Chapter 3

"Like an empty threat, perhaps."

"But boy. . .people can be weird. It could just be a national threat, that might be occuring right here in our small hometown."

"Exactly."

"But the scientists realized that it does have symptoms. Yeah, symptoms. Nobody has been complaining yet about anything related to the supposed threat. But everyone's panicking. Not just here but it's global and world-wide and it seems like Lakeville is the first targeted location. But the question is where is this virus gonna be breaking out?"

"We don't know-"

"Exactly! No one knows, but it could be at public places like the school, hospitals, churches or even at our town's mall. It's a moment of hysteria in Lakeville. . .cause no one knows anything. Everybody is in the dark and it's mentally killing everyone."

My inside turned to mush. That morning hadn't been the first time I'd wished my parents wouldn't be so obsessed with watching the morning news while they prepared for work and I and Dane got ready for school. But that morning was different - I never naturally always listened to the voices and audio that came from the TV, but for some reasons, I had followed in on the news that morning and I didn't like one thing I heard. Everything just felt wrong and I could tell not only I was internally disturbed, it was obvious in the features of my parents and Dane, my brother - though the smirk on his face gave off the opposite as he focused intently on his phone screen.

"Nobody knows what is going on."

I swallowed. My hands clenched tightly against the edges of the island table. The scent of pancake mom indulged herself in wafted through the air and caused my taste buds to water, even though the appetite was doing me no good at that moment. I tried to lose focus on the audio from the TV coming from behind me, somewhere in the living room and more on the movements of my families. The sizzling sound of oil pierced the atmosphere, accompanied with the sound of mom's two inches black suede heels.

Mom - with her high chest brown, wavy ponytail jiggling everywhere she went - was indulged in tossing of pancakes and piling of the delicious temptations over one another. I could never tell with the way she could manage to do domestic works while already in her work wear which consisted mostly of sparkling white lab coats without getting any stain on them. It was just one of the millions of things she could pull off that I could never survive. My mother was a veterinary doctor who owned close to the town's square. She literally had her whole life dedicated to curing and treating sick animals and it killed her each and everytime she had a major failure in curing a poor animal.

The look on her face told me something was bothering her that morning and it was only a matter of time before she started filling us in on it.

"Mom, can I get some more pancake?" Dane was demanding, his gaze not leaving his phone for once.

Mom didn't answer. She continued to pile the pancakes over each other, completely oblivious to Dane's demand, her pony jiggling with stressful aggressiveness. Dad watched her from adjacent me in the kitchen, his gaze focused intently on her small, tensed figure.

"Darling?" Dad treaded the path gentle. "Is everything going okay?"

Dane finally looked up from his phone and looked skeptically from dad to mom. Back and forth. Subtly but also intense before getting up to get some pancakes himself. His gold blonde curls, cropped atop his head bobbed as he aggressively lifted himself off the high stool and made his way to join mom next to the cooker.

"Yesterday," mom started. "Mr. Jefferson brought his sick German Shepherd dog to the hospital."

Dad took a sip from his cup of orange and nodded. "Yeah? What was wrong with the dog?"

"The truth is-" Mom sighed, fatigue and worry glistened in her eyes as she glanced at dad. "-I don't know. I'm not sure. But something sure was wrong with that dog. Like a virus eating him out from the inside, gradually and I couldn't stop it nor know what was going on. . ."

Mom trailed off breath raspy, eyes glistening. With the cooker off, she walked swiftly across the room to settle down on the highstool opposite me, a plate of pancake set before her.

Dad urged on. "What is it honey?"

"Something was wrong with that dog that in my eighteen years of experience as a vet doctor, I've never encountered," Mom explained on, seeming so energized to share her experience. "I asked Mr. Jefferson how long it had been that way then he told me he let the dog out the backyard and somehow it wandered into his neighbors yard and didn't come back until a very long time. And when it came back the next day, it had blood dripping down its mouth-"

Dad chuckled, and then kissed his teeth as per his natural behavior. "Maybe it killed some wild animal?"

"It could have," mom nodded in agreement, swatting strands off hair off her face. "Mr. Jefferson claimed the dog attacked him and tried to bite off his legs and could have if he wasn't putting on a thick leather boot at that time. He said the dog went crazily wild. Red eyes and all and that was the main reason he gunned it down before bringing it to the vet for check."

"No. No." Dad brows furrowed hard, his sarcastic look all gone. "It can't be. He killed the dog."

Mom shrugged. "He thought that was the best thing to do and that makes it all odd."

Everyone remained silent, safe for the audio voice of the morning news piercing the air. We all knew Mr. Jefferson, he was an old man living just blocks away from our house that most considered a loner. My stomach rumbled in panic and fear as flashes of the agonized cat one man had gunned down went through my head. I had seen Mr. Jefferson's dog a couple of times every morning when it went on a dog with its owner and the thought that the friendly dog tried to attack Mr. Jeff just seemed to trigger fear into a ticking bomb in my chest. That dog was most likely the only thing closest to a family Mr. Jefferson had.

Soft meows pierced through my chains of thoughts.

From the side of the island table, Miss Buttercup blinked lazily at me, purring comfortably. Her fur of buttermilk colour blended almost incredibly well with the cream marbled floor of the house. Her beady black eyes was focused intently on me, until she slowly lowered it and blinked once again. A way I assumed was hers of telling me I love you. As I leaned under the table and patted her soft fur, I heard my phone chime on the table, grabbing my attention and for some reason, my heart gave a violent thud in my chest as I picked up my phone and swiped it open.

Today 7:20am

SHELLY

I just got my date to homecoming🥳🥳🥳. Have you decided who you want to go with? Let's talk about this in school.

My fingers trembled as I swiftly typed back a reply: Sure. . Ok, but we need to talk today. I know I promised not to say anything but I think something's going on with people's pet.

The school's cafeteria was one of the noisiest, rowdies places to be days before homecoming. On the cool kids table, the football team roared with excitement and happiness, loud chatters of teenagers already feeling victorious, even before the game. I picked at my lunch, refusing to partake in their happiness and feeling a little bit into the worried zone. My friends chatters was just as loud as that on the cool kids table. They discussed similar subjects with most kids on other table, which dealed mostly about homecoming, dates to the dance, who was going to be crowned homecoming queen and king and then afterwards, who was gonna be running for junior and senior officials that year.

I gazed around, before landing my eyes on the cool kids table and then scrutinized them thoroughly, while chewing slowly on my burrito.

"Victory! Victory!" Clark Mighty, one of the coolest senior on the football team bellowed at the top of his voice, punching his fists into the air, his goldie locks curls bouncing about with each and every of his movement. The other players on the team roared with laughter at his silliness, chiming in, pounding their fists on the table and stomping their feet. The cafeteria supervisors were beaming. On any other day of the year, they'd be handing out detention slips for rowdy behavior left and right, but on the day before homecoming game, such chaos were permitted.

I felt nauseated on the inside of how they could be so nonchalant and rowdy, but had to stop being judgemental considering the fact that my brother was one of the heads leading the rowdy behaviors. Dane encouraged his team mates behavior by whistling and cheering as loud as he could. Next to him sat Melissa Moore - as much as I hated to admit it - his super hot girlfriend in junior class.

Melissa was a mean witch and bully.

Even though we were age mates, she still loved to pretend she was way better than any of the girls in junior class. Melissa had most of the girls wrapped against her fingers in such a way that she controlled everything they did and said, which was so not cool. She happened to become friends with Shelly back in the sixth grade before things turned sore and they never spoke to each other again. Shelly and Melissa could be refered to as twin sisters with the same sense of fashion, likes and disklikes but while Moore tried to take control of people's lives, Courtney always tried to set people's lives straight. Melissa Moore was an Arabian-African mixed blood. Her parents spoiled and pampered her with everything. She had the coolest car in school, friends and thousands more willing to be friends with her, millions of followers on social medias, and also Dane - my rebellious but sweet brother's love and 100% attention even though she really hated my guts as I also did her.

"So, Lisa, who you gon' ask to homecoming?" Mae's voice dragged me back to the discussion on our table, huge eyeballs focused on me. "Ya never adding nothing to our discussions."

I sighed and focused my gaze intently on my lunch. "I really do not have time for that now," I said, truthfully. "I have other things bothering me. Didn't you guys watch the news this morning?"

My friends exchanged quick glances with themselves, and like on cue, everyone except Shelly and Tamara rolled their eyes. Quinn shook her head and twisted her mouth at an odd angle. "Nobody watches the news anymore," she said. "We're like in the 21st century."

"Exactly," Mae undoubtedly supported Quinn, twirling a strand of her big braids around her finger. "How d'ya except us to watch the news? That's like so nerdy."

"Not cool, dude," Shelly, adjacent me on the table came to my aid, scolded Mae and launched a long french fries at her. "What's wrong with watching the news?"

"Girl," Quinn shook her head again, lashes blinking rapidly. "Everything!"

I swatted my hand in the air, nonchalant. "Whatever you say girl but if you listened to or watched the news this morning, you'd understand what I mean when I say I got things on my mind."

I gave up on the news debate with them. Mae Valentines and Quinn DeMilo were cousins, even though Mae was a complete contrast to her cousin they still agreed on almost everything like they were twins. Physically, while Quinn looked like a runaway model, Mae looked the exact opposite. Mae Valentines had fat in everywhere possible. She had fat ass. Fat chest. Fat hips, and curves everywhere. Her mom and Quinn's mom were identical twins but while Quinn was girlish and romantic, Mae Valentines was rugged, thuggish and a tomboy who acted according to impulse everytime. To be honest, I was somewhat stunned about the fact that she had a boyfriend in the senior class.

"So, they say there might be a virus outbreak in Lakesville," Shelly started, peeling skin off her orange, and eyeing me skeptically. "Don't you guys think it's odd. Someone threatening the world of a deadly virus outbreak. I mean, corona was just a while ago."

Nobody said anything, everyone remained silent, bothered within themselves.

"Whatever is coming, I don't want any part of it," Mae tried to sound positive. "But now, we still have the changes and opportunity to have fun, go to dances with boys and eat ice creams on girls night."

We decided to pretend to be nonchalant about the issue. A long heave dragged my attention. From across the table, Tamara Leighton watched me from beneath the giant frame of her glasses, her brows puckered hard in concerntration. Tamara was the least social of us all. She was Asian, her parents Hindu. Tamara had light brown skin that clashed very wildly with her chest nut straight hair. She was tiny and small. The shortest between us. Almost everytime she appeared sick and unwell, but within a matter of time we managed to accept the fact that she was just very vulnerable and prune to disease and getting sick the most.

"So," Shelly drawled lazily, enthusiasm long gone. "Who else thinks Lisa should ask Andrew to the dance?"

"She should totally ask him," Quinn agreed, nodding her head slowly. "Have you seen the way he looks and looked at you that night of the party?"

"Whateve-"

"Come on. Come on, Lisa!" Shelly urged on. "He keeps telling everyone on the football team that he thinks you're hot. I heard him myself, dude."

"If he thinks I'm hot, why doesn't he ask me. I don't like the idea of doing the asking," I grumbled.

After school, the hallways were flooding with people, gliding and flowing about. Lockers slamming, metals grating against metals, girls giggling and boys whopping. I held tightly to the straps of my backpack, head hanging low as I indulged myself in staring at my flat shoes. I was supposed to meet with Shelly to discuss about the mysterious pet events happening in town even though it wasn't really any of our business at her place or a restaurant after school hours, considering the fact that she had been busy with the pom pon squad practicing for homecoming. Being so anti-social, I wasn't involved in any after school activities.

Mae was on the female's basketball team and had to go for practice. Dane, my brother was on the school's football team and never made it home till late in the evening on every school day, so I'd gotten used to - on days I had nothing worthwhile doing - wandering around the house till my parents and Dane came back, listening to music and trying out new trending dance steps to put on my tik tok and other excelling social medias I managed.

Tamara and Quinn were having a word with our history teacher, Mr. Levine, concerning Tamara running for Junior class president and Quinn for class treasurer. If Tamara was running for class president, I suddenly didn't see the need to be running against my friend knowing she was going might or might not be loosing to me. I decided I was going to have to discuss the matter with her, with the subject matter being either she or me becoming class president or class vice president and then we could attend student government meeting, run campaigns and make the placards together.

As I stepped out the school's building, cool breeze swept against my face and blew my strands of hair against my line of vision. I gently swatted them off. In the sky, angry, dark clouds rolled in and gathered, slightly obstructing the sun's light. I distractedly watched as the angry storm clouds rolled in speedily from the south. I took the short trail leading to Shelly's parking lot where I was sure she was waiting for me. Students filled the school's lot, chattering and conversing loudly and swarming between the cars like angry buzzing bees.

"Hey. . .I think you should start paying attention and stop mindlessly walking."

Suddenly, a shove from someone. One obviously too rough to be accidental sent me propelling forward. I gasped, palm raised up reflexively. It was useless though, my vision caught the figure of someone coming towards me and I was pretty sure the person might be collateral damaged. I winced. My palm did come in contact with a body, but I didn't fall, instead my fingers curled over the firm walls of muscles, the layer of fabric beneath it cotton and unable to hide an erratic heartbeat that mirrored mine. A jolt of electricity immediately zapped through my palm, up my arms and all the way down to the tip of my toes.

Shakily, I took in a breath. My sense of smell picked up a familiar overwhelming scent of pine, grass, and a pinch of cologne and coffee. He wore black khakis, a clean white t-shirt and sneakers, and my eyes slowly went past a clean shaven jaw, crooked nose and finally stopping on a pair of icy cold, wicked green orbs. They were narrowed and they looked really hot.

"Next time, can you like. . .walk a bit faster when I'm walking behind you?"

A voice spoke behind me and mean girly giggling seemed to support the voice. I stepped back, brows furrowed hard and looked over my shoulder. Melissa Moore and her puny girly puppets shashayed past me, with wicked smirks and grins on their barbie looking faces. They smelled of sweet perfumes and bubble gums that nauseated me badly. I chewed on my cheeks on the inside, trying my best to suppress my anger in watching them walk ahead of me, clad in red and black short pom pon uniforms that left nothing to the imagination.

From a distance, way past them, I spotted Shelly awaiting me. I cursed bitterly and stomped my foot into the floor, feeling helpless and cheated.

"Hello?" A masculine voice got my attention and put a stop to my whining. "Are you okay?"