Jezz’s Daily Story

I got home and spilled the groceries across the counter. There were some potatoes, ginger, a jar of curry paste. I let the chicken sit out because he didn’t even say Hello.

 - I might go get some beer, he said.
    – Are you cooking? I asked.
    – You can if you want.
    – I don’t mind.
    – Do you want to?
    – Do you want to?

When he went to get beer I pushed his couch back against the wall and started vacuuming. I put the cushions on the table and the chairs on the couch and the game controllers on top of the dusty bookshelf. Then I messaged him and asked him to bring home flowers. He didn’t. He said that he walked home the other way anyway, but I’m not sure I believed him.

- Can I watch Amazing Race? I asked.
    – Hang on.
    – It starts in a minute.
    – Isn’t Amazing Race on Wednesday?
    – No, it’s on tonight
    – You sure?
    – Yes, I’m sure.
    – Hang on.

I went into the bathroom to look at my face. I went to the toilet. He asked me if I wanted a beer, and I took one and drank a little bit. I left the half-full bottle sitting on the counter, next to the raw chicken. Then I started reading a book.

- Are you cooking dinner? he asked. What are you doing?
    – I thought you were supposed to cook tonight. I’m reading.
    – I’m hungry, he said. Should I cook?
    – Don’t even worry about it, I said.

He was playing games. I sat next to him for a while, with my eyes closed, listening to the music and the sound effects repeat. I stood up. I put away the vacuum cleaner, which still had its xylophone-tube spread out across the hardwood floor. I was hungry. I put the ginger in the garlic bowl and the curry paste in the cupboard, but left the chicken in its plastic bag on the counter.

- You left the chicken out, he said.
    – I know, I said. I thought you were going to cook.
    – I can’t cook that.
    – There’s nothing wrong with it.
    – It’s been out for hours.
    – It’s fine.
    – Alright. I’ll start.
    – Don’t worry, I said. It’s nearly ten already. Forget it.
    – How come you didn’t finish the beer? he said. You should finish it.
    – I was finishing it.
    – I’ll finish it, he said.

I woke up when he came into bed. He put his arm over my shoulder and I brushed it off. He said something to me, but I was tired, so I ignored it and fell back to sleep hungry and thinking about wasted chicken.

I woke up again. I’m not sure what the time was. There was a loud ringing noise and it took me a while to realise it was the emergency siren. He woke up too and we both got up and slipped our jeans and shirts on. The noise was getting louder and a recorded voice told us to leave the building immediately.

- Should I take the camera? he asked.
    – No, let’s just go.
    – I’ll take the laptop.
    – Okay, I said.
    – Come on. Come on.

We hurried down the concrete stairwell. There were a few other people too but nobody was speaking. When we pushed open the double emergency doors at the bottom it was raining and cold outside. We crossed the road with our hands over the backs of our heads and looked across at the building. He slipped his arm under mine and we watched the tired residents file out of the emergency door with their pyjamas on. Others in the building looked down at us from their balconies, smoking cigarettes.

- Cold, I said.
    – Yeah, he said. You want to sit down?
    – I’m okay. It’s wet.
    – Yeah.

People were chatting under the cover on the other side of the road. We could still hear the alarm, and every now and then, the recorded voice telling people to leave the building immediately.

- I’m hungry, he said. Do you want to go find some food?
    – Is anything open?
    – I don’t know.
    – Okay, I said.

We ducked out of the cover and jogged away with our hands over our heads.