Pre Lock down
Lodge at Fallen Leaves
Aubrey Posen was worried about the virus. Long before the news was dominated by updates about it, she knew it was coming.
A few weeks ago, her father, colonel Posen, had called her to warn her. Her father usually didn't call her when he was on a mission, but this time he had called her. If he hadn't sound so worried and scared, she would have dismissed it.
Her father had always been slightly paranoid and saw a complot theory in everything, but this time he had sounded genuinely worried and death serious.
After ending the conversation with her father, her mind went into full speed. As a daughter of a doomsday prepper and an extreme couponinger, she knew she had to take precautions.
Long before the government came with guidelines, she had already closed her retreat and canceled all future activities and appointments. Every time she went to the store, she stocked up on basic needs. She had her whole cabin full of toilet paper, hand soap and canned food. She also had bought medical supplies every time she came across them. Although she didn't really know what was about to happen, she had a feeling those things would come in handy.
And then the news about the virus finally came. With disbelief she saw the impact the virus had in China. Then she saw what happened in Europe. The countless dead bodies in Italy. How the virus wiped away an entire generation. She saw people crying who lost a lot of family members. She saw the measures that the European countries made to prevent the virus.
And for the first time in her life, Aubrey Posen was scared. The world as everyone knew was gone in an instant. She had always been proud to maintain control in every situation but now there wasn't anything she had control over. It felt like the world crumbled and everyone was fighting against an invisible enemy.
She felt alone and couldn't confide in anyone. Her father was away on some sort of mission. Her mother was paranoid and if she turned to her, Aubrey would only feel worse. Her Bellas were at Barden and she didn't want to scare them more. So she did what she was good at, keeping her feelings to herself and focus on her physical health. She spent the rest of the time with reading and preparing for what would happen.
She was just finishing the last page of her current book when her phone rang. She looked at her caller ID and saw it was her best friend Chloe. Instantly she knew something was wrong and she picked up with a knot in her stomach, expecting the worst.
When she ended the phone conversation with Chloe half an hour later, she was relieved. Her feelings hadn't been entirely right. Yes, the situation was worse and the news had sank into the Bellas house, but luckily none of them were sick or had any symptoms of the virus. But her friends were scared for what would happen. Chloe had called her to ask her to come back. If the virus came, she wanted her Bellas together. And Chloe felt safer with Aubrey around.
The next day, Aubrey packed her car with everything she had bought, and was on her way to the Bellas house.
Het ride to the Bellas house was full of memories and collections of their most embarrassing moments. She loved her Bellas with her heart but she didn't forget their antics and how they were when there together. And now they all volunteered to stay in lockdown for an unforeseeable time. This was going to be the greatest challenge she got to face since a long time.
But now they were older and wiser right? They were mature enough to face this situation and act like adults she thought to herself. For her own sanity she convinced herself that they were.
Het previous thoughts melted as snow when she finally arrived. She could hear Beca yelling something followed by a screaming Fat Amy.
"What did I get myself into?" she muttered to herself.
She unbuckled her seat belt and took a deep breath. She got out of the car and fixed her shirt before walking to the front door of the house. She still had a spare key but she decided to knock. She knocked three times and waited.
It took a moment but finally the door was opened by Chloe.
The redhead grinned widely when she saw her best friend.
"Bree, finally you're here!" the redhead exclaimed enthusiastically as she was pulled into a hug.
"Breathe, I need to breathe Chlo" the blonde finally managed to get out.
"I'm sorry. I'm just so glad that you are here. I've missed you" the redhead said as she let go of her.
"Me too, I missed you too" Aubrey responded.
When she followed the redhead inside, she was not mentally prepared for the mess she saw.
This was definitely going to be a big challenge.