College Heights

Wednesday, March 18, 2020

"I can't believe Diane would blackmail you like this," Carol says, sitting at the kitchen island. "Why not? You did," Shea scoffs. Carol hangs her head, sighing. "I apologized for that. It was the grief talking." Shea looks at her sideways. "Mmhmm. Meanwhile I've got Rita Skeeter out here about to ruin my life on the front page of the Daily Prophet." Carol looks at him, confused. "I did not understand a word of that." "Harry Potter," Caroline says, walking into the kitchen. "Oh, well, I never read it." "Neither did I," Caroline shrugs, "good movies though." Shea stares at them, shaking his head. "Have you called Alice?" Carol asks. "No," Shea says, "and I'm not going to. She'd rush back and at their age, and with the coronavirus outbreak, it's just not the stress she or Grandpa needs." Carol smiles sympathetically. "Is there anything I can do?" she asks. "Just keep my son safe," he says. JJ walks in, still in his pajamas. "I didn't know you were here," he says to Shea. "I'm not," he says, getting up, "I was just dropping Shiloh off. You okay?" JJ nods. "Yeah. One week sober. Woohoo," he says sarcastically. Shea smiles, patting his arm. "I'm proud of you," he says, before turning back to Carol. "Right. I'll pick him up this evening. Thanks, Carol." "Anytime," she says. Shea leaves, while JJ pours a bowl of cereal. "Any plans today?" Carol asks nonchalantly. "Thought I might rob a liquor store," he says. She glares at him, causing him to roll his eyes. "No. No plans."

Lucretia finds a rough-looking Hallie flipping through a medical chart at the nurse's station. "I told you not to do that last Irish car bomb," she says, laughing. "Shut up," Hallie snaps, rolling her eyes. "I'm fine, I'm just tired." "You're going out too much baby girl," Lucretia says. "I know you wanted your freedom, but you've got to slow down. You're not 20 anymore." Hallie throws the chart down, looking up. "I know, Mother. I had a night out. That's all." "You had two nights out," Lucretia corrects her, "in a row. And on a work night. You mess around and come in hungover or worse, still drunk, and—" she snaps her fingers "—everything you worked for is gone like that, or a patient is gone like that. Think about that, especially since we're about to get hit harder than we've ever been hit." Hallie looks at her, worried. "You think it'll be that bad?" "I hope not," Lucretia says, "if they can flatten the curve, maybe we won't be stressed to our breaking point. Even if they do, though, it's going to affect a lot of people." Hallie sighs, nodding.

Delaney walks into the living room of her apartment, finding Orion and Deacon watching television. Clothes, books, and dirty dishes lie scattered around the room, and she starts picking them up, clearing her throat. They don't look up, so she clears it a little louder. Orion turns around, looking at her with concern. "Are you okay?" She stares at him in disbelief, dropping the pile of clothes she had picked up. Shaking her head, she goes into her room, slamming the door. Orion looks at Deacon, who just shrugs.

"Is it really that bad?" Annette asks someone on the other end of her office phone. "Well, if that is what the Governor thinks. Alright. Definitely stay in touch. Thank you, Janet." She hangs up, looking at Kyoko and taking a deep breath. "That was Janet Dillon from the governor's office. The state universities have already closed," Annette says, "and she thinks we need to as well." Kyoko sighs, leaning back in her chair. "A college dorm is a petri dish," she points out, "I would not want my child in one." "Agreed," Annette says, taking off her glasses. "Could we move our classes online?" "Possibly," Kyoko says. "The good news is next week is spring break, so the university was closing anyway. We can use that time to prepare." Annette stands, and Kyoko follows suit. "It's settled then. Send an e-mail to the faculty listserv letting them know what we are doing. Notify Angelica, too." Kyoko cringes. "Angelica is not in the state at the moment," she says, "she flew to Texas with Ramona Chavez." Annette sighs. "Well, call Delaney Crane. The last thing I want is the student leadership throwing a tantrum because I did not include them in the decision." Kyoko nods, heading back to her office.

Orion walks into Delaney's room, laying down on the bed next to her. "What's wrong?" he asks. "Nothing," she says, rolling over. He leans up, resting his head on his hand. "We need to be able to talk about what's bothering you," he says. She sighs, annoyed, and sits up. "What's bothering me is that you are always here," she says. "All the time. You are here, you are not paying rent, and the apartment is a mess. You and Deacon are slobs." Orion looks down, ashamed. "I didn't know I was getting on your nerves," he says. "You're not getting on my nerves," she says. He looks up, smiling. "You're pissing me off," she says. His smile immediately drops. "Do you want me to move out?" he asks. Before she can answer, her phone vibrates. She checks it, her face serious. "What's up?" he asks. She looks at him, stunned. "They're closing Centennial for the coronavirus. I have to go," she says, jumping out of bed.