Reader fiction: The Nest

She felt anxious as the opening bars of the ten o’clock news rang out. Gripping the stem of her wine glass, she leant forward in her chair, her other hand haphazardly stroking their spaniel, Marty, who was blissfully ignorant to the upheaval in their lives. As the news reader released the latest statistics, she looked at Paul, her husband, who was shaking his head in disbelief. Deaths across the world were increasing on an increasing basis and not one country had escaped being touched by this seemingly once in a lifetime pandemic.  

‘I still can’t believe it,’ said Paul. His job as area manager for a small restaurant chain hung in the balance. He wasn’t sure if he was going to get paid and had already informed his 100 plus staff to stay at home. The stock markets were crashing, the country was on lock down and shortages of food staples and other supplies were a regular occurrence.

‘It feels like a dream’, said Ruth, ‘but then I wake up and realise it’s not going away.’ She flicked through the channels and landed on Friends in the hope that Monica and co would help her to forget.

Morning came and for once, the say started bright and sunny, as it if Mother Nature was lending her own hand to support everyone through the crisis. Ruth could hear Emily’s laptop playing from her room next door, her first year at university abruptly stalled with no end of year exams to study for.

Her bedroom was still littered with kitchen equipment, bedding and clothing, hurriedly packed in to bin bags and bags for life once the news came through that the country was locking down.

She wouldn’t hear a stir from her son’s room until she woke him around midday. Toby’s exams had been cancelled so the only thing which seemed to be occupying him was sleep, food and the Xbox.   

Their summer holiday to Portugal looked unlikely and Ruth and Paul hadn’t seen their parents in weeks. Ruth worked as a head hunter, attracting IT Executives on behalf of her corporate clients. Her work had all but dried up, interviews had been cancelled and the world was hunkering down. Frantic calls had been made to the bank and credit card companies to ask for support and payment breaks, some had helped others had been permanently engaged.

The news seemed to get worse every day. People were named, faces were shown, and stories were told. Celebrities were mourned and everyone knew someone who knew someone.

New routines were made. Ruth and Emily had time to exercise and spent most mornings following on line yoga or cardio routines. Emily talked about her new life as a student in Dublin, her enjoyment of the nightlife and of her new boyfriend!

The once forgotten ping pong table was dusted off and resurrected in the kitchen where the family honed their skills, making use of Spotify in the process. Toby and Paul began studying new recipes and each Saturday presented their creation for consumption and evaluation, some more successful than others!

Despite the drop in income, Ruth and Paul noticed that no longer spending money on ‘things’ or going out meant they ate well and could splurge on expensive wines and craft beer for weekend treats. They reverted to ‘old school’ games like cards and trivial pursuit, even involving their parents via video link!

Whilst the news was still dark, there were snippets of like. The ozone layer seemed to be recovering, there where fish in the canals of Venice and deaths from air pollution were down.

They made a point of walking for an hour a day, a slightly different route each time. Sometimes they held hands, sometimes they didn’t.

‘Isn’t it funny,’ said Ruth, ‘the birds have no clue that anything different is happening in the world.’

‘Maybe they have noticed it’s a lot quieter,’ laughed Paul. ‘Why didn’t we used to walk before all of this happened?’ he asked.

‘I think life just got in the way, love,’ said Ruth.

Ruth still had moments of despair, wondering if it would ever and she missed her friends and parents. The news kept bringing stories of heartbreak and sadness; children who had died without their parents by their side, parents who had been in isolation, but died anyway.

One day, the news got better. The following day it was better again. Tentative plans were made for Emily to return to university and Ruth’s clients were interviewing today. Slowly, but surely, the world came back to life, venturing on to the streets and slipping back in to old habits.

As she kissed her daughter goodbye, Ruth felt a pang of nostalgia for the family who had reconnected, talked, played and enjoyed each other again.