Dinah Hughes got home around 10:30 pm. When she entered her apartment she found her roommate Lee, walking around the living room with a flashlight.

She scoffed, "I can't believe the power's still out...this is ridiculous."

"You're telling me. At first, they said it would be 3:30, then they said 6:30. I called at 8 and they said unknown, then at 9 they said 9:30," Lee scoffed. She could see his eyes roll despite being submerged in darkness.

"Have you called since then? What did they say?" Dinah asked as she cautiously made her way into the apartment. She was doing her best not to step on anything, despite knowing that their living room floor was clean of any clutter.

"Unknown. At this point, you probably should have just stayed at your Mom's for the night," Lee said as they made their way to the kitchen.

Dinah unpacked the food she'd cooked at her Mom's, opened the fridge, and haphazardly threw them in, shutting the door before she could feel its chill.

"Ugh. No thank you. Her new boyfriend is staying there for the night. I'd rather deal with the darkness than that."

Lee laughed. "Sound's about right. At least it's not too hot, right? Kind of crazy that the power went out today of all days. I guess we can consider ourselves lucky in that respect."

"Yeah. Are you just going to take the flashlight in for when you shower?" Dinah questioned.

"Pretty much. I figured I'd just let it sit on the toilet and go from there. Do you want to shower first?"

Dinah shook her head, "Naw, you go first. I'll hold off for a bit."

Showered in darkness, their apartment complex was hauntingly eerie. Not hearing televisions, or the air conditioners gave her a foreign sense of unease. She casually browsed her phone, but digested nothing, her mind paying too much attention to the silent world around her. She could hear the elderly couple next door, bickering about how they were missing the news. She could hear the single mother downstairs, talking to her two kids, doing her best to calm their rising anxiety. She heard every car that drove by on the main street, and each conversation between the crickets.

Dinah could hear Lee's clothes as they hit the tiles in the bathroom, the shower door as it slid shut on the rusted rail, the turn of the faucet, and the spray of the water as it sprang to life. She never realized how loud of a shower-taker he was until now. They'd been roommates for two years and she never paid attention to it, never saw a reason to. He took fast showers, five minutes and no more, which she found ludicrous. What was he really cleaning in that five minutes? Lee had argued that it was normal for guys to take quick showers...so maybe it was something she'd never understand.

She sat in the quiet living room, hearing the water as it rained down into the tub. She could hear everything in there, from him rubbing the water on his face, to him clearing his nose into the drain, and finally the squeegee as it cleaned the water off the shower door when he was done. She heard the bathroom door open, and from the corner of her eye, she could see the flashlight as it cut through the hall towards his bedroom.

"There's a girl in the bathroom,"

"Shut up!" She snapped through mild frustration. "Seriously? Why would you say something like that, that's not funny Lee!"

He said nothing, the only thing she heard was the sound of his bedroom door as it closed into its frame and the lock of the doorknob that followed.

Dinah placed the flashlight on the toilet as Lee had suggested, the light creating a cone that lit a mere portion of the bathroom. It provided just enough light for her to navigate into the shower and turn it on with confidence, and that's all that really mattered. The warm water hit her body, suppressing the chill she'd experienced when she'd removed all her clothing. The sound of the water hitting the porcelain tub sounded like rippling thunder to her ears. She couldn't see her feet in the tub or the water as it rushed towards the drain. She couldn't hear the world around her, only the fury of the shower as it cleansed her of the day's dirt and grime. She stood directly under the beam water, feeling it wash through her hair, down her forehead, and over her face. She rubbed the water from her eyes, her vision going to her right and that's when she saw the woman standing in the bathroom.

The light barely reached her, she could only see her silhouette, but she was there, Dinah was sure of it. The woman stood at average height and through her silhouette, she could see her arms hanging limply at her sides, she could see her hair as it waved back and forth around her head. The woman was staring at her through the cone of light, Dinah could feel her eyes on her. She let out a wheeze, one she couldn't hear over the thunderous water. It raised, faster and faster from the pit of her stomach, and just as the scream touched the tip of her tongue, the woman lunged forward through the cone of light.

The last thing Dinah saw was the gaunt expression of a woman who didn't belong in their apartment. The last thing she heard was the shattering of the shower door. Everyone in the apartment complex heard her harrowing scream, just as the power kicked back on.

The body of Dinah Hughes was never found.

I sat in the bathtub whilst the scorching hot water poured down on the entirety of my body. On most days the heat of the water would bother me; today the pain of my feelings overpowered and numbed the physical pain. The events of the night before replayed in my head over and over again. Walking home had been a difficult task- it was supposed to be an innate movement, yet it wasn’t. To me, it was a burden.

Yesterday: Melanie woke up with a look of pure happiness on her face. She walked towards the bathroom to freshen up and looked into the mirror. Her reflection was vibrant - it suggested she was ready to go on her date. The man on the other side of the screen had been meticulous in convincing her to meet at an Italian restaurant. Her monthly paycheck was not enough to facilitate fancy meals at the high end, so she agreed to meet up. The factor that influenced her decision had been looking inside her fridge to discover how empty the interior was and the intense pain in her abdomen.

A few hours before the date, Melanie decided to wear classy yet formal clothing for her dinner with ' Thomás'. She put on her sleek black dress and a few pieces of her thrift store jewellery. Her choice of footwear did not fit into her description of herself- a failed artist with a job as a receptionist. Her Dolce and Gabbana heels hinted at a more affluent female: the absolute opposite of what Melanie Yavec was. However, she wanted to convince Thomás, she was a thriving businesswoman who owned an art gallery.

“Ouch!” Maria yelped, jumping away from the scolding water and into the shower curtain. She grabbed onto the curtain for support, but it only fell to the floor, with her crashing down with it. As she made contact with the ground, she could feel a crack against the tile. She screamed in pain and laid there, her brain throbbing against her skull with every heartbeat. She couldn’t concentrate on every detail around her, but she could faintly hear the scurrying of footsteps coming up the stairs. She then heard the sliding of socks on the wood floor in her hallway as the person swung around the corner to the upstairs. The door swung open. “Are you okay?” she heard a voice. It sounded concerned and panicked, but also indifferent and mellow. It bounced off the walls of the bathroom so that Maria could her every word from every angle. “Maria, can you hear me?” the voice asked. “I’m calling an ambulance.” She knew what they were saying, but she couldn’t get the words out. It was as if her mouth was stuck together by sticky caramel. Not stuck enough to be glue, since she could still open it to breathe, but any words that she spoke would be incomprehensible. She let out a sound. It resembled something that a marine animal would make, a deep, resounding noise that echoed through the bathroom. She could tell the person jolted to attention. “I’ll be right back,” the person said, running back down the stairs to call medical assistance. Maria looked back up at the ceiling. She’d been looking at it the whole time, but had never paid too much attention to it. The texture on the ceiling was still too blurry to make out individual bumps, but she could make out large clusters of the “popcorn”. She made another sound. She started to hear motion from downstairs. Usually, she couldn’t hear anything small enough like footsteps, but her hearing was now amplified thanks to her fall. It sounded like multiple people, but she couldn’t tell exactly how many it was. She heard another pair of footsteps, this one sounding more harsh and strong-stepped. They were getting closer, and she assumed they were coming up the stairs. Her brain pounded once more, and she fell asleep.

The rain started to trickle down the windshield as I pulled out of the driveway. I was on my way to work and was happy to get out of the house but not happy that it was for work. I turned the curve to the main road and the rain picked up. It was a spring shower, just heavy enough to be annoying and depressing but at the same time, enough for the flowers to grow. I was depressed with the rain because it reminded me of the struggle back at home. I was dealing with being alone. I didn’t have a soul at home. I was struggling to keep myself together.

I was driving a little bit under the speed limit just to avoid any issues with the wet roads and also just to think to myself. I just wanted someone in my life. I wanted a reason to get up in the morning. As I turned onto another road to head to work I seen a little puppy sitting in the rain with his head down and shivering. The animal lover in me could not just keep going. I pulled over and put my hazard lights on. I exited the car. The smell of the rain was refreshing. I walked over to the puppy and put my hand out. It cried like I was about to punish it. No collar, no tags and so skinny. He let me pet him and I was in love. He was a beautiful black pup, no more than 6 months old. I took my jacket off and put it around the puppy and brought him to my car. I knew I wasn’t going to work today. He was so happy to have warmth. He licked my hand and I could see instant attachment in his eyes.

The rain started to get heavier at that point. I was so thankful to get him out of the weather. He seemed to be thankful too. He barked at me and put his paw on my hand that had been resting on the center console. At that point I knew I wasn’t so alone anymore and I had made a friend and someone that was going to be there for me. I pet his head and we sat in the car and waited for the rain to lighten up.

We were weathering the storm.

Cecilia closed her eyes tightly. She took a deep breath that reached every inch of her body from the tips of her toes to the top of her head. In and out. In and out. That perfect rhythmic pattern she turned to when she needed to slow the downpour of stress and emotions overtaking her. In and out. Slowly she opened her eyes. She was still unsure, scared, and overwhelmed, but slightly more calm.

The world had become an unsure place in the matter of weeks. Schools, restaurants, events, all were shut down. The once bustling city, halted by a preventable outbreak. Cecilia found herself alone more often these days. Her family, though in the same household, felt like they were a world apart. They needed to stay home but each of them had to be separated. Her mother and father had underlying conditions and were left without jobs. Her brother was isolated in his room struggling to breath with the disease rapidly chipping away at his normally positive outlook. He was losing hope. Cecilia was losing hers as well.

She was the only one left, being the only one with papers made her the one with the most opportunities. For her parents and her brother, no social security number meant no job with health insurance. No insurance, meant no affordable possibility for a hospital. Her brother needed medical help. Her family needed a roof over their head. She had to step up. Never mind her cancelled school year, prom, or graduation. Her sadness over the loss of these rights of passage had to wait. The reality at hand was far more dire and important.

Cecilia, closed her eyes once again. Took one more big breath in through her cloth covered nose, and out through her cloth covered mouth. She opened her eyes and looked at the person on the other side of the clear plexi-glass. With as much joy as she could muster, she said, "Hi! Do you need any bags today?" and she began to scan the food on the belt.

I found her lying in the field among a shower of rain. The grass mingled with her light summer dress, pressed to her drenched skin. Wordlessly, I walked toward her and lay down beside her. I didn’t bother bringing an umbrella.

She had her eyes closed, but when I joined her I felt her hand come to rest on my arm. After lying silently for awhile, I spoke.

“It’s coming soon.” It came out as a raspy whisper. She opened her eyes at the sound of my voice.

“I know,” she responded. The rain filled the little moments of silence between us. It’s hard to know what to say when everything is like this.

“I’m glad for the rain,” I continued. “A sunny day would just...feel wrong. We haven’t had sun in such a long time.” The sun left us long ago. Now it was just rain, snow, and dark clouds.

“Yes,” she whispered. “Yes.” We stayed there. I couldn’t tell if I was shaking because of the cold or the anticipation. I tried to calm it by looking at her. By thinking of how much I love her.

“You know,” she went on, turning to look at me, “The clouds are so dark. We probably won’t even see it. We’ll hear it, but we may not see it.”

I nodded. The rain was coming down in torrents. I had to squint to keep my eyes open. And now I was shaking more and more, until finally I couldn’t take it.

“Via.” I took her hand in mine as a tear slid down my face. “I need you...I can’t...”

“Shh.” She turned and wrapped me into her arms. A rumble of thunder sounded overhead. “Shh. I got you.”

I clung to her as the rain spilled over our bodies. The rumble of thunder never stopped, until eventually I realized it wasn’t thunder at all. It grew closer, louder, deeper.

“Pretend the grass is a soft pillow,” she crooned into my ear. Despite the rain, I could make out the tears on her cheeks. “Pretend the rain is a gentle mist. Pretend we’re going to sleep.” She ran her fingers up and down my cheek. “Close your eyes, my love. Pretend we’re sleeping.”

I shut my eyes and concentrated on the sound of the rain, not the sound of the rumbling getting closer, louder, deeper by the second. Not the sound of Via’s soft sobs.

Not the sound of the meteor as it hit.

“Babies are flowers,” my mom tells her, smiling that happy, graceful smile I know so well. “They blossom and they bloom, and they are wonderful beings of joy. But beware, because some day, they will also learn to talk.” She laughs a small chuckle, a tiny thing, but it still manages to sound like peaceful bird song, or a faint breeze through the trees. My aunt smiles nervously, rubbing her stomach over and over like it’s a golden lamp, and she’s Aladdin. Only she doesn’t wish to be a thing of riches, a thing of royalty. She just wishes for an easy birth, a painless one, really, and a beautiful baby. One of elegance and delicacy, yes, kind of like a flower. “I just hope she doesn’t turn out like her father.” Pink streamers cover the walls, little weavings of binkies and rocking horses draped on the backs of the chairs. It is Aunt Lucy’s baby shower, and I am honestly only looking forward to the chocolate cake we get to eat after the watery broccoli soup. “Oh, I’m sure she’ll turn out just like her wonderful mother,” Mom says quietly, obviously knowing that she’s stepping around eggshells with this topic. Just when my aunt’s about to respond, an all-too familiar man opens the door. His beard’s down to his chest, his cheeks are smudged, he’s thin to the bone. Overall, even though he’s a grown man, he looks like such a pitiful sight that I can’t help but feel sorry for him. “Theodore?” Aunt Lucy gapes, her bulging eyes looking like they’ll pop right out of their sockets. “Yes, Lou, it’s me,” he replies in an obviously anxious voice, and everything shatters.

Standing under the shower I could barely feel the almost scorching touch of the water.

It hadn’t been 24 hours yet since Julie came back into my life. I had day-dreamed about that moment over and over, imaging that when she opened that she would fling her arms around mine and life would continue as it had been.

But now, sitting with my back against grimy tiles, steaming water pattering against my head, all I could think is that maybe I would preferred her staying gone.

No, I thought, don’t be ridiculous. You’ve got your wife back and if what she has told you is true then you’ve just been enlightened.

“You okay in there?” Julie said from the other side of the door.

I considered not answering, waiting for her to come in. “I’m fine, just... just cleaning myself.” I decided I didn’t want her to see me like this: vulnerable and afraid.

“They’ve been manipulating you your entire life, Henry,” Julie, visible concern on her face. The details she had shared were almost impossible to comprehend but as she explained further I was starting to believe them. “Since the day you were born and chosen they’ve had this stranglehold over you to do as they see fit.”

“And why now? Why now to ‘pull the plug’ as you say? Why you?” I asked, wondering where I went from here. My old job was gone, my flat would apparently be searched and immediately sold on so I could no longer return there. I had already checked my handchip and found my credits completely cleared out.

“Because it takes time to get this things in motion. I was unplugged myself almost a year ago. When I left, I left because my plugged was removed and I was seeing the world for what it really is,” Julie said, leaning back in her chair as she spoke. A smile crept wider on face with each word. “I vowed to come back for you when the time was right, when everything was ready. And here we are.”

“Here we are,” I repeated. “So what now?”

“Now?” Julie said, sliding off her chair excitedly and coming to kneel in front of me, taking my hands in hers. It was comforting to know that I felt the same tingle as I had always done when she held my hands before. “Now we fight back. We fight against the Masters and free our friends and families and all these strangers who are under their control.”

(... continued from “The Usual Suspect”)

No matter how hard I scrub, I can’t get rid of this feeling. Somebody- or something- is watching my friends and I. Stalking us. Hunting us.

Eventually I leave the comforting embrace of the hot shower. As I towel off I catch myself in the mirror. I trace my fingers along the scars from my surgeries. My eyes are drawn back up to my face. My reflection smiles at me. Except, I’m not smiling.

I don’t think I’ve run so fast in my life. In a blur I have on sweatpants, a t-shirt and sneakers. I don’t even remember getting into the car, but my still-wet hair drips onto the seatbelt as I pull out the driveway. We have to return to the heart of darkness.

I pull up outside Cheeks’ apartment building and she hops in. “What’s wrong?” she sounds reasonably panicked, “you didn’t say much on the phone. Is it Rum?!” “No. It’s me,” I make eye contact with her in the rear-view mirror.

Next stop is Rum’s house. He clambers into the back with Cheeks. “My reflection was weird,” I begin explaining. But Cheeks interrupts me: “You mean like not doing what you do?” “How did you know?” “I was trying to practice my cat winged eyeliner and my reflection... she... she ripped her face off.” “Why didn’t you tell us?” asks Rum, “my reflection shot himself!” I’ll have time to be mad at my friends for not sharing this information later.

We arrive at the skull- it looks the same as we left it. The sand sucks us downward. Car and everything. The landing shatters my windshield and probably breaks something important. Miraculously, we’re uninjured. We stumble out of the car and make our way to the glowing room. I make sure to grab the strange coin from the glovebox.

Entering the alien-like chamber, we see the walls pulsing with a heartbeat that we didn’t notice before. Suddenly, we hear footsteps. Rum, Cheeks, and I emerge from a chamber. Or should I say our reflections do?

Immediately they charge towards us, and to the crystal skulls it must look like identical twins fighting each other. I take one of the sparkly buggers and smash my face in. My reflection bursts into shadows. I look over and see Cheeks snap her evil reflection’s neck and it too collapses into a dark mist.

Rum’s has him pinned to the ground. Cheeks and I rush over to help, but the two of us struggle to yank the 6’2”, 200 pound force that is Rum off of himself. Eventually, the three of us succeed and Rum stabs his reflection in the heart with his pocketknife.

Panting heavily, we smile. Then we laugh. We laugh until we’re breathless on the ground. I wipe the tears from my eyes and look up. The reservoir water reflects nothing of the struggles that occurred beneath it. I throw the stolen coin into the darkness.

A rapid beat slowly fell upon the peace. The sound of drops and the light noise of rain hitting leaves filled my ears. The sound would have been relaxing in any other circumstance. I watched as water cascaded down from the sky. Looks like Mother Nature was having a bad day as well. I slumped down against the trunk of the tree, the bark scratching up against my neck. My legs dangled limply from the branch, and I felt the pain strike through my calves as I tried moved them. I fell back again. I was too exhausted to move. I closed my eyes and let the water envelop me. The leaves offered little protection, and the rain continued to pound down against my faithful tree. The water soaked through my clothes, sticking to my body. My hair clung to my face and water continued to run down my cheeks like unforgiving tears. But I was already used to those. I turned, giving the left side of my back a break from the pressure, and slowly opened my eyes. What lay before me was not the familiar scene of leaves and branches. Staring back at me, were a pair of eyes. Hungry, malicious, and glowing blood-red. I threw back my head and let out an ear-piecing scream. The shriek rung throughout my ears and my heart leaped into my throat. Desperate for safety, I fell back, searching for another branch, searching for anything to get me to safety. Falling backward, I felt the branch disappear from under my legs. I let out a gasp and reached out but grabbed nothing but the crisp air. Panic ran throughout my bones and the falling sensation enfolded my every being. The rain’s steady flow hammered against my head. Time seemed to slow, and there I was; body sprawled out in the air, arms still reaching out, mouth open to scream but my breath stolen, and the jungle before me turned upside down. Thoughts flooded through my mind all at once. Why did you run away? I thought it was worth it. Why did you do this? I can’t go back to the place they said was my home. Were the red eyes in the tree scarier than the monsters in my mind? Is this better than being with the monsters back at “home”? What happens next?

There I was falling, a familiar subject. With all the thoughts flooding through my head I barely got a chance to see the muddy ground down below. But I was about to.

I had fallen.