The Berkeley city wide blackout in late April inspired this piece. I decided to make it more interactive by giving readers a choice of words. Write, or type, numbers 1-5 then fill in with terms of your choice that fits the description for that number. As you read along, fill in your words with the corresponding blanks.
1. Favorite social media app
2. Physical object that you’re afraid of
3. Favorite food
4. A campus building
5. An emotion
Your morning rituals consisted of breakfast, a cup of coffee, and trip to the restroom. You cranked open the window to the bathroom shaft, seated your bare bum on the throne of the bathroom, and continued to check various mobile apps. A scroll through (1.____) confirmed that the blackout was city-wide. There was nothing out of the ordinary except for one post. It read ‘safe place at dorms’.
The sudden sound of a scream from the bathroom shaft interrupted your thoughts. A fearful voice and a low guttural growl flowed from the bathroom above yours’. Hurried footsteps and a grunt followed each other. Then silence. You stared at your open bathroom window and put a hand on it to pull it close. Bam! A splash of red squirted onto the window as something collided into it.You caught the glance of a Oski’s dismembered twitching head as it bounced down the shaft.
You remain seated on the toilet, barely aware of how you literally sh*t yourself out of fear and gastrointestinal forces. With a bead of sweat dripping down the side of your face, you slowly rotated your eyes around the bathroom. The nearest thing to you was a (2.____). You swallowed, grasped it, and waited with wide eyes.
Only after the silence grew large enough did you dare to move again. You wiped the sweat off of your cheeks and carefully washed your hands. You reached over to flush the toilet, but paused when you recalled the numerous hours entrenched in zombie franchises. They all told you that noise attracted zombies. You tip-toed out of the restroom and closed the door.
Attempts to call the police led to an automated failed call messages. A peek through the window shutters and front door peephole revealed nothing. The buildings, streets, and hallway around you looked bland as ever. Except for what seemed to be a box of (3.____). Your grumbling stomach defeated your mental voice shouting for you not to become one of the stereotypical victims of horror movies. Before leaving, you stuck an apology note onto the bathroom door in case your flatmates made it back and were in desperate need of the toilet.
You poked your head into the hallway. A waft of the food caused you to step further out of your flat. Quietly padding along the carpeted hallway, you kept your back to the wall and listened carefully. No sounds came from your neighbors’ either. You glanced around the hallway, wondering how to get information about the outside world without endangering yourself. Rooftop scenes from zombie movies popped into your mind. You decided to stealthily make your way to the top of the building.
Once on the roof, you gaze at the campus a few streets away. Some buildings were seemingly untouched while others, especially (4.____), emitted black puffs of smoke. The wind began to shift the smoke trails downtown. What you noticed the most was the lack of life. No visible person roamed the campus. You felt (5.____).
