Life Part 1

The next morning, the sound of my stomach awoke me growling. I opened my eyes; the room was filled with light.

Well, I was not dead yet. I sighed, for I needed to be more positive now that I thought about it.

For now, eating was what I wanted to do. I flinched when the hunger pinched hard in the pit of my gut. It was not like yesterday. The pain was more widespread, like a coursing wildfire.

Contrast this with the seething weakness that gathered in my arms and legs. I was not feeling completely ready for the day. I sighed, for it should not have made it get this far. I was not wasting a minute longer filling myself up.

I jumped up and was quickly humbled. Dizziness hits me and left me blenching backward onto the bed.

Okay, I guessed running was not in the cards at this exact moment. I waited until my head stopped spinning.

My mind drifted to what my sister probably would have made today. I had not eaten the last time and naturally, that was the decision that was probably the source of my current predicament.

It would have been hard to have gotten myself to eat anything yesterday, anyway. The news I received, the shock that came with the changing appearance and fate, really floored me back then.

Things were different now. I had to move forward. Getting up, I came outside. The house looked the same as it was yesterday.

I walked to the dining table. The smell of cooked meat greeted me. My stomach grew hands and reached out for the food. The table was set with a feast.

Annie was at the counter and was about to walk over to the cauldron. She made a step, then through the corner of her eyes must have seen me. She turned around and stared at me.

Before I could have blinked an eye, she ran forward and swept me up in her arms. "Nils, honey. Look at you. I'm so glad you came out of your room. I was so worried," she said.

My head got crushed into the soft fur of her dress that smelled like another recent kill. This freshly woven and made them. I guessed I had to thank Joel for that.

Suddenly, I could not have held the tears in. I had not known where they came from, but they poured into my eyes. We both fell to the ground. Both of us cried as she cradled me in her arms.

I never considered it until then, but we were all we had and as my big sister, it was really nice to have this maternal moment right now.

Yesterday was rough on me mentally. I needed someone to say or show they cared. My sister cared, and that mattered.

She cried because she was losing me, just like we lost our parents. I cried because I was losing her.

I heard thuds, yet they were heavy. My eyes flicked up, and I saw Joel's somber face meeting me beyond the suffocating hold of my sister.

Joel watched us in silence. This was strange. I guessed he knew this was a moment to say nothing, but his mouth was boisterous in its grandeur.

To think something would have ever silenced Joel. I had not liked it for some reason.

Words formed, for they left her quivering lips. "Are you hungry, sweetheart?" A vigorous nod showed I was more than hungry. Starving would be better suited to my current plight.

She smiled. "Good, because you get to eat first." She took my hand and walked me over to the table where there was a whole roasted animal on the table.

"Joel went hunting this morning for you, didn't you huh?" she said.

He made a facial shrug. "Yeah." He breathed out. "Well, for us." My sister eyed him. He looked at me and nodded. "But yes, for you, too. Eat up child."

Say no more. I smiled, nodded, said thank you, and dug in. As the warm meat hit my mouth, it felt like heaven. It was like I could have heard angels sang. I don't know if I had ever been as grateful as I was at that moment.

They watched me as I stuffed the food in my face. I ate rapidly. Joel's mouth moved as if to say something smart and my sister nudged him. I ate so much and was so full I could not have moved even a tiger bashed their way into the house.

Still, I had not made much of a dent in the meat, really. Soon after, Annie and Joel grabbed their plates and had their share. Joel ate massive portions. How he did it remained a mystery.