By: Mia Bravo
It is when we become too set in our ways that life places the most creative exigencies in our path.
The stale, bracingly cold air of the office met Edward as he headed in to work. He pulled back his sleeve to check his watch—7:00 a.m. Right on time, right on schedule.
He was meticulous about details. In his black leather valise was his laptop, work files, phone, wallet, keys, and lunch in a clear plastic bag. He took thirteen steps to the counter, nodded at the clerk, and made his own coffee—black, with one spoon of sugar. He stirred the sugar in his steaming cup until it dissolved, then guzzled it down and discarded the cup.
It was another twenty steps to the marketing room for King Chemicals. The office was alive and bustling with young men eager to further their careers. Edward always stayed overtime, ensuring every email, letter, and report was perfect.
His cubicle was small, and he liked that. It was easy to clean and maintain. No dust or coffee stains ever blemished his plastic desktop. More importantly, there was nary an insect to be found. If there was anything Edward hated more than being even remotely unkempt, it was insects. Whenever he ate at his desk he made sure to dispose of the crumbs in the trash can furthest away from where he worked.
Coworkers passed him on all sides as they filed in to the office. Ryan, who sat in a nearby cubicle, wheeled his chair over to Edward.
“Hey Ed, are you still going to run with me in the park? Still a part of your schedule?” He laughed and elbowed Edward good-naturedly.
Edward forced a polite grin and smoothed the crease in his shirt where the man had afflicted him. “Yes. We run at 7:00 p.m. at Darkwood Park. I’ll see you there.”
Edward powered on his computer and threw himself into his work. He was a good worker and always met his deadlines, but his insistence on perfection meant he often turned in his work just before the time it was due. On his computer screen was the ad copy he had prepared for the company’s new cleaning detergent. The cleaner was still undergoing testing at the labs and details were still very much under wraps, but this addition to the product line was big news for King Chemicals.
Devoted as he was to his job, Edward never lost track of time. At noon he stopped for lunch. Today he had a walnut salad with chicken, homemade, prepared according to his recipe. It was Tuesday. Anyone who knew Edward well enough could tell the day of the week by what he’d brought for lunch. Edward always ate these salads on Tuesdays.
At the end of the workday, he took out his trash as janitors rolled their carts by. Then he exited the building and headed towards his car.
After a brief stop at home to change into his tracksuit, Edward met Ryan at the park. Ryan was the joking, jovial sort. He often pegged Edward with the same questions, whether he had a girlfriend, or if he would like to go drinking at the local bar. Edward didn’t appreciate Ryan’s prying, but then again, Ryan was the closest Edward had to a friend at work.
They ran, a mild sweat forming on Ryan’s brow, as he pressed his friend with the regular questions. “You know, you really should come and hang out with the rest of the guys after we finish pitching this project. I might even hook you up with a date. What do you say?”
Edward stopped to lean on a bench. He could not focus on Ryan’s question. His head was pounding, and each step Ryan took on the gravel resounded full force in his eardrums. Edward never liked the way Ryan turned his feet in as he jogged—it made an odd crunching noise and squeak from his sneakers.
He lifted his dizzy head. Night was falling over the park, and yet the lights were too bright. Every annoying sound seemed to echo tenfold. The shadows set out against the sunset seemed darker and more haunting.
“Ryan,” Edward said, panting. “I’m honestly not feeling like myself. My head is killing me.”
“Do you want to take a break? I’ll get you some water.”
“No, it’s fine. I’m just going to head home.”
“Oh, all right. Hey, check your phone tonight. Remember Virginia from upstairs? Short, thin, redhead? She wanted to talk to you, so I passed her your number. Hope you don’t mind.”
Edward mentally cringed. “Okay.” He raised his hand in goodbye and left for his apartment.
On the way home he ran into his next-door neighbor in the hall. He was an older, overweight man whom Edward knew little about and about whom he had no desire to learn more.
His neighbor waved. Edward shuddered inwardly, but forced a smile.
“Good evening, Ed,” said his neighbor. “How was work?”
Edward grunted as he fumbled with his house keys.
“You know, I usually buy King’s to clean the kitchen. It smells good, especially the lavender scented stuff.”
By the look of the man, Edward wondered if he cleaned at all. The man’s tank-top was stained with sweat and who knew what else. Edward knew his neighbor worked in some profession involving sewage pipes, and this was reason enough for Edward to want to escape further conversation.
“Thank you for purchasing King’s products. Have a good evening,” Edward muttered. He pushed open the door to his apartment and slipped inside.
Clutching his head, he went to the medicine cabinet and took two migraine pills. Stress at the office had brought this on, he was certain. It took a while for the pills to take effect, but before too long his headache diminished to tolerable levels. He started work on cleaning the bathroom, just as he did every Tuesday evening.
A black speck came into view as Edward lathered the sink. A tiny ant crawled along the faucet. Edward recoiled at the sight of it, then smashed it with his palm. Afterward he wiped the area down, making sure not a speck of the insect remained.
With the bathroom clean, Edward turned his efforts toward making tomorrow’s lunch. As he stood at the counter, eyeing the proportions on the recipe card, his phone buzzed from inside his bag. He glanced at the phone’s screen before answering. The caller’s number was familiar—Virginia from corporate.
Whatever it was she wanted, it must have been important, or so Edward figured from the lateness of the call. He flicked it open and pressed the phone to his ear.
“Hello, Edward speaking.”
“Good evening, Edward,” Virginia responded. “Sorry for calling so late. I’ve been wanting to talk with you for a while, since last year…”
Virginia rambled on about a fantastic new coffee shop that they “just had to go to together” and if they could meet tomorrow evening at 7:30. He heard little of what she said, as his attention had shifted back to making tomorrow’s meal.
* * *
At work the following morning, Edward made sure to tell Ryan that he would be unable to participate in the evening jog.
“Oh, I get it,” Ryan said. “You never stray from your schedule. It must be special—a date?”
“Yes. Virginia would like to go out for coffee.”
Ryan grinned and patted Edward on the back. “Good luck, Ed. She’s a fine lady, and you’re not too bad looking yourself. Just try and loosen up for her, would ya?”
Once work was finished, Edward left for Darkwood Café to meet Virginia. She sat at a metal table just outside the café’s long glass window, wearing a salmon-colored dress and jacket. She glanced around, looking for Edward, and waved when she spotted him.
He pulled the metal chair aside. The noise was deafening. His head throbbed, and right then he lamented not having taken his migraine medicine.
Smiling, she greeted him, and passed him the coffee she’d bought just before his arrival.
He grabbed the Styrofoam cup. It was still warm. She had not been here long.
“Thank you,” he said. “I would have bought it myself…”
“No, it’s all right. I wanted to buy you something. I didn’t know how you liked it, so I asked for one creamer and two sugars. I hope it’s okay.”
Edward did not know how to respond and instead took a quick sip of the coffee. It was unpalatable. He recoiled slightly, and looked up to see Virginia with a puzzled expression.
“Sorry,” he said. “It was hot.” The cup was lukewarm.
He lifted the lid to see viscous black sludge in place of coffee. It looked and smelled like used motor oil. Edward clapped the lid back on and slid the cup away from him using only the pads of his fingers.
“I guess you don’t like creamer, huh?” said Virginia apologetically. She was nervous. “Sorry. I didn’t know how you liked your coffee.”
His eyes shifted from her to the cup and back again. “Maybe I just got a bad cup. If you want to know, I only drink black, one sugar.”
They passed the time chatting over the new cleaner their employer was due to roll out soon. It had generated a lot of buzz at the office. Then Virginia brought up the factory built into the basement of King Chemicals.
“I’ve been down there once,” she said. “It was really interesting. They make our products in the floors below where we work. Personally, I like their lavender-scented cleaners.”
Edward’s responses mainly consisted of nods and approving grunts. He was hearing without listening. Somewhere along the way she mentioned that her mother had finally retired and needed a place to stay.
Eventually, Virginia trailed off into silence. She cleared her throat and moved her chair slightly inward. The screech this produced echoed within Edward’s skull.
“Edward,” she began, “we’ve known each other for a while now…”
He nodded. This was true. They had even dated briefly a few years back, but he preferred to forget this skirmish of a relationship.
Even without her mentioning it, Edward knew what was coming. He figured it might be nice to have a woman who could prepare his meals for him—that’s what they were for, right? Having her live with him and take a share of the household chores would allow him more time to clean.
“…and I wanted to know if you would like to try again?” Virginia went on. “I know you prefer to keep love out of the office, and we can do that. I… I could move back in like we did before.” She chewed her lower lip. “And my mother needs my place.”
He stared and thought over the circumstances. Virginia pulled in her jacket as a chilly breeze blew. In that moment, Edward was not sure if it was the wind or his expression that had prompted her reaction.
“All right,” he said. “To tell you the truth, I missed you too.” That was a lie. It was his attempt to “loosen up.”
Virginia’s expression flashed from disappointment to joy. Her cheeks dimpled from how wide she smiled. Edward did not like how wide her mouth was.
They stood up together and hugged, and made plans on moving in. Edward made a mental note to wash his outfit when he got home.
She showed up the following day after work with her belongings, greeting him with a peck on the cheek. They wasted no time in unpacking her things.
“Should we go out to dinner?” she asked once they were done. “There’s a good Italian place nearby.”
“That sounds fine.”
He rubbed his temples, attempting to ease the tension. She was moving a little too quickly for his liking, both in terms of their relationship and in her mannerisms.
“Hey, would you mind grabbing me some medicine?” he asked. “It’s in the top drawer in the kitchen cabinet, near the sink.”
She gave him the pills and a glass of water with ice. He downed the pills with a swig. Afterward, she got dressed for their outing, emerging from the bedroom in a pink dress and high heels.
“Virginia…” Edward stammered. “It takes me a while to change. You should go on ahead.”
“Are you sure? I mean, I don’t want to rush you…”
“Please, just wait for me downstairs, at the building’s entrance.”
“Okay. Let me know if you need anything, honey.” She exited.
Edward sighed heavily. He couldn’t breathe from the overwhelming scent of Virginia’s perfume. He waited until he was sure she’d be out of sight before stepping out into the hall for fresh air.
An odd noise, like sludge being passed down a pipe, met his ear as he leaned next to his door. It sounded repulsive, and the smells were worse. The scent of lilac perfume was replaced with one of sweat and grime. Edward had to pinch his nose in an attempt to blot out the odor.
His neighbor’s door was slightly open, and heavy moaning seemed to come from inside.
Was he drowning in sludge? Did he need help? Edward thought to himself. As much as he did not want to assist his repulsive neighbor, he also did not want this stench to continue. Plus, if his neighbor died, the smell of a rotting corpse would be terrible.
Morbid curiosity got the better of him. He cracked open the neighbor’s door in measured increments, almost retreating when the smell hit him full force. And then he saw something.
Before him was a slimy blob in the shape of a human being. It had enveloped the living room recliner. Its mouth constantly chewed, grunted, and slurped as though it were feasting on something disgusting. Its eyes rolled about its head; they were not fixed in position but moved about as the mass boiled over the sides of the chair and expanded.
Edward nearly vomited. His palms were instantly coated in sweat. His grip on the doorknob slipped, nudging the door open slightly, causing it to creak.
The blob’s eyes twitched, then locked on him. The blob surged from its chair, its sphincter of a mouth snapping, gurgling, and flinging saliva at him. Edward slammed the door and fled into his apartment.
At no other time had the desire to scrub his hands and face overcome Edward more than this moment, as he skidded across the bathroom tile and slammed his hands around the sink to keep his footing. He washed up, questioning his sanity. He could almost see the imaginary germs perishing from the soap and near-boiling water. His mind was foggy, and he was on the verge of screaming. Thick, dark red drops fell from his face.
He failed to notice until now that his nose was bleeding. All of a sudden his head felt as though he were being repeatedly beaten with a mallet.
His reflection stared at him in the mirror. He swore at times it blinked back at him. Numbness overcame his body and he vomited into the toilet, and then washed up again. His mind spun and he tottered, barely supported by his wobbling feet, hands grasping the sink.
He heard the front door open. He slammed and locked the door to the bathroom, then slid down the door with his back pressed against it.
“Honey? Are you okay? It’s been half an hour… Do you need help with your suit?”
Edward had never been so happy to hear Virginia’s voice. He unlocked the door and stepped out, and she came running towards him, anxious.
“What happened to your nose, honey? Let me get you a napkin.”
She retrieved paper towels from the kitchen and wiped his face with them as if he were a child.
“Your neighbor called me from inside his apartment just now,” she said. “He talked to me through the door when I got upstairs—I guess he was indecent. He says he saw you bolt in here before he could offer you some pizza, and the pizza man forgot to close the door, and … Are you all right?”
Edward gripped her by the shoulders. “Did you see it? Did it hurt you? Nothing got on you?”
She gave him a puzzled look and backed up. “You mean… The neighbor? No, he was inside. Why?”
He lowered his head. “Can I just… cook for us? I want to stay here.”
“Of course, especially since you’re not feeling well. I’d love to eat your food.”
“And Virginia?”
“Yeah?”
“Wash your hands… The blood. You understand.”
* * *
The only sound to be heard was the uncomfortable rustling of Edward in his bed with Virginia lying next to him. She fell asleep quickly after she hit the pillow. Her small form was wrapped in the pure white sheet. The only light came from the moon outside their window. Edward sat up in bed, unable to sleep from the day’s events.
Since he was up, he figured he’d check the front door to see if it was still locked. It was. Satisfied, he returned to his bed and sat down atop it, slightly amused that Virginia had not stirred from all the noise he’d made.
Lying back down, he felt a slight rumbling. It came in spurts, growing stronger until it shook him and the bed. He sprang up and set his feet to the floor, feeling the vibrations grow stronger. Each tremor threatened to knock his feet out from under him.
Edward ran from the bedroom, frantically searching for a place free of the shaking. The farther he went from the bed, the less it affected him, and he managed to settle on the couch near the kitchen.
He was exhausted. He needed sleep, or else he wouldn’t be in any shape for work tomorrow morning. His last thought before drifting off was on Virginia, and how she managed to sleep through the rattling of the metal bedframe.
The next day was the first time Edward was ever late to work.
Apart from being late, it was business as usual except for a few important differences. Today, Edward’s lunch bag was brown and did not contain a pre-planned meal. Before he left his apartment, Virginia had presented him with a lunch she had made herself.
The clerk shot Edward a surprised glance on noticing he was late to work. He was left even more confused when Edward refused his usual morning coffee.
Although he was late only by twenty minutes, Edward worked furiously to make up for lost time. Ryan poked in and cautiously joked at his friend, but backed off when he noticed how upset he was.
“Tell me if you still want to jog, Ed. In the meantime, I’m willing to help you catch up with any paperwork. It shouldn’t be too much trouble, besides, I hear the higher-ups are postponing our project ‘cuz the new product is still untested. Just lemme know if you need anything.” Ryan expected no immediate response, and his guess was correct—he left when his message was delivered.
Edward would have skipped lunch if hunger had not gotten the better of him. Unfolding the bag, he removed a packaged-up vegetable pasta with pesto sauce. That’s what was written on the note Virginia had placed in the bag. She’d drawn a heart where there ought to have been a period. The meal wasn’t visually appealing, and it wasn’t the meal Edward expected. Every Friday was a turkey sub with lettuce, tomato, and light mayonnaise. This was not a sub. It was not a part of the schedule.
Edward feared that maybe she spied on him through the ceiling vents. She worked in the floor above his. It wasn’t a stretch to believe the slats in her floor communicated with the vents in his ceiling. He could almost see the faint purple vapors of her lilac perfume bunching up into clouds directly above him.
He went to the break room to heat up the pasta, growing less and less interested in Virginia’s efforts. One of the cleaning staff, an elderly man, sat eating his lunch. He greeted Edward. Edward didn’t know his name, but the man always treated Edward kindly, and did a good job of cleaning anything Edward might have missed at the end of the day.
Puffs of steam rose from the pasta as Edward brought a forkful up to his mouth. He spat it out and wiped his lips. The texture was similar to hair and it tasted like burning plastic.
Ryan walked over. “Would you like to eat together? I know you’re a bit frazzled.”
“I’m not going to eat.” Edward pushed the container towards Ryan. “You can have it. I’m just going to get a coffee and some chips.”
Ryan tried some of the pasta as Edward stood up to head for the vending machine. “It’s not bad,” Ryan said.
Edward said nothing as he walked away.
* * *
After lunch ended, the elderly janitor got to work tidying the break room. He noticed that the garbage bag in the trash bin needed replacing. The old man struggled to work open the stubborn door to the supply closet. It was supposed to be an automatic door, and these days it was anything but. Once he had gotten it open and entered, it clapped shut behind him.
* * *
Six days passed. Edward refused to eat the lunches Virginia had made him each day. His clothes started fitting a bit looser. Eventually, he managed to muster up the strength to run with Ryan again.
“Are you still opposed to coming out and drinking with me and the guys?” Ryan asked.
Edward shook his head. Drinking was not his favorite pastime, especially when it involved a bar full of loud people and men who left smelling like alcohol and vomit.
“Well, how about coming to lunch with me tomorrow? Every day this week, the gang and I have gone to this new Italian place they opened. It’s so good. Everyone gave up on the break room and packed lunches just to eat there, even the ladies!”
Edward knew what Ryan was doing. Ryan no doubt was concerned with how much weight Edward had lost, and was searching for ways to get Edward to eat something.
They slowed their jog to a walk. Edward said he was tired, but really, he could not handle the noise of Ryan’s feet crunching against the jogging path.
They passed by the public restroom. All Edward could see was filth and germs crawling through every crevice, but his diet of black coffee had occasioned an urgent need to go in and relieve himself. Groaning, he asked Ryan to stop to use the restroom.
“Sure, buddy,” Ryan said. “I’ll wait out here.”
Every inch of the bathroom was filthy. Edward pulled a wad of napkins out of his jacket pocket and used these as a buffer while opening the door to the restroom.
Once inside, he noticed a trail of ants crawling in under the door. Edward proceeded to stomp on as many as he could see, mindful to wash his sneakers when he got home. The trail continued further inside, and he screamed at what he saw.
The trail led to an ant about the size of Edward himself. Its pincers opened and clacked, dripping green, dirty, disgusting liquid. It sat on its haunches with its massive thorax facing Edward, curling and uncurling its hairy legs, its body twitching as its colony of ants crawled all over its fat form. It hissed upon seeing Edward and sprayed a shower of green slime at him. Screaming, Edward ran back outside to safety.
Ryan had heard him and rushed inside to see what was the matter. The two men collided into each other at the doorway and both collapsed to the floor. Ryan grabbed Edward’s hand, hauling him up to his feet.
Edward shrieked, feeling covered in germs, and ants, and all sorts of filth.
Ryan shook him by his shoulders. “Ed, listen to me! Calm down! What happened? Tell me!”
“The ants… The ants…” Edward blubbered. The pain in his head was unbearable. He felt his nose streaming again.
Ryan peeked beyond Edward into the bathroom.
Edward refused to look back.
“Oh,” Ryan said, “I see. Yeah, there’s a mama ant in the middle of the room. It’s pretty big. I’d be scared too.”
Edward was frozen in place. All around him shadows flickered, dancing and mocking him. He knew what it was that moved in the dark—everything was coated with wriggling bacteria.
Ryan had his hands on him, propping him up. Then Edward noticed that Ryan’s arms were consumed in squirming microorganisms. The bacteria boiled all over him, threatening to leap onto Edward at any moment.
Edward pulled away and ripped off his jacket, then doused himself in hand sanitizer.
Ryan could only gawk in disbelief. Edward had urinated himself, but did not seem to notice.
The two men sat on a bench. It took an hour for Edward to calm down, and once he was settled, Ryan saw him off to Edward’s car. As he turned the ignition, all Edward wanted was to get home and shower, and to toss his shoes into the washing machine.
On the drive home, Edward’s phone began vibrating. He flipped it open and glanced at the number. He shuddered. It was his “girlfriend.”
“Hi, sweetie!” said Virginia. “Are you coming home? I prepared dinner—beef with peppers. I hope you don’t mind.”
No response. He hated peppers, and he was looking forward to eating his own food.
“Um…” Virginia stammered. “I got a surprise for you. To celebrate us, you know, beginning to live together. I think you’ll like it. The problem is, I have to step out to help my mom finish unpacking tonight. I won’t be home until late, maybe, like, 11:00?”
“All right,” he grunted.
“Well, I hope you like him… I mean, it—I hope you like it! Please call me when you get home.”
More silence.
“I can’t wait,” Edward said with a pained expression. If there was a silver lining to this, it was that maybe the surprise was a tower of new bottles of hand sanitizer, as Edward had just blown through his last batch.
“I love you, Edward.” He could almost feel her smile through the phone. “I just wanted you to know that.” She hung up.
Edward was paranoid the whole drive home. He could almost feel the ants crawling up his back and hear the faint clacking of a distant mother ant racing towards his car, ready to snatch up and devour him with its acidic saliva. He really needed to get home and take some medicine, and definitely change his pants.
* * *
Edward shoved open his apartment door and raced in, headed for the kitchen cabinet.
He stared down at the empty pill bottle. Virginia left a note saying she had taken the last ones, and that she would purchase some on her way home. Edward cussed out loud and got an unexpected response from his room. It sounded like an excited yip.
A dog. Edward did not necessarily hate dogs, but he could not stand slobbery ones. He had a dog growing up, so he had a soft spot for them, but still he hated the messes they were prone to making. Carefully removing his sneakers, he put them in the washing machine and took a shower.
Once he deemed himself sufficiently clean, he went to the fridge. Inside was the dinner Virginia had prepared, along with several lunches Edward had refused to take with him. He made himself dinner: a simple salad with some olive oil and grilled chicken, tomatoes and avocado. It was one of his favorite recipes.
He grabbed a knife and fork and sat down on the couch to eat. The dog yapped persistently from beyond the bedroom door. Setting his plate down on the table in front of the couch, Edward opened the door to see what breed it was. What trotted out was small dog with short, light brown fur. It was covered in wrinkles. It jumped in excitement at the sight of him.
“I guess… it’s cute?”
He groaned inwardly. Still, he could not resist feeling a tinge of happiness, even if the dog was more wrinkles than canine. It was obvious to Edward that Virginia had genuine feelings for him, even though he found it hard to reciprocate those emotions.
Edward deduced the dog was a pug from how much it drooled. Puddles of saliva had pooled up in spots all around the bedroom.
Great, just great, Edward thought.
Virginia would be taking care of this mess; there was no way Edward was going to touch that.
The pug watched him, tongue lolling, tail wagging. As much as Edward wanted to try and befriend the dog, he was afraid to touch it. It trotted over to him, and Edward lifted his legs and backpedaled away to avoid contact with it. The back of his leg brushed against the coffee table and he lost his balance. He fell atop the table, pitching it over, flipping his dinner across the living room. The plate smashed against the opposite wall, streaking it with olive oil and tomato juice. Cubed chicken breast and lettuce rained down onto Edward’s head.
The pug wasted no time in pouncing onto Edward’s chest. Its wrinkles folded back. What met Edward’s sight was a black mask for a face with several eyes that blinked themselves open. Its mouth popped open next, revealing bunched, thin teeth and a slashing tongue that came racing from out of the depths of its gullet. It slobbered and bit down where a piece of chicken had landed, biting Edward in the process.
Screaming, Edward tore the small beast off of him, getting up and attempting to run. He slipped and collapsed face-first, the beast sprinting towards him and pressing its face against his. Its tongue slobbered all over Edward’s face and he recoiled. He groped along the floor to find something to fight back with, his survival instincts kicking into high gear.
Before he was sure of what had transpired, his fist was closed around the knife, and the knife was lodged within the creature. It made no noise as it bled onto the floor.
“Oh my god,” he gasped. “Oh no. Oh no.”
He stood up, feeling the blood drain from his face. Going against his nature, he gathered up the corpse with his bare hands and stuffed it into a plastic bag—necessity demanded immediate action. He bolted outside and raced downstairs, mindful to watch for any onlookers.
He ran from the apartment and stopped only when he was out of breath. A light rain had begun to fall. He dropped the bag and fell to his knees to dig into the soil with his hands. He flung the bag into the hole he had made and packed the dirt over it.
Edward slumped before the tiny mound. Was he crying, or was that the rain rinsing his face?
Should he call the police? No, he thought, they would never believe him.
Was he going insane? How could he get help without Virginia or Ryan questioning him?
What would Virginia think?
He pushed these thoughts out of his head. He had to work. He did not have time for a therapist.
He trudged back to his apartment. Once there, he gave the place the best cleaning he’d ever given it. Virginia would never be the wiser.
Hot water beat down on him in the shower. He pondered what to say to Virginia when she got home. He could not tell her the dog died, as she would think he was insane or lying. Instead, he opted to say she left the door open, and the dog somehow managed to get out of the apartment.
When Virginia returned, Edward was seated on the couch, staring at the floor. Head hung low, he explained the situation. She believed him, and her tears were proof of this. Virginia rushed into his arms and sobbed.
Edward held her tight. She smelled good, and it was comforting to feel her small, warm body against his.
He did not go to work the next day.
* * *
“Honey, I don’t mean to bother you, but how is the thermostat coming along?” Virginia called out from inside the bathroom. It had been three days since the dog had “gotten lost.” During that time, Edward kept no contact with Ryan, refusing to answer any of his repeated calls.
The controls to the air conditioning were broken. Edward had the panel open, his hands hovering over the set of tools laid before him. He honestly had no idea what he was doing.
This morning was not turning out well. Edward had gotten up extra early just to work on the air conditioner’s controls. They were into their second day of a heat wave. The weather had gotten progressively worse. It didn’t help any that Virginia had left the television on. It blared painfully loud in his ears.
Virginia emerged from the bathroom and approached him, her face wrought with sweat and discomfort, and softly uttered, “Honey, I’m so hot. I feel like I’m melting.”
Frustrated with her persistent complaints, he turned to face her.
She peeled off her top and her skin followed with it. It clung to the fabric and began dripping onto the carpet, viscera and pink muscle slowly becoming visible as the bloody flesh left her body.
“Sorry,” she said. “I just can’t stop sweating. I’m going to lie down.” She grinned and palmed her face. Her hand oozed and stuck to the flesh dribbling off her cheek. Her small, white teeth peeked out from a hole that opened in her skin. Blisters erupted all over her as her body withered, oozing fluids and coating her damp undershirt.
Edward beheld her dripping form, eyes wide in shock.
“Virginia! I’ll cool you down! I’ll save you, save you…”
He heaved her over his shoulder, mad with fear, feeling her stick to him.
She was sweltering; the heat was unimaginable. She had little time to protest as he scrambled to the bathroom. Edward cut a sharp corner through the bathroom door. Little did he know that Virginia slammed her head against the doorframe. Her body went limp, strewn over his shoulder.
Edward’s head was throbbing as he laid her in the bathtub. Chunks of flesh fell off her body in blobs as he turned the shower handle. As cold water began creeping up the bathtub, he ran to the fridge stocked full of uneaten lunches to retrieve armfuls of ice cubes. His eyes were bulging from his head, his nose was running with blood, and terror peaked in his mind.
The water had turned from clear to burgundy as she became less recognizable. He kneeled over her, the blood from his nostrils running into the water and mixing with hers. As he dumped the ice into the tub, he grabbed what little was left of the hair on her head and pressed it to his chest, sobbing.
The water was boiling.
Grabbing her shoulders, he pushed her down, water overflowing over the side of the tub.
“I can’t lose you!” Edward whimpered. “I just… I need to cool you down, c-cool you down.”
His vision swam with tears and he choked on his words as they spilled out of his mouth. He moved his hands to the thin form that seemed to be her neck and pushed it down for better leverage. His arms felt like they were sizzling.
Her body began to squirm. She clawed at the tile and scratched the hands trying to save her, kicking frantically and scrambling for purchase. The bathtub was too slippery for her to gain any hold against Edward as he plunged her into the freezing water.
Edward blinked with the sudden realization that she was recovering—she was alive! The cold water was doing her good! He held firm even as she expelled air from her mouth in a swirl of bubbles.
Her body slackened.
Edward realized too late what he’d done.
“Virginia…?” He shook her gingerly, awaiting some tender response from the melted figure. When the sound of rushing, overflowing water was his only response, he began to wail.
* * *
“I tell ya, I’ve never heard it before.”
The overweight man pointed at his neighbor’s door. The officer with whom he was speaking took notes onto a pad.
“These walls aren’t paper thin,” the man went on, “but I could hear him bawling for an hour. He’s not the type to do that. I didn’t know what was wrong, I got worried.”
The three policemen huddled at the next door up the hall. One knocked, and when they got no response, they kicked in the door and entered, the overweight man following them inside. What greeted them was the sound of a grown man crying amid chatter from the television in the living room.
Two policemen rushed into the bathroom and found Edward cradling the body of the girl he had strangled, his hands scratched and bleeding. He was hoarse from having cried for so long.
“Stay here,” a policeman told the man as he and his fellows started their investigation of the crime scene.
The man stood, arms crossed, in the living room as the TV cut into a breaking news story. Figures in white hazmat suits were carting large vats out of an office building. The audio dubbed over the video identified the location as King Chemicals. A newscaster reported that fumes from the manufacturing plant in the basement had leached into the upper office building, where the marketing and other company operations were carried out.
A health official on the scene reported that the fumes were believed to cause nosebleeds, chronic headaches, and severe sensory hallucinations, often triggering extreme stress and terror.
The reporter came back on to mention the discovery of a body locked behind an automatic door. The man, identified as one of the building’s janitors, had died from exposure to the fumes. His body was not discovered sooner as he had no family and no other janitors were assigned to that closet. He bore the telltale sign of exposure—ribbons of dried blood running down his nose to his chin.
The two policemen handcuffed Edward and hauled him away. Edward did not resist. His eyes were hollow, reflecting how he must have felt inside.
The television switched to a personal interview. Ryan stood in front of the office building.
“I have to look for a new job,” Ryan said into the reporter’s microphone. “I don’t know what to do. And my best friend, Edward Smith, I don’t know where he is. He hasn’t come into work since the building closed.”
“That’s where he worked,” the overweight man said to an officer. He pointed at the TV. “He sold those products. He always got home late.”
The officer at the man’s shoulder merely shook his head. Then he checked his watch as the other two policemen escorted Edward outside.
They left at 7:00 a.m.
Right on time, right on schedule.