The night remained quiet after his return. The battle for City Hall had ended some hours ago and the regular night noises returned. Was it truly night now? David’s digital watch continually showed a flurry of random LED combinations. Giselle, her parents, and the kids slept noisily in their makeshift basement encampment. David had dozed off and on for a while, but his nerves were too shot to really find rest.
Every now and then Darryl or someone else would wake for a while. Bathroom trips. Something to eat. Or Simply just can’t sleep. When a brief conversation popped up, he did his best to allay any concerns. In truth, David had no clue what was going on. During the frequent trips upstairs he would check the power, the tv, and the radios. For the most part, everyone would simply return to the basement after those immediate needs were satisfied and would go back to bed. The radios, including the emergency broadcast system, only produced static. Or worse, one of those schizophrenic voices urging you to strain your ears and sanity to hear what is being said.
“Maybe after I am rested,” David thought out loud.
“Dad?” Danny said.
David switched off the radio, silencing the siren before she could take hold of his mind once more. His oldest, illuminated in the glow of the battery operated lantern, was drinking a glass of milk. David hoped that it had not spoiled since the power had been out long ago. Danny did not gag, so David did not raise any kind of alarm. When his son went back to sleep he would discard it and the remaining perishable items.
“What’s up, little man?” David said.
Daniel took a moment to finish his milk. David was quietly relieved that his son did not vomit, but he would keep an eye on him regardless. When he was finished, he set the glass in the sink before moving closer.
“Um, Darryl is worried that it’s going to be dark forever.” He said after a moment.
“The sun will come back, Dan. This is just an eclipse. Granted it is a super long eclipse, the moon will move out of the way and the sun will shine again.” David replied.
“But Darryl says it has been several days already and the sun still hasn’t come back.”
“That’s not entirely true. Your Dad is tough, but he is not tough enough to stay up for several days straight. Dan, I have not fallen asleep yet, but I am very sleepy. I figure when I go to bed, things should be sorted out.”
Darryl nodded and silently seemed to agree before going back downstairs. David conceded that he was very, very tired. He did, however, remember how difficult it was to tell how much time had passed when he left the underwear factory. How long did it really take for all of society to devolve into chaos? A night? A whole day? A week!? Once again reasonable doubt crept into his logic. What if it had taken much longer to get home after all? How long had he really been awake? He had slept a little since returning home, but without a clock or a damned sunrise…
The dining room seemed to take on glow. For the first time in forever, David could see the ugly tile flooring below him. He could even see the nicely redone carpeting of the living room. David quickly went to the front door and threw it open. He had half expected the long extinct chirp of the security system to greet him but disregarded its absence.
Long off into the horizon a bright, near white light began to rise over the horizon. Finally, he thought, I can finally go to sleep.
James C Gilliam 