Free Lockdown (AM13 Outbreak Series) by Samie Sands

about to drift off, I jump up with my heart pounding. My hair straighteners! I need to pack those; I won’t be able to last without them…
    No, it doesn’t matter. I can cope for a few bloody days without worrying about my hair. But as I try to resettle, I’m suddenly not as comfortable or tired. I know what’s bothering me, but I refuse to give in. I’m just going to squeeze my eyes shut and rest…
    But after fifteen minutes of tossing and turning, I surrender. Maybe this whole casual attitude towards packing is stupid. I get out of bed and empty my suitcase and start again, beginning with those damn hair straighteners.

 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Chapter
    Twelve
     
     
    I huff as I toss my case onto my tiny temporary bed. Despite the fact that I’m certain this won’t be for very long, I still feel disheartened. If I’m not impressed, I can just imagine how pissed off everyone else is about having to live in such cramped conditions with absolutely no real privacy for a fortnight. I know we all go out for drinks occasionally after work, but we aren’t really close. Not close enough to get through this without tensions running high, at any rate.
    This is going to suck.
    I wander into the corridor and spot Jake almost immediately. He’s staring down at his phone, giving me a bit of time to really drink in his appearance. He looks different…ill almost. I chuckle to myself, wondering how long he’s avoided going to the doctor, just in case. I’m a little surprised Jamie hasn’t sent him—seeing as how involved in this virus he is.
    I almost walk over to talk to him, but think better of it at the last minute. I’ve avoided him for such a long time now, there’s no way I can speak to him without it being a little awkward. So much has changed since we kissed; it’s almost as if it never happened. I guess it’ll just turn into one of those things that neither of us mentions ever again.
    I expect the work day to have a different feel about it, but actually everyone seems to carry on as normal—taking it all in their stride. Even I start to feel a little more relaxed. Until lunch time, that is.
    The chairs that are normally spread over the canteen are cramped over by the windows. While everyone else spreads around the room, I choose to sit there and look at the outside world. I can only see a little bit of one of the main streets, but even from here I can see a number of people wandering around as if the Lockdown wasn’t happening.
    “Typical,” I mutter, supposedly to myself, but I obviously say it louder than I intended, because everyone turns to look at me. Instead of shutting up, for once I actually speak out. “I just knew the Lockdown wasn’t going to work. We’re obviously the only ones following it, just look outside. Oh, there’s even a woman with a pram and a toddler—she’s so unconcerned she has her children out with her!”
    Everyone rushes over to see what I’m talking about, and a massive debate breaks out. It seems that one of the most vital pieces of information—the time the Lockdown begins—has not been clarified. Some people are saying it’s six p.m., some are saying midnight. I was under the impression it had already happened, but then again, I haven’t exactly been giving it my full attention.
    As far as I’m concerned, this highlights the biggest issue. Sure, the virus stuff is all rubbish, but what’s worse is the way it’s been handled. It’s all been steamrolled far too quickly with too many changes and not enough information. It’s almost been done in a panic, and it seems as if they’ve gone to the final extreme measures without taking the small steps first. There have been too many mistakes in the past with health scares and the way this is going, it’ll end up the biggest one yet.
    A rage builds up inside of me, growing increasingly as people talk around me. Everything I’ve been thinking bubbles to the surface to the point where it feels like my chest is