Chapter Text
“The sun is going to explode.”
Grigory blinks. “What the hell are you talking about?” He leans against the door frame, gazing out into the open night. It’s quiet, pleasant. A few people are walking home from the city and others are chatting with their neighbors on the porch. A cool night breeze blows across the front stoop and sends a chill up his spine; he tucks his sweater closer to his body. Grigory can hardly believe that the sun is about to explode when everything seems so normal. Sure, this summer’s been hotter than any on record, but that’s just global warming, right?
Leonid sighs. “I know, I sound bat-shit crazy. But I was on the phone with my cousin, and she was going on about how the sun’s heat index is increasing day by day, and it’s becoming too dangerous to even be outside.” The man’s neighbor looks around, as if someone nearby is listening in on their conversation. “She also told me about these…creatures.”
The man raises his eyebrows. “Creatures?”
“Yes,” Leo says. He glances behind him yet again, clearly paranoid. “Can we go inside?”
Grigory ushers him inside and closes the door after him. A draft still lingers in the house from the door being open, but it’s not as bad as the temperature outside.
He continues. “She called them Visitors. They come from underground. And they’re trying to get inside people’s houses.” Leo swallows. “The thing about them is…you don’t know immediately who’s a Visitor and who’s a Human. These…Visitors—” The neighbor waves his hands around madly. “They look exactly like Humans. So you have to examine them to make sure they’re really safe to keep in your house.”
The man stares at his neighbor, taking it all in. “Wait—keep inside your house? What do you mean?”
“It’s not good to be alone in a time like this. When things get rough, people tend to lose their common sense and start acting recklessly.” He looks the man up and down. “I wanted to make sure you knew what was going on, so you didn’t end up…well, you know.”
Grigory chuckles. “You really do sound bat-shit crazy.”
“I’m quite aware.” Leo's smile falls, and his tone grows more serious. “Listen, I wanted to stay the night. Make sure you’re okay during this whole apocalypse thing since you’re alone.”
The man studies him. “What about your family, especially with these Visitors? Shouldn’t you be with them?”
“Oh, they’re fine. A good friend of mine is at home, taking care of them. I trust him with my family.” He glances at the picture frame sitting on the side table in the foyer, the one with an old photograph of…someone. It doesn’t matter who. “Besides, it’s only one night. And you have no one.”
He blinks and doesn't say anything. Then he clears his throat and begins to speak, curtly, almost. “Thank you.”
“Of course.” The neighbor places a hand on the man’s shoulder and nods before turning down the long hallway and disappearing behind the door into the kitchen.
There’s a gruff barking sound from outside. Grigory walks to the window and opens the shutters. A stray dog limps around in the field next to his house, rustling its nose around in the dirt. Its ribs are visible; it probably hasn’t had a solid meal in days. It barks once more and disappears behind the fence out of view. Grigory’s seen stray dogs roaming the streets, they’re nothing new to him. But after learning about these Visitors that may or may not be walking amongst normal people, his heart begins to ache for the dog. Animals don’t have cognitive thinking skills—at least, not like humans do. He realizes that the creature most likely won’t survive past tomorrow. Grigory closes the shutters once more and walks to the bedroom, quickly forgetting about the scene outside.
Grigory climbs straight into bed without changing or washing up. Basic hygiene was never a big priority to him, since he doesn’t go outside much, anyway. He turns away from the window by his bedside, keeping the curtains drawn. He doesn’t look that way. Not anymore.
The man tosses and turns in the sheets, images of zombie-like creatures trudging through his head. The growing fear of not knowing what’s about to happen consumes him. Then, after tiring himself, he falls into a deep sleep. He has no dreams, just a blackness swirling in his mind. It’s nice knowing nothing is there, waiting for him, in his nightmares. Everything is at peace—for now.