve got a
overtly hetero jock and a bookish gay quarantined together in a college frat
house after everyone else has gone home due to canceled classes because of the
COVID-19 virus. What could possibly go wrong? All they have to do is social
distance for ten days, right? Or the question might be, can anything possibly
go right?
Check in next week.
Until then.
The following are buy
links for the recently released The Voxlightner Scandal.
Barnes
& Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-voxlightner-scandal-don-travis/1132632844?ean=9781640809260
Now
my mantra: Keep on reading and keep on
writing. You have something to say, so say it!
My
personal links: (Note the change in the Email address because I’m still getting
remarks on the old dontravis21@gmail.com. PLEASE DON’T USE
THAT ONE.)
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/donald.travis.982
Twitter:
@dontravis3
Buy
links to Abaddon’s Locusts:
See
you next week.
Don
Thanks. I'll leave the comment up even though it's a come-on for a coronavirus test kit.
ReplyDelete