Work Text:
Michelle sighed as she set a stack of plates and cooking utensils into the sink. She began scrubbing, her hands moving sharply and roughly against the dishes. The frown on her face felt near permanent now, and she had to stop herself from checking her phone yet again.
Bryan hadn’t called her back, since that one message from an unknown number. He’d done a pretty good job of trying to hide it, but they’d been dating for long enough now to hear how rattled he’d actually been during that phone call - threads of alarm and honest fear in his voice.
That had been the only reason she’d called back, despite her displeasure with how their conversation about her pregnancy had gone. While she wasn’t happy with him, she did love him, and she was growing increasingly angry and scared at the fact that he hadn’t called back.
It had been several days now, and he not only hadn’t called back, but also hadn’t been back to work. She knew, because she’d called the medical transport service he worked for, and he’d been absent for a few shifts and never brought back the paperwork for the last delivery he’d been on.
The rough pad of the sponge dug into her fingers as she scrubbed harder.
The local police hadn’t had any luck figuring out what had happened either. Apparently there was an issue with the communications systems in Raccoon City, where he’d last been sent. All the lines were reading busy, and none of the emergency services were responding yet. Michelle had been told a few officers had been sent to investigate in person by now, but there hadn’t been any news yet.
“Michelle, I think that plate is clean,” Julia said, cutting into Michelle’s thoughts, as she takes the plate from her gently. Michelle realizes she’d been digging the sponge into the ceramic, like she’d been trying to scrub the color of the plate itself off.
“Sorry,” she sighed, falling still. “I just - I’m worried about Bryan. They still don’t know anything yet.”
“I know you don’t want to hear it,” Julia said softly, a little reluctant, and Michelle knew where she was going with this. “But there’s a non-zero possibility that he ran off because of the baby.”
“He wouldn’t do that,” Michelle snipped, turning away from her friend to grab another dish and beginning to scrub that one. “He might have a bit of a fear of commitment, but he’s not the kind to abandon a woman he got pregnant.”
“If you say so,” Julia said, a little skeptical, but she moves into the other room and sits on the couch, turning on the TV.
Michelle keeps washing dishes, not wanting to think about anything else. Julia had been staying with her, ever since she realized Bryan hadn’t come back and wasn’t returning calls. She was glad for her friend’s presence, especially with the news about potentially having a baby, but sometimes she hated how her friend insisted on seeing the worst in Bryan’s actions.
Unable to help herself, she dried a hand off, and checked her phone. She tried not to be disappointed at seeing a screen empty from notifications.
“Michelle?” Julia called from the other room.
“What?” she asked a little distractedly, grabbing the sponge again.
“Michelle.”
This time, Julia’s voice was more urgent, and Michelle glanced up. Julia was staring in the direction of the TV, her eyes wide. Michelle couldn’t see the screen from her angle, but Julia’s tone and expression was enough to have her dropping the sponge and drying her hands.
“What is it?”
“You said Bryan was heading to Raccoon City for that last delivery?” Julia asked, tone off in a way that was making Michelle’s heartrate begin to pick up.
“Yeah, why?” she asked. When Julia didn’t respond, Michelle walked towards her. “Julia, what? You’re scaring m-”
The words on the television froze Michelle’s feet in place.
Raccoon City destroyed by nuke in response to deadly viral outbreak, survivors unknown.
“What?” she whispered, the words not quite making sense to her.
Aerial footage of the city played next, a scene from chaos a few days ago, followed by a crater from presumably earlier in the day. Michelle’s heart dropped. She fumbled, grabbing her phone again. She called Bryan, and listened as it immediately went to a pre-recorded voice saying there was an error, and the user was unreachable.
She tried again. Then again. Same result.
“Fuck!” she burst out, then looked up the nearest hospital and police station to Raccoon City, and tried calling them both. The line was apparently busy enough that not only did she get the busy tone, but she also didn’t even get to leave a message. Michelle hung up, swearing again, not sure what to do now.
She sank onto the couch, putting her face in her hands. Bryan’s phone was unreachable. So were the hospital and police. No information was getting in or out of Raccoon City so far.
Julia’s arm went around her back, squeezing comfortingly.
“I’m sure he’s okay,” she said softly, in an abrupt shift from earlier. “Right? He’s a courier, he wouldn’t have lingered all that long. In and out.”
“Then why did he leave a message saying things had happened, from an unknown number and not pick up when he asked me to call him back?” she asked wetly. “And why is his phone sending an error message when I try calling? Why hasn’t he come back or gone to work?”
Julia didn’t have an answer for that. Neither did Michelle.
After a few minutes, they kept watching the news. Even the anchors seemed shaken, and they kept apologizing for not having more information.
Michelle’s hand drifted to her lower abdomen, almost absently. She hadn’t fully decided what she wanted to do about being pregnant yet, but she was also now very well aware of the fact that there was a good chance this was the last piece of Bryan she may ever have.
But she’d never imagined raising a kid alone. One who might never know their father, if Bryan really was-
Was-
The tears were hot on her cheeks. She didn’t know what to do. She didn’t know who to ask. Apparently a lot of people didn’t either, because of how busy the phone lines were. Nobody told you what to do when someone you loved was missing. Nobody told you what to do if you thought they were dead.
There was a chance Bryan hadn’t been in the City.
Michelle didn’t think she believed that.
She pulled out her phone again, and tried Bryan’s number again.
We’re sorry. The number you have tried is unavailable.
On the television, plumes of smoke rose in the air.
Her hand pressed harder against her abdomen.
Your call cannot be completed as dialed.