Broken Night
written by: Beverly M. Collins
Finally, the open window welcomed cool night air. Midday had been unbearable as the power outage meant no air conditioners or fans. 17-year-old Jessie and her 15-year-old brother, Kevin, sat on the hardwood floor of their 2nd-story Larchmont Villa apartment. They could hear the night clamor of crickets and occasional barks from dogs in the neighborhood.
Suddenly, there it was again: the sound of breaking glass. Closer this time. Jessie, normally the quietest in any setting, jumped to her feet and, at first, nervously spun in a circle. Kevin eased closer to the window to get a peek at the looters.
“Be careful!” Jessie said, in a loud whisper. “Don’t let them see you! They have flashlights.”
Kevin snapped back at her as they peeked through the curtain. “How do you know?”
Normally, this was a safe neighborhood. But by the 2nd day of the Blackout, the area became a target.
Without streetlights, they could see 3 figures as they ransacked through a neighbor’s car. A man from the building across the street yelled in an angry, low voice, “Hey! You low-life fools! Get out of here!” which made them jump away from the car and run like mad in different directions. Jessie giggled, and Kevin frowned at her. All they heard was fleeing footsteps, and the street went quiet again.
Later, while Kevin was in the bathroom, Jessie was startled by someone’s calling near the side of the house, “Jessie! Hey Jess!” She went to the window and called down. “Who’s there?” She leaned out of the window and squinted as she attempted to see the figure below.
“It’s Donny, can I come up?”
“No,” Jessie said. “I’ll come down.” She closed the window and ran down on her tiptoes. All the while wondering why, “Mr. Hipster” Donny, that she stared at during school, and who seemed to not know she existed, was here!
“Hey?” she said with a question mark in her tone. “What’s up?” She tried to sound casual as Donny turned on a small flashlight and whispered. “Do you have a place I can stash this stuff?” He held out the two black plastic bags in each hand. He was tall, muscular, and leaned in and gave Jessie a surprise peck on the lips. She froze for just a second.
“Aww…Whew! Sure…Come this way.” Jessie said, then led him around to where there were storage bins her father had recently emptied. She tingled, not believing the moment.
“Where is your dad?” Donny asked.
“He’s working at the Liquor Haven,” Jessie replied, “They have a generator? It’s probably the only light in the city.” She spoke but didn’t recognize her own voice.
Donny quickly dropped the bags in the bins, leaned in, and kissed the side of Jessie’s neck. “I’ll come back tomorrow.” He said as he turned and ran off.
Jessie felt thrilled/confused/excited. She was hopeful this could be the start of something as she went back upstairs, smiled to herself, and said nothing about Donny or the stolen goods to her brother…The start of something, indeed.
The End
- Broken Night - March 24, 2026
