The Wolf

Ch. 13: Leaving

~Nico~

Last night I had a fitful sleep. My dreams were poisoned; full of thoughts of my uncle. His fist flew in and out of my nightmare. My ribs ached as I recalled the day he broke them. I wake up with a layer of sweat coating my brow. My hands tremble as I lay in the warm blankets, damp with sweat.

My ribs burn hot like an iron poker is stuck in my chest. I gasp in lungfuls of air. Carelessly, I toss the blankets off of me. My feet hit the floor, and my legs wobble uncertainly. Clutching my side, I stagger off to the bathroom. Hopefully, they keep a bottle of Aspirin in there.

Raising a weak fist, I knock on the door. No one answers, so I push it open. My hand gropes along the wall for the light switch. Aha! I flick the switch and the lights flicker on. I riffle through the contents behind the mirror. With trembling fingers, I pull out the holy grail; Aspirin.

Popping a few on my tongue, I run some water from the faucet into my mouth. I swallow the Aspirin with a grimace; I hate taking pills. I leave the bathroom after having put everything in its rightful place. As I'm walking out of the bathroom, Alex opens his bedroom door.

"Mornin'." I greet him.

He turns towards me, "Hey. We have to go to your house."

My heart freezes. "What?"

"Yeah, we gotta pick up your clothes and get permission for you to live here," Alex explains.

My heart drops at the word "permission". "I... I can't just move here without permission?"

Alex shakes his head, "No, not when you're only 15. If you were 18 then it would be fine, but you're still underage."

My spirits deflate. Maybe the dream I had last night was a foretelling of the future. I wrap my arms around myself protectively, remembering my ribs. I realize Alex is staring at me because of my silence.

"Okay, but can you go with me when I ask them?" I look down at the ground.

"Sure."

Relief floods over me. If Alex is there with me, then everything should be OK.

~*~*~*~

Alex pulls up right outside of the foreboding blue house. He parks near the curb. I sit in my seat and look at the house. All the cars are in the driveway. Anxiety blooms in my stomach. We unbuckle our seat-belts and exit the car. I take deep breaths as we walk down the path towards the front door. Alex walks slightly behind me, but I can tell he is worried.

"Hey, are you OK?" He inquires.

I nod, but my breathing is shallow and I'm blinking too fast. Alex grabs me by my shoulders and makes me face him. "Listen," He says, "I'll be here with you, I won't let anything bad happen to you. OK?"

I nod and take a shaky breath, "Yeah, OK."

My hands tremble as I pull open the door. Inside, the house is silent. I can't hear any activity, which is strange, because aunt Tanya cooks breakfast for the others. I also don't hear my uncle's obnoxious voice either. All the stillness made my nerves spike. It felt as though they were waiting to ambush me.

"Stay here," I whisper to Alex.

Cautiously, I set off down the hallway. I avoid all the creaky planks as I sneak towards the living room. In the living room, Aunt Tanya and Uncle Joe are sitting and talking. Tanya glances up at me from her spot on the couch and her eyes widen.

"There he is." She says, her expression turning to one of annoyance.

Joe slowly gets up from the couch. A lump forms in my throat, and my legs start shaking in fear. "I-I can explain why I was gone." My voice comes out high and unfamiliar.