19 The Pandemic Monday, 6 April 2020 (1/2)

Betha and Apollo were inseparable since Valentine's Day. Like a pair of shoes, slippers, pants, eyeglasses, spoon and fork, chopsticks, name it…practically every single thing in the world that needs to come in pairs resembled the couple. The minute Apollo found out that he didn't have to restrain himself from touching or kissing Betha anywhere but her lips, he couldn't get enough of her. They enjoyed each other very much, even without having to kiss each other's lips. But then their happiness was short-lived…

Betha and Apollo were making out in his bedroom when Betha showed signs of a banshee transformation. The next thing she knew, she was in front of the neighbor's window. It was Apollo's next-door neighbor whom, on few occasions, complained whenever he played music late at night. He had complained to Mrs. Rodriguez last year during Christmas and New Year. He was in his late 50s, so he was probably sleeping while most of the neighborhood were still up during midnight to celebrate with their family. After her wailing, she and Apollo ran back towards his place to call 911. His mom didn't understand how they knew about their neighbor's situation, as she came home with an ambulance waiting outside. After a week, they found out that he was infected with coronavirus and they had concluded that he got it from his trip to Japan. Apparently, he arrived from his trip during the third week of February. His daughter got married to a wealthy Japanese and splurged on a wedding of over 300 guests. The big crowd was a factor, but there was also the airport and the plane. They had no idea where he had gotten infected, but the doctors had released a statement to the media that there was a big possibility that he got it from Japan, considering the country's situation.

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe had requested to close all schools because of the newly discovered virus called ”the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2” or SARS-CoV-2. It originated from China in 2019. Hence, it was given the COVID-19 name. The 2020 Summer Olympics had also been postponed to 2021 as precautionary measure. By March 2020, the virus had been declared a pandemic. As of April 6, 2020, there were 1,272,860 coronavirus cases in over 150 countries, with 69,424 deaths and 261,593 recoveries. US, Spain, and Italy were the top three countries with the most cases. Total lockdown was declared during the second week of March to most countries, so everyone (except for some stupid people) were responsible enough to follow the community quarantine. Wearing masks and social distancing were strictly followed and anyone without a quarantine pass was not allowed to leave their home. There was also a schedule to follow when leaving houses to buy essentials.

Apollo found out from Betha that she was immune to all kinds of diseases and could even live forever. The only time her life would end was if someone killed her, or if she got into an accident; she was not immune to death, only immune to diseases. Mrs. Rodriguez was not aware of that, and Apollo nor Betha couldn't tell her about it, so they stayed in their respective houses and had been quarantined like the rest of the population to prevent further outbreak of the dreaded virus. Apollo and Mrs. Rodriguez took turns every week in doing their groceries with their mask and gloves on, making sure that they always had a sanitizer handy. Whoever did the grocery went to the back door and immediately headed towards the bathroom to take a shower. They even sprayed a disinfectant the second they entered the back door. The entire world had become scary because of the virus, so everyone's lives changed in the blink of an eye – schools, businesses, malls, churches, restaurants, and other establishments had been closed until further notice. Only drugstores, hospitals, police stations, convenience and grocery stores remained open.

”I've always loved staying at home, but now that I have no choice but to stay here, I realized that I also enjoy going outdoors. If I had known we'd be stuck at home without knowing until when, we would've dated every day at Daylight Avenue and ate all types of grilled meat at MeatLovers.” Apollo said pouting his lips, trying to look cute for Betha on their video call.

Betha smiled sweetly as she always did. ”I bet the rest of the world are imagining all the things they used to do outside of their home.”

He nodded. ”By the way, I thought we were supposed to think of a way to get you to kiss me on the lips without killing me?”

She laughed. ”You say it so casually as if there's really a way to do that.”

”I told you, Leslie is very resourceful. There should be a way.” He said with confidence.

”Yeah, but shouldn't we find a way to cure this virus instead? The world is apocalyptic right now. Everyone's smile is a forced smile nowadays. People are just trying to be okay and that this will all be over, but I'm sure that nobody has peace of mind because nobody knows for sure if this will all be over, even if they want to believe that.”

Apollo was enthralled. ”You're an angel, Betha. I love that you're thinking about saving the entire world instead of finding a way to get rid of your banshee form.”

”Yeah, well it wouldn't matter if I got rid of my banshee form when mankind is extinct, would it?” She let out a soft sigh, not sure whether she was trying to be funny or sad.

”You have a point.” Apollo's face suddenly looked anxious at the thought. He stroked his hair and kissed his cellphone. ”I thought maybe a virtual kiss could make you feel better.”

”I would feel much better if we do something about this. I know it's an impossible mission, but you and Leslie and Gab already proved you're a great team when you found a way to locate me. And you're all human. What more if your rescue team has a banshee in it?”

”We could be heroes,” he uttered with a smile.

”Or we could just be us. Nobody has to know we're out there to save the world.”

”Right. Let's get on a video call with Leslie and Gab and think about what we can do. Will get in touch with you later. I hear my mom calling from downstairs.” Apollo said, ending the video call.

~

Betha, Apollo, Gab, and Leslie were all doing their share of being responsible citizens by staying at home. Sitting comfortably and in anticipation of what Betha had to say, they were all in their respective rooms fronting their laptops in a video call.

”I'm glad we could all do this together even if we're not really physically together,” said Betha.

Gab answered with a smirk saying, ”Yes, that's the power of technology.”