For awhile, Kat walked with me in silence. She would try to say something, start to mutter a word or two, and stop. She wanted to comfort me, and I could tell. She would put her hand on my shoulder every so often, and I would violently shake it off. I heard her sniffling, but I didn’t turn around. At last, she had had enough.
“I’m trying to help you here! I am doing my best to make you feel better about this whole si-”
“Are you?” I asked. “Are you trying to help me or trying to help the situation? I can hurt tons of people, and you just care about me not blowing anyone or anything up.” I turned to face her, steel-grey eyes drilling into hers, hazel-grey and sparkling with tears. “Right?”
She looked into my eyes momentarily before looking down from the intensity.
“You know, you aren’t alone.”
I froze in place. I didn’t move and didn’t turn around, and heard Kat shuffle to a stop.
“I’m here.”
I began to choke up. I hadn’t even thought about the fact that my family was dead dead. I didn’t connect that with being alone yet, either. Focusing on my facial features to hide my emotions, and while I had this momentary struggle, I made sure I was turned away. Just in case she could see it. “I am.” I said, voice annoyingly shaky. I cursed myself for showing emotion, and cleared my throat, trying to play it off as something that didn’t reveal my feelings. “I am alone.”
I didn’t hear her behind me anymore. I turned around, and I saw her standing there, face hurt and angry. “I’m right here, trying to help you.” She crossed her arms. “I am here, and you can’t recognize my he-”
“I’ve been alone my whole life.”
She stopped. Realizing at last what I was implying, she put her hands down again.
“To be completely honest, for all their care, my family wasn’t with me, either. I have always been alone.”
She looked at me with a face of shock, sorrow, and understanding, swirling about and clashing. Her lips moved, but no sound came out. I simply turned around and continued walking.
The farther we walked, the more she tried to comfort me, to console me and to talk to me. My mood only permitted me single word sentences, sometimes lucky enough to get three or four words out. After awhile, she stopped attempting to console me. She seemed… nervous, though. It indefinitely raised my own anxiety.
We finally reached my house, and I stopped outside. I took a heavy yet silent sigh, knowing a flurry of questions and difficult goodbyes would go down.
So I simply wouldn’t say goodbye yet.
“You did nothing wrong. It isn’t your fault, and you didn’t make me feel hollow. The situation did; don’t even think for a second that you did it. I do appreciate your help, just not in the mood to do anything with it right now. Hardly in the mood to live. And I don’t think my dad would mind if you came in.” I gave her a realistic fake smile and held open the door. She stifled a giggle, and walked in. I followed her, looking down. I bumped imto her. “What’s-” I began, but she held up a finger. Slowly.
She had paralyzed me. She turned my head to face the direction she was looking, also slowly. I was lucky to be paralyzed.
The creature’s back protrusions scraped the ceiling, and it hunkered down on unbelievably muscly legs. It’s feet cracked the tile of the kitched not three feet away from us. The dim light, broken and sparking on the ceiling, illuminated slightly it’s blood red color. It’s arms stretched out unbelievably, muscly as the legs were, and it’s extremely large hands were nearly crushing the counter they were gripping, talons replacing fingers. It’s beady black eyes seemed barely able to function. Two holes on it’s face represented it’s nose, and it’s mouth curved around half of it’s head’s perimeter. It smelled strongly of sulfur and rotting meat. The smell was overwhelming, and excruciatingly unpleasant. I wanted to turn tail and run, but she simply kept her hand outstretched. The thing stared at us for what seemed like hours, and then it seemed to lose interest. It released the counter, destroying it completely while moving it’s hands onto the ground. It walked into the living room, spine protrusions cracking and crumbling the ceiling.
She motioned towards my room. She made a raising gesture, and I became unparalyzed.
She made the gesture again, and I realized that she meant fly.
I shook my head. I made an exploding gesture, and pointed to my ears. She sighed silently, and I started to float silently. She did the same, and began to grow pale. We floated upstairs, and I guided her to my room. She put us down. “Tread quietly,” she whispered, “Unless you want that thing to kill us.” I nodded, and walked impressively silently into my room. I opened my closet, grabbed my duffel bag and shoved as many clothes would fit with my laptop and 3DS and games.
“I can’t… really?” She whispered. “You really need that stuff.”
“Yep.”
She sighed quietly, and I gestured for her to follow me. We tip-toed into my dad’s room, the crunching and rumbling of my home’s destruction constanly ringing throughout the house, and I climbed like an ape onto his top shelf, eight feet in the air. I grabbed his savings jar, and took out all of the cash. Fifty hundreds, sixteen tens, three fives, and nine ones, mixed with god knows how much change. I took out the change and put it in a small bag, so tightly packed that the coins wouldn’t jingle, and shoved the cash into my wallet. “Before you say anything, we need this. I’m sorry, Dad.” I sighed, the fact that my whispers were filled with quivers. She gave me a concerned look.
“You know, I have a savings, too. Maybe…”
I shook my head. “You still have a family. I refuse to go to an orphanage. I just don’t know… where…” my eyes widened, realization hitting like a brick. “Nowhere…”
I nearly collapsed on the floor. In fact, had Kat not supported me then and there, I surely would have alerted the creature.
“Come on. We’ll go to my house for now.” She gave me a wary smile. I looked up at her, and took a breath. The situation came back to me again.
“Okay. Let’s head to your house…” I sighed. Kat opened the window and gestured outwards. I shook my head again. I pointed to my ears. She nearly stomped her foot and sent us both hurtling out the window, and we gently landed on the ground. After we got a solid half-mile away, I gave her a look of pure ‘What Just Happened?’
She looked down. “What. Was. That.” I asked sharply. No response.
“How did you know it kills?” No response still.
I shook my head. You pretty much asked for this, I told myself. We walked in silence to her house, and it was a ways away; about the same distance as my house to the grotto. My legs and feet began to burn, and I was sweating up a storm. Kat, however, looked worse. Her skin had turned pale and she had begun to sweat. She was panting, and due to my social anxiety and awkwardness, I didn’t try to help her at all. I just felt bad for her.
We finally reached her house, and she opened the door for me. I walked in, and she stumbled in right behind me. “My dad… is away on business… mom is asleep… quiet…” she sighed, and plopped on the couch. I sat cross-legged on the floor, and she was asleep within minutes. I looked around and noticed a pile of unfolded blankets in the corner. I hid my duffel bag and myself within the pile, and tried to sleep, despite the futility.
“I’m trying to help you here! I am doing my best to make you feel better about this whole si-”
“Are you?” I asked. “Are you trying to help me or trying to help the situation? I can hurt tons of people, and you just care about me not blowing anyone or anything up.” I turned to face her, steel-grey eyes drilling into hers, hazel-grey and sparkling with tears. “Right?”
She looked into my eyes momentarily before looking down from the intensity.
“You know, you aren’t alone.”
I froze in place. I didn’t move and didn’t turn around, and heard Kat shuffle to a stop.
“I’m here.”
I began to choke up. I hadn’t even thought about the fact that my family was dead dead. I didn’t connect that with being alone yet, either. Focusing on my facial features to hide my emotions, and while I had this momentary struggle, I made sure I was turned away. Just in case she could see it. “I am.” I said, voice annoyingly shaky. I cursed myself for showing emotion, and cleared my throat, trying to play it off as something that didn’t reveal my feelings. “I am alone.”
I didn’t hear her behind me anymore. I turned around, and I saw her standing there, face hurt and angry. “I’m right here, trying to help you.” She crossed her arms. “I am here, and you can’t recognize my he-”
“I’ve been alone my whole life.”
She stopped. Realizing at last what I was implying, she put her hands down again.
“To be completely honest, for all their care, my family wasn’t with me, either. I have always been alone.”
She looked at me with a face of shock, sorrow, and understanding, swirling about and clashing. Her lips moved, but no sound came out. I simply turned around and continued walking.
The farther we walked, the more she tried to comfort me, to console me and to talk to me. My mood only permitted me single word sentences, sometimes lucky enough to get three or four words out. After awhile, she stopped attempting to console me. She seemed… nervous, though. It indefinitely raised my own anxiety.
We finally reached my house, and I stopped outside. I took a heavy yet silent sigh, knowing a flurry of questions and difficult goodbyes would go down.
So I simply wouldn’t say goodbye yet.
“You did nothing wrong. It isn’t your fault, and you didn’t make me feel hollow. The situation did; don’t even think for a second that you did it. I do appreciate your help, just not in the mood to do anything with it right now. Hardly in the mood to live. And I don’t think my dad would mind if you came in.” I gave her a realistic fake smile and held open the door. She stifled a giggle, and walked in. I followed her, looking down. I bumped imto her. “What’s-” I began, but she held up a finger. Slowly.
She had paralyzed me. She turned my head to face the direction she was looking, also slowly. I was lucky to be paralyzed.
The creature’s back protrusions scraped the ceiling, and it hunkered down on unbelievably muscly legs. It’s feet cracked the tile of the kitched not three feet away from us. The dim light, broken and sparking on the ceiling, illuminated slightly it’s blood red color. It’s arms stretched out unbelievably, muscly as the legs were, and it’s extremely large hands were nearly crushing the counter they were gripping, talons replacing fingers. It’s beady black eyes seemed barely able to function. Two holes on it’s face represented it’s nose, and it’s mouth curved around half of it’s head’s perimeter. It smelled strongly of sulfur and rotting meat. The smell was overwhelming, and excruciatingly unpleasant. I wanted to turn tail and run, but she simply kept her hand outstretched. The thing stared at us for what seemed like hours, and then it seemed to lose interest. It released the counter, destroying it completely while moving it’s hands onto the ground. It walked into the living room, spine protrusions cracking and crumbling the ceiling.
She motioned towards my room. She made a raising gesture, and I became unparalyzed.
She made the gesture again, and I realized that she meant fly.
I shook my head. I made an exploding gesture, and pointed to my ears. She sighed silently, and I started to float silently. She did the same, and began to grow pale. We floated upstairs, and I guided her to my room. She put us down. “Tread quietly,” she whispered, “Unless you want that thing to kill us.” I nodded, and walked impressively silently into my room. I opened my closet, grabbed my duffel bag and shoved as many clothes would fit with my laptop and 3DS and games.
“I can’t… really?” She whispered. “You really need that stuff.”
“Yep.”
She sighed quietly, and I gestured for her to follow me. We tip-toed into my dad’s room, the crunching and rumbling of my home’s destruction constanly ringing throughout the house, and I climbed like an ape onto his top shelf, eight feet in the air. I grabbed his savings jar, and took out all of the cash. Fifty hundreds, sixteen tens, three fives, and nine ones, mixed with god knows how much change. I took out the change and put it in a small bag, so tightly packed that the coins wouldn’t jingle, and shoved the cash into my wallet. “Before you say anything, we need this. I’m sorry, Dad.” I sighed, the fact that my whispers were filled with quivers. She gave me a concerned look.
“You know, I have a savings, too. Maybe…”
I shook my head. “You still have a family. I refuse to go to an orphanage. I just don’t know… where…” my eyes widened, realization hitting like a brick. “Nowhere…”
I nearly collapsed on the floor. In fact, had Kat not supported me then and there, I surely would have alerted the creature.
“Come on. We’ll go to my house for now.” She gave me a wary smile. I looked up at her, and took a breath. The situation came back to me again.
“Okay. Let’s head to your house…” I sighed. Kat opened the window and gestured outwards. I shook my head again. I pointed to my ears. She nearly stomped her foot and sent us both hurtling out the window, and we gently landed on the ground. After we got a solid half-mile away, I gave her a look of pure ‘What Just Happened?’
She looked down. “What. Was. That.” I asked sharply. No response.
“How did you know it kills?” No response still.
I shook my head. You pretty much asked for this, I told myself. We walked in silence to her house, and it was a ways away; about the same distance as my house to the grotto. My legs and feet began to burn, and I was sweating up a storm. Kat, however, looked worse. Her skin had turned pale and she had begun to sweat. She was panting, and due to my social anxiety and awkwardness, I didn’t try to help her at all. I just felt bad for her.
We finally reached her house, and she opened the door for me. I walked in, and she stumbled in right behind me. “My dad… is away on business… mom is asleep… quiet…” she sighed, and plopped on the couch. I sat cross-legged on the floor, and she was asleep within minutes. I looked around and noticed a pile of unfolded blankets in the corner. I hid my duffel bag and myself within the pile, and tried to sleep, despite the futility.