Layers of pitch bog down the night
Stagnant air filled with foreboding
But it's probably my overactive brain
Still suffering from the five cups 
of scalding murky caffeine
Guzzled this morning
Just to make me feel slightly awake
before sprinting to the office
Right?

My phone buzzes on my desk
bzz bzz bzz bzzzzz
like Beethoven's 5th symphony
dun dun dun dunnn
I hum as I begin to  
extract myself from the warmth
but hesitate
Early meeting tomorrow
Can't get sucked into the whirlpool
That is Candy Crush and Instagram,
Solitaire and Clash Royale
Again
but what if it's important?
Like someone's in the hospital
Or they're canceling the meeting?
I debate with myself
As mad-women do

My phone vibrates again
Solidifying my resolve
Not to get near my phone
But again and again
Beethoven on steroids
Incessant

The door shuts behind as Mom and Dad leave for their "special night out", leaving me with my naughty little sister. I turn to her, putting my hands on my hips. "Okay, this time you do not get up in the middle of the night and try to take Venisa on a walk, okay?" I ordered her, pointing to our sad blue beta fish who I had to put on top of the fridge, just in case. Julia nodded, smiling widely and a drip of drool hanging from her chin. I sighed, rubbing my eyes and pulling Julia by her puggy hand into our TV room. I put on Julia's favorite show, The Backyardagins, and let myself slowly drift off.
I awoke later to find that our power had seemed to have been shut off. All the lights in the house where off, and the only thing that was illuminating the room was the weak light of my phone. Which was buzzing, as if it was alive and panicking. I picked it up, squinting at the words that apeared on the screen:

    I wake up to the annoying sound of my alarm going off. It’s supposed to be Saturday why in the world is my alarm going off. I open my eyes and gather my surroundings. It’s dark out still. This was odd, It hasn’t been this way for a couple of months. I check the time and it says it’s 1:37 am. As I was checking the time I noticed that it wasn’t my alarm that was going off. There is a notification saying “breaking news…” I unlock my phone. Having no clue what could be happening that is so important that I have to know. I’m a 15-year-old kid. I honestly don’t care about the news. I just assumed it was important. I clicked on the notification. It pulls up a long page stating that an experiment escaped from a nearby science lab. I live close to a college campus. It mostly teaches science majors. I didn’t think much of it, I thought it was just some rat with an ear on it and it was “of utmost importance to find it and bring it back”. I got out of bed to ask my mom if she knew about it.

It was one of those middle-of-the-night texts.  An official phone alert says there has been bombing in the city. They are telling everyone to lock your doors and to stay in the basement and stay in touch with your local radio.  Outside, we can hear police cars zooming across the streets and helicopters with a radio yelling to go inside. My mom, brother, and I are huddled together in the basement because that is what you’re supposed to do.