Please note that I'm not trying to downplay or belittle pandemics or sickness and the horrible situations that come with them. If nothing else, this story is meant as therapy during scary and uncertain times. I hope all of you are safe and healthy.

~xxxxxxx~

"Oh, come on! Are you guys trying to build a toilet paper fort or something?!"

Almost overnight, toilet paper had become paper gold, with people around the state (and country) clamoring for it. Grocery store shelves became devoid of basic things like soup, soap, meat, pasta (for some random reason), and over the counter medicine. Many called it panic buying; others called it hoarding. No matter what the name, it spelled bad things.

And it was all because of a pandemic.

It had happened so fast. One day, everything was normal, the next, people were getting sick, were dying in great numbers. A national emergency had been declared. People were forced to stay in their homes unless they needed to receive medical attention or buy essentials. It was like a nightmare come true.

As Victor made his way through the aisles at the store, he couldn't help but wonder what tomorrow would bring. He lived alone in a nice house in Farmington Hills, not terribly far from Detroit, so he didn't need much to get by. But the lack of supplies and unsure future made him nervous. What would happen if America ran out of food? Would the economy fall apart? Would he ever get to see his mother again, since travel was restricted indefinitely? Would she get sick?

Would he get sick?

Sighing, he grabbed a box of tissues someone had apparently missed (the toilet paper would have to wait, as the entire toilet paper area was a ghost town) and moved on to the TV dinners (a personal favorite for a man who could barely boil water on the stove).

That's when he saw her.

His eyes were surely deceiving him. What would Anita be doing in Detroit, in this specific grocery store, of all places?

But there she was, walking from one side of the aisle to another, looking like a lost lamb, her blonde hair just as unmistakable as her stunning purple eyes.

They hadn't spoken in years (two? three? Victor wasn't sure), not since the small going away party Changed Daily insisted on throwing before he left. She'd never once called him or emailed him, and although he'd been pushing himself to forget her for the sake of his sanity, it still killed him that his absence evidently hadn't upset her in the least.

He had to get away from there, but his legs were stuck to the floor. He couldn't move, couldn't breathe, his eyes focused squarely on her face. Sweat dripped down his neck and he hoped beyond hope that she wouldn't see him.

Sadly, she did. First, she appeared shocked, then, after glancing at his face for a moment, she slowly walked over to him, apparently to confirm her suspicions.

"Victor?"

He gulped, leaning down on his cart's handles. "Yeah, it's me." He paused. "What, um… what brings you here?" Neither made a move to hug the other.

"Professor Professor asked me to deliver something to your base, but now I've been told to stay in the area until further notice. Forced quarantine and all. Just got here about two hours ago." She bit her lip and looked down into the handheld basket she was gripping like it was her lifeline. It was filled with a few items like bottled tea and carrot sticks.

Victor couldn't help but ask, his heart pounding in his chest. "Where, um, are you staying?"

"I don't really know why I'm buying this stuff." She said, as if she hadn't heard his question. "I just kinda found my way here and started grabbing."

He tried again. "Are you staying somewhere until this blows over?"

Anita turned to stare at a bag of frozen peas sitting in a nearby freezer. "Well… they only have two bunkers at the Detroit base… and I didn't want to… well, I just couldn't… no." She frowned. "I'm kinda stuck. Haven't sorted this out yet. Don't quite know what to do next."

The moment she spoke those words, he knew what he was about to say. He knew he couldn't leave her wandering around with nowhere to go. In these scary times, it would be extremely dangerous. She could catch the virus, too. She could die. He wouldn't let that happen, even though living in the same house with her would make him miserable. He'd never forgive himself if he walked away.

"You can… stay with me if you want."

There was an awkward pause, Victor could almost feel the tension. He quickly added, "Um, well, since you're up a creek at the moment, and I mean, my place isn't very big, but –"

Anita gave him a tiny smile. "It's OK, Victor. Sure, I'd be glad to quarantine with you."

This was either the beginning of something wonderful, or the start of the worst period of his life. Time would tell.