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about your normal business but with caution. Remember to wash your hands constantly. Do not share drinks. Keep yourself as healthy and active as possible. Go to the doctor or your local hospital the minute you start feeling the symptoms and together, we can progress forward toward a solution.”
    She smiled at the cameras again, but the smile not quite reaching her eyes. She didn’t look much like a doctor, someone capable of spending days responsible for the Center of Disease Control. She was dressed impeccably in a smart business suit, and looked more like a lawyer than a doctor. I briefly remembered when my mother took me to Europe after my eighth grade graduation, and I sprained my ankle. The doctor in Leeds was dressed similarly, less like the normal picture I had for a doctor. There was something very poised and calculated about this woman though, and I was drawn to her eyes, that just didn’t match the tone of her voice or the smile on her full lips.
    The reporters immediately launched into a flurry of questions, talking over one another. I had had enough and switched off the TV. No sooner had my room fallen into silence again when there was a loud pounding on the door. I jumped, startled, and then laughed at myself. This virus was making me paranoid and easily spooked.
    I climbed out of bed and went bounding down the stairs. I stood on tiptoe to see through the peephole and sighed when my line of sight was just underneath. I opened the door and immediately saw Madison and Ash standing on my doorstep.
    “Hi, Madison,” I said, flashing an impatient look at Ash.
    “I come bearing snacks and Buffy,” Madison said, holding up a full grocery bag. She jerked her head toward Ash. “He invited himself.” She gave me a knowing look as she came in.
    “Nice bed head, Z.” My hand went immediately to my hair. I hadn’t even thought to run a brush through it. “I invited Brody, too,” Ash said cheerfully, coming in as well, uninvited. “Where’s Bandit?
    At the sound of his name, Bandit came bounding down the stairs, skidding across the wood floor and crashing into Ash’s legs. Ash bent over, and scratched him behind the ear. Bandit’s tongue fell out, his foot stomping in happiness. I sighed.
    “You weren’t invited, Ash,” I said, “Which means you can’t just invite others.”
    Ash looked over at Madison, his eyebrow raised. She smiled sheepishly and didn’t protest.
    “I hate you both,” I said, rolling my eyes and shutting the door. I was already beginning to shiver. It was freezing out there. “And besides, is it okay to invite Brody over? I thought his mother was sick. We don’t know how the virus is spread.”
    “Brody’s mom is sick,” Ash admitted, wandering over to the couch and plopping down on it.
    “Yes, she is,” Madison said, glaring at Ash. “But his mom lives in Queens. He hasn’t even seen her since she got sick.”
    I opened my mouth and then closed it, finding nothing to say.
    “I think we won,” Madison smirked, taking up residence on my dad’s favorite armchair, a bag of Cheetos on her lap.
    I grabbed the bag that Madison brought and dug through the contents, looking for the package of gummy worms that were absolutely necessary for my part in a Buffy the Vampire Slayer marathon. “I don’t think this is what my dad had in mind when he said to stay home from school.” I sighed. “But it is Buffy. I’m going upstairs to change.”
    “I think I’d rather you stay in those pajamas, Z,” Ash called from the couch. “Much easier to take off.”
    I blushed furiously and turned away, stomping up the stairs. Ash was so infuriating! I thought about his comment and his hands sliding up to remove my flannel pajama bottoms, and I felt my blush deepen. Ash had a way of getting under my skin, and I hated it. I yanked on a pair of jeans and a soft gray sweater. I brushed my brown hair, which was sticking up in places. It was so long that it tended to do wild things when left to