A Different Virus: Heartfire

The scent of scrambled eggs mingled with the faint, unsettling hum of the television in my small apartment. It was April Fool's Day, and the usual morning quiet was punctuated by the shrill ring of my phone. "Hey, Kailey," I answered, a grin already forming. I knew exactly what this call was about. Evan's pranks always landed me in hot water with her.

"I can't believe it! Diane, do you see this?!" Her voice, usually bubbling with overexcitement, held an unusual edge of panic.

"See what?" I feigned ignorance, pulling the eggs from the burner.

"Turn the TV on to the news. You are not going to believe this..."

That wasn't the response I'd anticipated. A knot of unease began to tighten in my stomach. I walked into the living room, remote in hand, and switched on the screen. Images flickered into view, jarring and violent: people screaming, attacking each other like rabid animals, their eyes disturbingly red. Gunfire erupted, then the news reporter's rapid, terrified voice: "People are developing rabies-like symptoms and trying to bite anyone they can catch. Reports are coming in from numerous countries... Hospitals are overwhelmed, and people are advised to stay inside..."

I rolled my eyes, a nervous laugh escaping me. "Kailey. What day is it?" I asked, trying to ground her, and myself, in the familiar. But even as I said it, a chilling realization began to dawn. This wasn't Evan's prank. This was real.

Click. The call disconnected. I was alone, staring at a world that had, in a single morning, plunged into chaos.