The Beginning of the End by Lorana Hoopes (readict txt) 📕

were required at school every day. Lily had purchased several different varieties in hopes that something would be comfortable enough to wear all day long, but she had never worn a mask longer than it took to run errands in town. What if she couldn’t breathe? What if it caused her to break out or pass out? That hadn’t happened so far, but she’d read about mask acne online, and it sounded gross and unsanitary.

Second, they were going to have to stay six feet from each other during classes and lunch. Conversations weren’t impossible to carry on with that much distance, but they were much harder to keep quiet. Everyone would be able to hear what everyone else was discussing. At a high school in general that was a bad thing, but with Lily and Katie probably having a much different opinion than their classmates on the vaccine that was due to be released any day, it took on a whole new meaning.

Third, there were new requirements about having to get their temperature taken every day and answering questions about symptoms. Brian had been forced to implement the same procedure at the gym, but after two months of no one presenting with a fever, he’d finally stopped doing it. Nor did he require a mask to work out. They had to wear it in and out of the gym, but they were able to take it off to work out. Thank goodness.

The school, unfortunately, wasn’t going to be so gracious. They’d sent home a list of the symptoms that could keep a student out of school. It was not a short list, and if they answered yes to even one of them, they had to be home for ten days or get a test to prove they weren’t infected with the virus. If the virus had unusual symptoms, like extreme vomiting or a crazy rash, it wouldn’t have been that big of a deal, but the symptoms for this virus were largely the same for a cold or the flu - runny nose, cough, fever, and congestion.

That meant at some point this year, Lily would probably have to be out and learning from home because it never failed that she got a cold at least once a year. In fact, she was surprised that she hadn’t gotten sick just from the paranoia that was running rampant through her state. Add to that the stress that school could close literally at any time, and Lily wasn’t sure she even wanted to get out of bed.

The principal had made it clear in his welcome letter that the health expert didn’t like them being open until the vaccine was available, and the woman would probably be watching Lily’s, and the few other small schools who were opening, like a hawk just waiting for some random case or broken rule so she could sweep in and slam the doors shut once again. Lily had no idea why the state seemed intent on keeping kids out of school, especially since students made up fewer than one percent of the NCAV cases worldwide, but she figured it was part of the scare tactic as well.

Kicking back the covers, she sighed and rolled out of bed. After a quick shower, she stood, staring at the clothes in her closet. This time last year, she had been so excited to return to school that she had laid out her clothes the night before, but this year the excitement wasn’t the same. Even though she was getting to go back, she knew it wouldn’t be the same, and the threat of having to return to distance learning was never far from her mind. Grabbing a pair of jeans and her black long-sleeved shirt with a silver heart on it, she pulled them on and headed downstairs.

The aroma of freshly brewed coffee along with the tempting scent of bacon and eggs greeted her as she made her way toward the kitchen. At least her mother had more time to make breakfast since her job was still requiring her to work from home.

“Hey, sweetie,” she said, glancing up with a smile. “You ready for school today?”

Lily shrugged and grabbed a mug from the cabinet. After filling it up, she decided she could finagle bacon and eggs into her diet today. After all, Bryce wouldn’t be at school this year, having graduated last year. There wasn’t really anyone else she was trying to impress.

“Yeah, I guess,” Lily said with a sigh as she sat down and filled her plate. “Though I’m not looking forward to wearing a mask all day.”

Her mother flashed a sympathetic smile and patted her hand. “I know, but I bet it won’t be as bad as you think. At least you get to be back in school with your friends instead of stuck home here with me.”

There was that silver lining. Lily loved her mother, and it wasn’t being stuck home with her that drove Lily crazy, it was just being stuck at home. Her gym had opened, but most places were still closed. There was no place to go for entertainment - no movie theaters, no bowling alleys, even the outdoor go-cart place was still closed.

Before Lily could say anything more, the alarm on her phone went off. With a sigh, she stuffed a final bite of eggs in her mouth before wrapping the bacon in a paper towel. It, at least, could travel.

“Do you have everything you need?” her mother asked as she stood and gathered her bag.

“Yep, I packed my masks and supplies last night.” Lily opened the fridge and pulled out the brown bag she had put together the night before. “Along with my lunch.” She and Katie didn’t usually eat lunch at the school, but that was another new restriction - no leaving campus due to the temperature checks that had to be performed every morning. Just another thing in the long list of things about this year that sucked.

A surreal feeling blanketed