Out After Curfew

Chapter 4

Gerard Hudson walks alongside his female companion through the busy, sunny town centre of Dale City, his green Land Rover visible to them as they approach it at the end of the road, where it is parked on the curb. Not a single automated steel shutter to be seen on any window, no reinforced doors, no ultraviolet bulbs in any street lights – no sense of fear or disquietude detectable oozing from the collective consciousness over any ever-present, impending danger. 

"So where are we going, then?" says Gerard.

"I've told you, it's a surprise." the woman replies as the two come to a stop in the middle of the pavement. "Now give me your keys." she adds, holding out a flat-palmed hand.

Gerard looks at her with a furrowed brow of curiosity, intrigued and confused by what this surprise could be. Eventually after letting out a big puff of air through his nose, he yields and reaches into his pocket, taking out his car keys and dropping them into his companion's hand.

When reaching the car and unlocking it, the woman gets into the driver's side and Gerard the passenger's, feeling slightly out of place in this seat with no steering wheel or pedals in front of him – somewhere he has only sat rarely in the past.

"What are we doing here?" Gerard says, confused as they reach the end of a long-stretching, leaf-shadowed rural road and drive through the welcoming, ungated entrance to Chesterwood House's courtyard.

The woman doesn't say anything until she has stopped the car. Pulling the hand break up and turning off the engine, she turns to Gerard with a smile and says, "Come on. Get out."

The two exit the car, slamming the doors behind them. The woman looks up at the attractive former farmhouse in front of her with nothing but acres upon acres of field and greenery surrounding it. Gerard walks around from his side of the car and stands next to her, still totally bewildered as to what they are doing at this address. The woman lets out a deep and serene breath, looking both calmed and excitedly joyous by what she sees before her, where she stands and everything about the present.

"It's perfect, isn't it?" she says, her voice giving off the same impression of serenity.

"...Yeah, it is. But why are we here?" Gerard says, still unsuccessfully trying to piece the puzzle of events together.

The woman turns to him, puts her hand in her pocket and takes out a set of keys, holding them up by their keyring in front of Gerard.

"Welcome home." she says, unable to contain the grin on her face, overjoyed to be uttering these words.

"What?" Gerard says with befuddled thoughts and emotions, a half smile held back by the lasso of inquisition in his mind.

"They sold it to another buyer." he says, alluding to the disheartening phone call the two had previously received from their estate agent informing them that the house they had wanted to buy – this house – had been sold to someone else.

"They dropped out....It's ours."

Gerard and his female compeer stare at each other for a few moments as the information sinks in. Gerard's smile then grows immensely and he lets out a joyous laugh, the two being pulled towards each other and locking together under the powerful magnetism of jubilation and happiness.

"Why don't you let us in." the woman says into his ear. They detract from their embrace and Gerard takes the keys from her hand.

"Let's go, then." he says, the two proceeding to walk to the quaint oak front door.

He puts the key in the lock and opens up his new house. Gerard's grin doesn't fade as he walks through into his new living room, looking around at all the empty walls and spaces as he moves, feeling excitement for their potential and what will go in their places – what kind of home this will be made into. As he continues through to the kitchen he is greeted by another surprise.