Oliver (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
latermaybe) wrote2024-10-20 08:43 pm
latermaybe) wrote2024-10-20 08:43 pm
For Elio (The Purge)
As evening approached, I wondered again if we'd made the right decision in staying home.
Elio was reluctant to leave the shop, not because of the things that were inside, but because of the memories housed within. The people who'd walked among the shelves, who were no longer here. We'd locked up tight, pulling down the metal grates installed over the windows, which we rarely bothered with, and having upgraded the locks in preparation.
Our apartment, accessible from a narrow staircase inside the shop, or from the fire escape around back, seemed especially vulnerable. Those locks had been replaced, as well, but it was far from a fortress.
I cooked dinner, something light and easy, and we had a small glass of wine. A bit of normalcy. And as the alarms sounded, signaling the beginning of the Purge, I drew in a breath, arm slipping around Elio's shoulders, and longed for morning.
Elio was reluctant to leave the shop, not because of the things that were inside, but because of the memories housed within. The people who'd walked among the shelves, who were no longer here. We'd locked up tight, pulling down the metal grates installed over the windows, which we rarely bothered with, and having upgraded the locks in preparation.
Our apartment, accessible from a narrow staircase inside the shop, or from the fire escape around back, seemed especially vulnerable. Those locks had been replaced, as well, but it was far from a fortress.
I cooked dinner, something light and easy, and we had a small glass of wine. A bit of normalcy. And as the alarms sounded, signaling the beginning of the Purge, I drew in a breath, arm slipping around Elio's shoulders, and longed for morning.