PEYTON'S POV
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"Peyton, do you want to come over to my house after school?" my friend, Laine, asked. "We can, like, watch movies or something."
She twirled her hair around her finger as she spoke, chewing loudly on bubblegum and batting her heavily mascara'd eyelashes at me. She attempted to blow a bubble, but ultimately failed miserably, then having to peel the gum off her lips.
"Nah, sorry. I can't. I've gotta go to McMann's house to work on our English assignment," I told her.
That was true, but if it wasn't I definitely would've made up another excuse as to why I couldn't go. I socialise with these girls at school, but honestly, I don't enjoy their company. They follow me around and flirt with the boys on the soccer team, except for Laine. Laine flirts with me, and though she's never mentioned her sexuality being anything other than straight, I figured she's trying to get me in her bed as a 'lesbian experience'. I wasn't about that.
"Ugh, sucks that you are paired up with that bitch!" she groaned.
"Hmm," I responded.
Truthfully, Zara McMann wasn't a bitch. She had never been a bitch. But she's fake. She acts so nice to every single person, all the time. No one could possibly be that nice, it's definitely all an act. When she moved to Braidwood High in eighth grade she went up against me in the one hundred metre sprint. Ever since I was a kid I had been the fastest, the best, the one who was undefeated. I had to be, or my parents would punish me. But she won. I was so embarrassed, and after that I just never wanted anything to do with her. She had this preppy attitude, always getting top grades and showing up to school with perfect hair and perfect makeup. For so long I assumed she had the perfect life, the perfect family, the perfect everything...until yesterday.
I zoned out of the conversation between Laine and I, wishing for it to be over. I "hmm'd" and "yeah'd" my way through the conversation until the final bell rang and I was able to escape from her clutches.
I got into my car and reluctantly drove the route to Zara's house. I didn't enjoy spending time with her, as she was everything I aspired not to be; fake. I knew she was fake...she had to be. Nobody is that nice to people voluntarily. As much as I despised being in her house, it was definitely better than being in mine. Anything was better than that.
I pulled up to the curb outside her house, waiting in my car for a few minutes to brace myself for what was bound to be a terrible afternoon. For the first time ever, she had called me out for my actions. And as much as I hated to admit it, she was right. Maybe I had been treating her unfairly yesterday...but that didn't change how I felt about her as a whole. I finally convinced myself to get out of my car and go inside, taking my workbooks with me. I was adamant to take notes this time - I wasn't going to give her another excuse to lose her temper at me. She was so sensitive.
I pulled out my phone to send her a text telling her I was outside her house, but before I hit send the door flew open and her dog came bounding towards me, tongue, ears, and jowls flapping in the wind.
"Were you going to sit in your car all afternoon?" she asked smartly, and I scoffed at her.
"I had to hype myself up to deal with you all afternoon," I snapped at her, bending down to pat Dennis on the head.
Zara rolled her eyes before walking inside, calling Dennis behind her. She left the door open for me and I followed her through it, closing it behind me. It was only once we were inside that I took in her appearance. She was wearing a cropped singlet top with a pair of high waisted sweatpants. Her feet were covered by fluffy dog slippers and she had her long hair braided down her back. I may not have liked the girl, but I could definitely appreciate a good body when I saw it. Had this body been hiding under a school uniform this whole time?
"When you're done staring, maybe we can get some work done."
Her voice snapped me out of my gaze, and I realised I had been staring directly at her chest and the curve of her waist. I was beyond embarrassed to be caught staring at her, and unfortunately for her my defence mechanism was anger.
"Get over yourself," I scoffed. "Just because I'm gay that doesn't mean I'm attracted to every girl I see. So fucking homophobic."
"You can be attracted to trees for all I care, I just want to get this assignment finished," she snapped. "And don't even think about accusing me of being homophobic, I couldn't give a damn what your sexuality is."
Okay, so she isn't homophobic. I guess that's a positive. That doesn't change the fact that I still don't like the girl.
"Whatever, lets just watch the film..." I dropped my notebooks onto the coffee table and sat on the two seater couch opposite the TV. I didn't make the mistake of sitting in Dennis' spot this time. Zara busied herself in the kitchen before walking out with two glasses of water, her notebooks tucked under her arm. She placed a glass in front of me before sitting down on the other end of the sofa.
"I didn't ask for water..." I told her.
"Can't you just say thank you instead of being difficult?"
She pressed play on the remote before I could respond, and instead of arguing with her I settled back into the comfortable cushion, my notebook open on my lap.
Throughout the film the two of us scribbled notes down, trying to take down as much as we possibly could. I was determined to get a good grade for this assignment - I needed top grades in order to qualify for a university scholarship. Zara just wanted good grades to be a goody two shoes.
The film finally ended and I watched as Zara flicked through her pages of notes, reading them thoroughly, her eyebrows furrowed slightly and her bottom lip pulled between her teeth. As much as I hated to admit it, she was extremely beautiful. I turned away before she caught me staring at her again, and it was only a matter of seconds before she closed her book and picked up the remote, switching the TV over to a random channel. She then pulled out her phone to check the time.
"You can go home and work on the notes alone or you can stay here and we can discuss them together, it's up to you. I'm ordering dinner now though, so make a decision soon."
The thought of staying and having dinner with her wasn't exactly appealing, but it was definitely better than going home. At home I was constantly berated for my test scores, my weight, my soccer performance...everything.
"What's for dinner?" I asked casually, as if I hadn't already made up my mind.
"I'm getting Thai, but you can order what you want. There's menu's in the kitchen," she said simply, before standing up and walking into the kitchen.
She returned with about thirty different restaurant menus and threw them into my lap, keeping the Thai menu for herself and shuffling through it.
"Why do you have so many menus?"
"Because my mum works a lot and is never really home, so it's easier to order food," she said simply.
"What does your mum do?"
"She's a nurse," she responded, picking up her phone to call the thai restaurant.
We were interrupted by a loud alarm blaring from the TV screen, accompanied by the words 'Breaking News' flashing across the screen in large, red letters. Zara slowly put her phone down and grabbed the remote, turning the volume of the TV up. It was then that we realised the alarm wasn't only coming from the TV, but from outside. Zara rushed to the window and pulled back the curtains, revealing flashing lights as emergency vehicles drove up and down the street. Dennis started howling and scratching at the front door.
The news anchor was sitting behind her desk, staring gravely into the camera as she read out the announcement,
"BREAKING NEWS: an outbreak of a fatal unknown respiratory virus originating from Wuhan, China has reached Australia. The virus is of unknown origin, but research tells us that it is airborne and can live on surfaces for up to three days. You must stay where you are. You are not permitted to leave your homes under any circumstances unless you have a life threatening emergency. Symptoms of this virus include fever, dry cough, fatigue, and shortness of breath. If you are experiencing any of these symptoms please call 000 immediately. Schools, universities, and non-essential workplaces have been closed. The army will be preparing packages and delivering them to residential addresses shortly. Failure to adhere to these rules will result in immediate incarceration and a $11,000 fine. We'll be back shortly with more information on the virus."
The broadcast finished and there was silence, broken only by the loud alarm blaring outside and Dennis' howls. I had no idea what to do, what to say, or what to think. Zara looked back and forth between the TV, the flashing lights outside the window, and me. She looked absolutely terrified, and I'm sure I did too.
"This has to be some sort of prank," I entertained the idea, a small amount of relief coming from the thought.
"No, my mum told me about this virus yesterday," she almost whispered, the flashing lights reflecting in her watering eyes.
I couldn't comprehend what was happening. Were we trapped inside this house forever? Was I allowed to go home, not that I wanted to. But I'd rather be trapped at one of the boys' houses than here with her.
"There's no way I'm staying here with you. I'm leaving," I said, standing up and grabbing my school books.
"No!" she raised her voice, standing up and grabbing my arm. "Didn't you hear what that woman said? This virus is fatal!"
I stayed silent.
"If they catch you outside you'll get arrested. Or you could get the virus. My mum told me that people are dying, Peyton."
The use of my name caught me off guard. On the rare occasion that we actually spoke to each other, we referred to each other by our surnames only.
"Maybe...you should call your mum?" I suggested, "She might have more information."
She didn't answer me, instead quickly dialling her Mums number and tapping her foot anxiously on the ground. I could hear the phone ringing, and then eventually her mum's voice came through the speaker.
"Zara, are you okay? Are you safe?" she spoke frantically.
"I'm home. Peyton is here. Mum, what's happening?" Zara rambled.
"The virus has overwhelmed us, our hospital alone has over one hundred and eighty patients. We've had to turn people away," her voice carried through the speaker. "Sweetie, I can't come home. I'm taking every precaution necessary, but I can't put you at risk. We aren't allowed to leave."
I saw Zara's face drop, and watched as a tear rolled down her cheek. She hastily wiped it away.
"I — what do you mean, you can't come home?" she exclaimed. "Does that mean Peyton and I have to stay here?"
"Yes, that's exactly that it means. You're safe there. If you leave the house you risk exposing yourself to the virus. There's no known cure. People are dropping like flies here."
"Mum, I love you. Please be safe," Zara sniffled.
"I love you too, Zara. I'm safe, I promise!" I heard her mum say through the speaker, "Make sure Peyton knows she's safe, too — as long as you both stay inside."
Zara looked over at me and I nodded, acknowledging that I'd heard what her mum had said. They said tearful goodbyes and hung up, Zara wiping tears from her cheeks.
"Wow..." she exhaled, and I nodded in agreement.
I couldn't believe my luck. This was possibly the second worse case scenario. The worst would be being stuck at home with my parents, unable to leave. But this was nearly as bad - being stuck with the one person I dislike more than anyone in my school. What the fuck am I going to do?
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AUTHOR'S NOTE
Just a quick disclaimer: I don't intend on any of the 'information' or 'statistics' regarding COVID-19 in my story to be accurate or in any way depict what is currently happening. I am exaggerating extensively for the purpose of my story. If anyone is offended or triggered by this, please let me know, and I will do what I can to accommodate. Please let me know your thoughts on this chapter, and don't forget to vote!
UPDATED AUTHORS NOTE 21/07/2020
I have changed the name of the virus in order to not romanticise the current crisis. I'm sorry if I have offended anyone.