Quarantine

Day 1:

Today I failed the blood test that tested us for the new plague that’s going around. I feel fine, but they told me I had to go into quarantine.

“This is unfair!” I said, pounding on the door. I could see Reginald, my guard, through the small window in the door. He shrugged sadly at me. There wasn’t much he could do. It was the law. According to the news, people were dropping dead from this disease within a week.

They let me take my diary and a pen, at least. And a pencil, in case the pen runs out of ink.

They’ll let me out of here in forty days. A quarantine, from the Italian word for forty. If I survive, that is.

Day 2:

My cage isn’t so bad. For a cage, that is. Reginald dropped off food three times through an airtight slot in the wall. I asked him if he could bring me my phone; he said no, but he could ask my family to bring an eBook reader. And a charger. It wouldn’t last long if I didn’t have a way to charge it. And there’s nothing to do in here. It’s so boring.

Day 3:

Hooray! My parents brought me my eBook reader. I thought I’d start with a comfort read, my favorite book, Legend by Marie Lu.

Until I realized that most of the first book is about a plague. Triggering. So I thought I’d read The Young Elites, until I remembered that the reason all those people got their powers was from another plague. I guess I’ll skip Marie Lu then. Sorry. Maybe a good romance novel will keep my mind off things. I bought A Symphony for the Earl by Patricia Wilson a while back but haven’t had time to read it yet. Well, I have time now.

Day 4:

When I was younger, we survived Covid-19. Even back then, I had been obsessed with plagues and pandemics. As a result, I saw it differently than most people. I knew five people that died (and none of them were close friends), and that was terrible, but the Black Death killed 60% of the people in Europe. And who knows how many people in Africa and Asia?

Obviously, I wore my mask and did everything I could to prevent getting sick or spreading the disease. It might not have been the Black Death, or even the 1918 Spanish Influenza (which started in Kansas, I’m pretty sure, not Spain), but why be reckless?

I wonder what this plague will be like. Will it be like Covid-19, scary but most people survive? Will it be like the Black Death? Is it like the 1918 influenza epidemic?

Day 5:

Crap. I’m starting to develop a cough. That’s how this plague starts. Before they put me in here, I heard on the news that once the cough develops, you have a week. Unless you recover. So, let’s hope I’m one of the lucky few.

Day 6:

Surviving.

Day 7:

Still really sick. No buboes. Do they get buboes from this plague? I don’t know. I remember watching a History Hit documentary once about the Black Death—most of the people that survived had a specific gene. Maybe I have that gene too. My great something grandparents all came from Europe. They must have survived the plague. Hopefully I will too.

Day 8:

So hot. No buboes though. Still don’t know if people get buboes from this plague. Reginald won’t tell me anything. He just brings food and leaves. He frowns a lot. Frowns when he sees me. I guess I don’t blame him. I do have this plague, obviously.

After finishing A Symphony for the Earl, which I really liked, I didn’t have any energy to read any more. I wonder if I’ll ever have enough energy to read another book again?

Day 9:

Well, I’m still alive, and it’s been five days since I got this plague. If I’m going to die from this, I’m probably going to die in the next two days. Kind of scary to know your days might be so limited. But I don’t think I will. I’m still feeling bad, don’t get me wrong, but I’m not feeling worse. That’s something.

Day 10:

I’m starting to… feel better? Hard to believe. I downloaded another couple of books from the library. They won’t let me have my phone, so I can’t talk to my family or read the news, but at least I have enough internet to download books. I started another romance novel. I don’t think I can take anything heavy right now.

Day 11:

Reginald was coughing when he dropped off my food today. He still stopped by three times, but the portions seemed smaller today, and the food didn’t seem like it was as good as it was when I first came here. I really wish I had news from the outside.

Day 12:

Reginald didn’t bring my food today. Another guard did, Rosemary. Her uniform hung loose on her, like maybe she had recovered from the plague like I did? I tried to ask her about Reginald, but she just shook her head. Privacy laws, she told me.

Day 13:

Rosemary only came by twice with food today. If they’re going to force me to stay here, the least they could do is provide me with food.

Day 14:

They only brought food once today. Great. I wish they would let me out. I’m not sick any more.

Day 15:

I couldn’t access the library’s internet today. Fortunately, I probably have a decades’ worth of books downloaded to my eBook reader from over the years. The internet outage is probably temporary today.

Day 16:

Still no library internet. Maybe the people who are supposed to fix the internet have been quarantined too? They’re still only bringing food once a day.

Day 17:

Nothing new to report, except for being hungry. This whole being fed only once a day thing really sucks, you know? I try to save some of my breakfast for later in the day, but the portions are getting smaller too.

Day 18:

The electricity went out. At least this room has a window I can see light through during the day. I’m a little worried about my eBook reader though. If the electricity doesn’t come back on soon, the battery will run out. I put it on low power mode, just in case. I wish I had a solar charger. Then I wouldn’t have to worry about it.

I tried asking Rosemary if she could ask my parents to bring a solar charger, during the one time she came with food, but she simply shook her head. I hope my parents are okay.

Day 19:

My eBook reader is going to run out of power soon. Hopefully I’ll have time for one more book.

Day 20:

We’re at the halfway mark. I know people have survived worse things throughout history (I am a history geek, after all), but this has got to have been the worst experience of my life.

My eBook reader is hanging on for dear life.

Day 21:

Sadly, I no longer have anything to read. I suppose with food only coming once a day, I should conserve my energy anyway. I think I read somewhere that your brain uses the most calories out of any other system in your body? I don’t know. Maybe I’m wrong.

Day 22:

Yeah. It’s boring. Nothing to do. Maybe I should write stories in my head.

Day 23:

Nothing to report.

Day 24:

Rosemary didn’t show up today. I hope they bring food tomorrow.

Day 25:

So they did stop by with food today. I don’t know if food is getting scarce, or if they just forgot, or what, but they won’t tell me anything.

Day 26:

No food again. I am so hungry.

Day 27:

They brought food. So maybe it’s an every other day thing now? Anyway, I have less than two weeks left.

Day 29:

So it looks like food is an every other day thing. There’s not too much going on here, not even books, so I don’t have much to write about.

Day 30:

I want out. What is wrong with these people? They didn’t bring food, or news, or anything. Let me out!!!

Day 31:

If food is coming on an every other day basis, they should have brought food today. Nope. Maybe Rosemary will come tomorrow.

Day 32:

Nope. I haven’t seen anybody, not even for a second, in three days. If they’re having trouble feeding people, they could at least let people out!

Day 35:

I think they might have left me to rot in here. It’s been six days since I’ve last seen anybody. At least this room has a toilet and water. Doesn’t help with my energy levels.

I’m also glad I got over this plague before they stopped feeding us. Good nutrition helps people recover.

Day 40:

Hoo boy. Do I have a lot to say here.

I got out today. I was lucky. Emily, a girl who worked here at the start of the pandemic, wondered what happened to those of us who had been quarantined, and decided to go through the cells to see if anybody was alive. She let me out; I think I was the only survivor. She gave me a protein bar. Lord almighty, it was the best protein bar I’ve ever eaten in my life. Maybe the best food I’ve ever eaten in my life. So delicious. But let me get back to the story.

The plague was probably just as bad as the Black Death of 1348. Only they only had ships and walking, while we had airplanes and cars to spread the disease everywhere, almost all at once.

The disease has mostly run its course now, but so many people have died. Unburied bodies fill the streets. Oh, the smell! Animals that used to be people’s pets roam the streets, orphaned children are crying on the street corners, and the eyes of the survivors just seem to be blank. It’s hard to describe.

My mom survived. There’s that. She’s so thin though. She wanted to come visit me, but they wouldn’t let her. They told her I was dead. When I first showed up at home (rummaging through the grocery store on the way home to get some food), she thought she had seen a ghost. It’s so good to see her.

Since I am something of a plague geek, I know we as a society will survive. It won’t be easy, but people have been through just as bad before. Maybe in ten years, those of us who survived will be better off. It’s not like life was easy before the plague.

I guess that’s all I have to say for today. I wish I had better news to report, but at least I’m out of quarantine.