Romeo Is Alone

“Romeo is Alone”

“Good evening folks! It’s a cold December night in Washington and travel of any kind is not advised folks. As you know, we’ve been having our worst snow season in years with over five inches of snow accumulating every night! So, remember, only leave your house for necessities and huddle in tight with your friends and- “a news caster screeched through the flatscreen. The bland man in a suit and tie was quickly quieted by the potato residing on the couch.

The young woman quickly became bored of the man and his warnings. She set aside her sketchbook covered in stickers after she finished her third complete portrait of the night. She stretched out across the couch, moving from the tangled position she’d been in for hours. The young girl then left her beige couch and stepped towards the large window. She just sat and watched as the snow fell violently and a grey hue covered the horizon. Headlights peaked through every once and a while like glowing yellow eyes in the storm.

She pulled her phone from her hoodie pocket and stared at her wallpaper for a moment.” Only one more month and you’ll be home.” She whispered to herself as she shuffled through her phone. She reminisced at her wallpaper of her and her wife together. They had spent a summer in Italy and her phone was still full of pictures from their trip. Nevertheless, she continued on to her initial purpose for opening her phone. She made her way into her voicemail and listened to a month-old message left to her.

“Hey Selene, I’ve missed you so much! Just calling to check in and let you know everything’s great. I hope Romeo isn’t too distraught that I’m gone” the voice echoed with a chuckle at her exaggeration. Selene listened attentively with a smile as the giddy girl on the phone spoke. She glanced at her cat that was cuddled close on the couch where she once sat, who looked to her bored and sleepy-eyed. “Anyway, I’ll be home in like… 2 months or so I think. Which I know sounds like a long time but I’m so happy here. I’ve made so many friends and they get sick of how much I talk about you. But… anyway, I love you so much and I’ll call you when I can!” The voicemail suddenly cut off and Selene was left in silence. She dropped her arm and leaned on the windowsill as she twisted the ring on her left hand.

She was suddenly startled by a dog barking across the street. His deep yelps were dampened by the howling wind, but the German Shepherd was known for his volume throughout the neighborhood. A chill shot down her spine as a few thoughts rushed through her mind. She couldn’t help but pity the poor dog that was left out in the detestable blizzard. Secondly, she knew that dog barked only when someone was on the street or passed his yard. Even though she knew it was nothing, she double checked her door to ensure it was fully locked.

With her nerves a bit higher than she’d like, she shut the lights off and cuddled up on the couch. She threw on her fluffy blue blanket and put on her favorite action movie to distract her wandering mind. Romeo slowly made his way to her lap and curled up. Minutes went by and Selene didn’t give the situation another thought.

For a second time that night she was startled, but this time the sound was much closer. Romeo flew from his huddled positions on the couch, leaving Selene with two large scratches on her bare legs. Selene hadn’t noticed that she’d even fallen asleep in the first place. A moment passed as she struggled to decide where the loud noise had originated from. Slowly her eyes adjusted to the dark as her movie had ended. She gently rubbed her scratches and rose to her feet reluctantly. Selene readjusted her hoodie and straightened out her shorts after her nap. After checking the clock on the wall behind her, she noticed it had only been about an hour since she originally sat down. At that rate she was just hoping for a normal and generally quieter night.

A squealing noise was now ringing from outside and it was extremely peculiar considering the present storm at hand. She looked out her window to no avail as a thicker fog had set in. Selene wasn’t a particularly brave soul, but she wasn’t against caring for herself since her wife had left a few months ago. “Oh Octavia, I wish you were here! I really don’t wanna go outside right now but...” Selene trailed off as she debated her options. The squealing wasn’t wavering, and she couldn’t help but think of the rodents that had been getting into her trash.

The last time she ignored rodent noises her trash ended up splayed across the street and in her lawn. They both picked up trash for almost an hour since they lived in a gated community and lawn perfection was a must, sadly. Selene not wanting to dwell on it anymore then she had to, threw the door open. A cold chill cascaded over her body as the winter wind blew through the doorway. A few flakes landed on her face, and the cold bite was irritating.

After a single step outside, she immediately regretted her decision. Her slippers became instantly soaked after stepping into a pile of snow. Along with literal and metaphorical cold feet, a million horror movie scenarios flashed through her mind. She debated if walking into the night alone towards a random sound, was the smartest decision. Selene mulled over her options and decided that picking up trash again in front of the eyes of her judging neighbors would be worse than whatever was waiting for her out there. Though she knew she was exaggerating, she still felt that she needed to at least see what the sound was.

She took a few more steps and glared once at her porch light that refused to turn on. She debated closing her door, but it was her only source of light. It became colder and colder as she left the warmth of her house. The wind whistled around her, and her face stung as millions of little flakes bombarded her. She put her hood up and tucked her dark black hair back. She pulled the strings tight and encased herself into a makeshift cocoon. Sadly, her legs were out of luck from the pins and needles that now encompassed her.

She looked around her yard and came to the point where the light from her house couldn’t reach anymore. The garbage can was soon located and was still intact but simply knocked over. She debated leaving right then, deducing that the loud thud had been her full garbage can tumbling over. But the squealing sounded closer than ever, and it suddenly wasn’t animal like anymore, so she decided to trudge on. As she waded through the snow longer, she began uncontrollably shivering. The sound of her chattering teeth filled her ears as she looked for the culprit of the sound.

Under the shrubbery that divided her and her neighbors’ yard, sat a large dark box. Selene shoveled some of the snow back and recognized that it was a curious box wrapped in brown paper. The sound was extremely loud, and the suspicious box shook as if something was alive in it. Every fiber in her told her to run back into the house where it wasn’t cold and where she didn’t have to deal with a squealing box. She glanced back at her house where the warm glow of the light showed through the thick fog.

Since she was already there, she decided to give in to her curiosity and grabbed for the soggy box. It was heavier than she expected as she dragged it out from under the shrubs. As she brought the box closer to her, the squealing sound now was clearer, and it was immediately recognizable. Selene’s heart dropped to her stomach, and she felt like she couldn’t move an inch. Her mind began running a mile a minute, but all of her thoughts seemed incoherent in one way or another. Selene was listening to a suspicious box wrapped in brown paper with a baby crying inside.

A haste fueled by adrenaline suddenly exploded through her as she knew a baby was inside. She began tearing at the box, tooth and nail as she panicked about the baby’s health. Tears slid down her cold cheeks, stinging even more as the air bit at her. Her panic was over the moon as she imagined the worst with a baby left in the cold in below zero degrees Fahrenheit. She finally tore open at the cardboard flaps that were folded over and exposed the contents of the box. In that instant, her breath caught in her throat, and her eyes widened in complete disbelief.

Her chaotic mind went completely quiet as it tried to explain what she was looking at. Surrounding a small black sound box was three large rocks. Coming from the sound box was none other than the cry of a baby that was now blaring into her ears. Selene fell back onto her butt from where she crouched and stared blankly at the box. Her mind struggled to grasp what she had stumbled upon. She as well didn’t even realize that her back was now freezing from sitting in a foot of snow. With so many emotions pulsing through her at once, she struggled to keep up with the moment. Nevertheless, her mind started thinking about the abduction stories with women distracted by baby cries.

With this newly remembered info she snapped her head up to look at her house where the warm light glowed. Selene watched the doorway where Romeo sat expectant and confused for his mother. She watched as the door slammed closed cutting off her view of her safe home. Without a second thought, she darted up from her spot and ran full speed towards her front door. She slid, scraping her knee on the snow and sidewalk, but she didn’t faulter. After recovering from her slip, she made it to her door that was now locked and not budging an inch. She couldn’t help but start to panic at her situation. Any sense of calm or control was ripped from her, and she tugged as hard as she could on the locked door.

She frantically glanced around her for any dark figures or signs of movement. Her breathing escalated, and the frozen night air burned her lungs. Her leg stung, and she could feel an open wound on her knee, but she ignored it. As a few moments passed, her breathing slowed, and she calmed down. Her mind began debating whether it was an overreaction, and she should start thinking logically on how she’s going to get inside. Sadly, she didn’t have an extra key, so she decided to go and talk to their neighbor Elise, one house over. Selene didn’t wait any longer, and began crossing the street, and looked to Elise’s house. Then there in the dark window stood a figure she hadn’t noticed before. She stopped herself in the middle of the street, extremely shocked at what had always been there.

She decided to go against her own instincts, and she looked down the street. Down the road in a singular streetlight stood a hooded figure. She slowly panned and looked down the other end of the street. As her heart raced, she trembled where she stood as another hooded figure looked to her in a streetlight, quite a bit away. She stood motionless, with not another known soul in sight. She now knew, she was never as alone as she thought she was.