Blink

The movie stopped. He sighed irritably and clicked the play button. Nothing.  He clicked it again. Nothing. He clicked a few more times, rapidly tapping his trackpad. He snorted and clicked the long black line that appeared under the movie. He went back 10 seconds and the movie resumed. For 10 seconds. He grunted and shut the computer screen. He looked over at his router and saw only one of the little green lights was lit. It flashed on and off, taunting him. He shuffled over and unplugged the router. The green lights died and he stared at them. He counted in his head, whispering every other number while twisting the cable in his hand. He nodded and then jammed the cord into the back of the device. The light blazed back to life with a solid green glow. Then it flashed rapidly and he began to tap his foot. He sighed heavily when the slow, deliberate blink returned.


 He pulled his phone out of his pocket, feeling the weight of it transfer from his pajama pants to his hand. The slight pull he felt on his waist disappeared and he opened a web browser. He entered “Outages” into the search bar and watched the blue line make its way across the top of the screen. And he waited. And waited. He tapped the little X in frustration and hit the circled arrow. Again, the blue line appeared, dashed and stalled. He rolled his eyes and swiped the browser closed. He opened his settings, turned on airplane mode and then turned it back off. He punched the browser back open when the signal bars jumped into view. Nothing. He angrily tossed his phone at his futon. 

This day had turned to crap.


He had the idea of a slice of pizza and his favorite soda. That cheered him up. He ordered the food this morning. He walked over to his desk, kicking random pieces of clothing and take-out boxes out of his way. He greedily snatched up the soda that he left open. He tilted his head back and lifted the bottle over him. The two liter squirted out of his hand and landed right on his face. He’d drunk about a third of it and he felt the other 2/3rds smashing into his mouth. Soda had poured in and he started to gag, the carbonation burning the back of his throat. The bottle landed right on his foot which caused him to let out a wet yelp that quickly devolved into a coughing fit.


“Dang it!” He spat.


He doubled over and coughed red liquid on the brown hardwood floor. Tears ran down his cheeks as he scrambled over to the dropped bottle. His vision was hazy but he could see the contents spilling out on the floor.

“Dang it!” He seized the bottle and slammed it on the coffee table. He felt the soda spill over his hand and on some of the books on the table. He shook his hand testily and sucked some of the red drops off. He had been in his living room and dashed around the bar into his kitchen. He grabbed an entire roll of paper towels from the counter and clumsily sprinted back to the mess. He ripped off a few sheets and laid them all over the ground. They dampened quickly so he laid more on top of them. He stepped barefoot on the towels and ambled around the coffee table. He grinned a little as he felt the bottoms of his feet grow damp. He nodded and increased the speed of his cleaning gait. And then he slipped and fell completely backwards, hitting the floor with a loud thud. The wind rushed out of him and he could only mouth the words silently.


 “D— t” Is all that came out. That’s it, he was done today. He needed her. He hadn’t seen her as much as he had wanted this vacation. He sat up and kicked away the used paper towels. He’d deal with that later. He was far too annoyed now. This vacation was supposed to be a turning point. It’s why he took it.


 He walked into the single bathroom in his house. His place was small but it was in the location he wanted. He loved solitude and being on his own. He flicked on the light switch and looked at himself. His black hair was wild and wispy from the long bouts in bed. He noticed various crumbs in his chest hair and beard. These places of hair were fuller and thicker than what he had on his head. He had also noticed the patches on his shoulders had thickened as well. He had not used his acne medication in….some time. It showed plainly on his face as several red blotches had sprung up. If he was honest with himself, it was the reason he grew the beard. Less to maintain. He ran his hands over his chest and through his beard quickly and watched as the food flotsam flicked away. He looked into his own blue eyes and winked. It was time to see her.


He left the bathroom and walked down the hallway. The upstairs was one giant circle. The front door led to the kitchen which shared space with his living room. The bathroom was next to that and then finally his bedroom and the stairwell. The stairwell and bottom floor he had added. No easy feat in labor or price. It took eating a ton of ramen and drinking value soda to afford it. But it was worth it .He passed his bedroom and glanced in. It was all bare walls, with a twin sized bed in the middle of the room. Downstairs is where he felt most comfortable. But he had surrendered that area to her. That was her space now and the place where their love would hopefully grow.

At the end of the hall was a doorway that had a small hook next to it. The hook had key hanging from it. He yanked it from the hook and placed it around his neck. He leaned down a little and put the key in the lock. He heard a satisfying click and turned the knob. Behind the door was a grey carpeted staircase that spiraled down. He walked excitedly but carefully over the steps. With the way this day had turned, the last thing he wanted was to go tumbling down the stairs and breaking his neck. He felt the key jostling on the chain and it excited him further. He loves spending time with her. He always had. They were best friends and had met at his old job. She was dating some A-hole that wasn’t treating her right. They’d take lunch together and she’d go on and on about how the guy would forget this or not do enough of that. He always made sure to chime in with what he knew were the right answers. Her favorite flowers, her favorite food, gifts she’d probably like. He knew it all. He made it his business to know.

He reached the bottom of the stairs, leaned down and unlocked that door too. As it swung open, he couldn’t help himself and broke into a large grin. This was his Man Cave, his Ivory Tower, his Fortress of Solitude. It is the place he could feel most himself. The floor was brown shag carpet because he loved how it caressed his bare feet. There was a couch and a loveseat both in his favorite color, light blue. It reminded him of the sky and all its endless possibilities. It made him feel how heroes must have felt when it was time to take flight and save the day. The walls were adorned with posters of his favorite movies and shows. At the end of the room was an 80 inch TV that went wall to wall.He had all sorts of game systems from across the planet and time. A plethora of wires ran to a large connective switch system that fed into the massive television. There were a couple of mini fridges, one that held soda, another that held microwavable meals. There was a yin and yang coffee table, one of his most prized possessions. He had bought it after their first hang out. Because she was the yin to his yang. She completed him. He then bounced over to her.

“Good afternoon, my love!” He chirped, smiling.

Her long black hair was matted to her head. She cracked open an eye and looked at him. It was a bloodshot eye that was full of contempt. It was not her normal soft light grey color. The cushion beneath her face was wet. She had another bad night. They had been up late. He reached down and pulled some of her hair off the duct tape over her mouth.

Her small hands clutched his wrist and she dug her fingers into his skin. She had tried this already which is why he had cut her nails down past her finger tips. There was a small pattern of cuts that matched perfectly with her hands. She had got him in that exact spot yesterday. How about that? He lifted her towards him by her forearms. Her wrists were bound by padded handcuffs.


“Not ready yet, huh?” He said.


The other eye had opened and she peered at him through her hair. He went to brush it out of her face and she tried to kick him. He had learned that lesson the second day. That time she had caught him in the groin and almost made it out of the house. He had caught and dragged her back down the stairs. He had duct taped her feet daily. Her sweat and work has caused the tape to loosen. He kept meaning to implement a better system but he honestly didn’t expect her to put up such a fight. They were made for each other. Why didn’t she see that? He sighed.

“Well, it’s nice to see you at least. This has been one crappy day!” He said with a smile. “I’ll go get you some pizza and we can watch another movie. Stay put!” He chuckled and ruffled her hair. She shook her head angrily.

He walked back to the stairwell and was already feeling better. They needed some quality time. He started to take the stairs two at a time. He started thinking about the pizza again and what movie they would watch. He misjudged a step and his foot slid down, tossing him off balance. He reached for the wall and over corrected, tumbling backward. He landed solidly on his neck and he heard an audible crack. He then felt nothing as he rolled backward, watching the world spin. His head whirled and the world blurred. His skull erupted in pain. He was back down below. He could only feel the shag brushing his ear. He tried to move his arms, his legs, anything. He let out a long, terrified scream. No sense of feeling returned.. He continued to scream. He screamed until his throat felt raw. His heart raced and he could feel sweat running down the sides of his face. He shut his eyes and concentrated on his little finger. He willed it to move trying to visualize it. He felt nothing. Then he heard a sound he couldn’t place. It sounded like something bouncing on a cushioned surface. His eyes widened. The tape. The couch. His fears were confirmed when he heard ripping. Then footsteps. She looked down at him. She leaned down and put tape over his mouth and nose. His chest was on fire. He couldn’t move or breathe. The world faded away. The last sensation he felt was pain.