Incoming Call

The phone rung, but nobody'd called.

She was driving home when her phone rang. Picking it up through bluetooth, she expected to hear her husband on the other end.

"Hello?" she asked, focusing on the cars ahead of her.

Nothing.

"Hello?" she asked again, growing miffed at the shoddy reception. "Zack?" she questioned, firmly. "Are you there?"

The call ended. She was met with the radio resuming its music, left confused. Hitting a button on the steering wheel, her bluetooth popped up.

"Call Zack," she commanded.

The phone rang.

And rang.

And rang.

"You've reached Zachary Litin. I can't come to the phone right now, but if you leave a message, I'll do my best to get back to you as soon as I can."

Beep.

"Zack, it's Andy. You tried to call me a minute ago, but I guess my reception messed it up. Text or call me back, whatever."

Almost immediately after leaving the message, her phone rang again.

"Incoming call from Ross Litin," the automated voice chimed. "Press the phone button to accept."

She pressed.

"Andy," came a rushed male voice on the other end. "Have you talked to Zack recently?"

"Sort of? I just got a call from him." "Did he say anything? He just called me, but there was silence."

"There was silence for me, too," she mentioned. "I thought it was just my reception."

"Me too, but he--W..what?"

"What happened?"

"I just got a text from Zack. It says...'FREEZING'."

"Freezing?" "It's broken up, with spaces and all caps. I'm gonna try him again."

"You do that," she muttered, thoroughly confused.

After he hung up, she quit the call and continued her drive.

The rest of her drive was uneventful, but, then again, she wasn't far from her home. Walking in, carrying a few groceries, Andy's phone buzzed.

Zack

hello

"What?" she muttered to herself, setting the bags down and pulling up her messages.

Are you okay?, she sent.

hello, came a response.

hello.

hello.

hello.

Three more.

She called him, but got the same message as last time. After hanging up, she pulled the text conversation back up while turning on the TV.

FR E EZING

"A devastating plane crash occurred just half an hour ago. American Airlines Flight 8 crashed over a highway and into the chilled Potomac, striking cars on the road."

The news broke her from her trance, and she looked up. "First responders have told us that there are no injuries. They left just moments ago."

"Then why bother telling me?" she asked no one in particular, grumbling and returning to her phone.

Zack hadn't sent anything since his "FR E EZING" message.

Did you hear about the plane crash? she texted, hoping to get a normal response out of him.

hello, he replied.

She was about to tell him to knock it off when the home phone rang. Setting her cell down, she walked over and picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Andy, it's Ross. Turn on the news."

"It's on," she said, turning slightly to look at the TV.

"I just got a call from a first responder."

"And?"

"Zack was in a car and was struck by the plane."

"Oh, gosh, but he's okay, right? The news said there were no injuries."

"There were no injuries," he agreed. "No one is alive to even be injured."