Plague

So there they were, nestled in the big city.  The young man and his girlfriend had New York by the shoestring.  They walked, subwayed, and traveled around town with such ease that strangers began asking them for directions.  

Everything was well for a time.  Until the sickness came.  First it struck the young man with a very sore throat.  He woke up in the middle of the night gasping for air.

"WATER." he yelled pathetically.

He spent the next day languishing in bed.  He even called in sick to his swanky show biz internship.  His girlfriend returned from work to dote on him, which she did.  Unfortunately, it was too late for her as well. The sickness had grabbed her.  The throat became scratchy and raw.  Quickly her health degenerated, and she too lay in bed unwell.

A week went by.  A week worth of tissues, Dayquil, and frantic searches of H1N1 on the internet made the time flash by.

Time heals all wounds.  The couple found this truth to be self-evident even in a city where time flies faster than most.