There was more than one person having nightmares that night. Erica was laying in her bed, the covers long since discarded in her fevered writhing. As she slept she was chased through her mind by dark creatures of fur and teeth. Finally the sound of a scream penetrated her nightmare and she started awake, coated from head to toe in a cold sweat. Her shoulder was aching, where she had been bitten, and it felt like her very bones were on fire. Did everyone go through this? She thought to herself as she sat in her bed.

Idly, she wondered who had screamed. Perhaps it was her own scream she'd heard and she pushed the thought away, trying to get away from the sense of despair that had fallen on her. She got out of bed and walked over to the window, pushing the creaking window open and closing her eyes as a cool breeze swept into the room. She brushed her dark hair out of her face and shivered slightly. The night air was cold but pleasant.

On the table beside her bed she heard a bell tinkle and looked over to see she'd gotten a message. Erica walked over and picked up her phone to read the message and immediately felt her mood sour again. "Burgers and Hot dogs?" She said to the empty room. How could they be so flippant about this. Erica's life had already been changed beyond repair and on Friday it was going to change even more, the idea filled her with dread and anxiety, and they were laughing it off with burgers and hot dogs?

Erica dropped the phone onto the bed and decided to get dressed, knowing she wasn't likely to get any more sleep that night, She pulled on her clothes, collected her phone and left her room. She walked through the dilapidated old apartment building, ignoring her surroundings and deep in thought.