A Pinch of Memories in my Bowl of Disaster

16 "Normal" Lives

<><><><><><>Author's Note<><><><><><><><>

The song in the side refers to something that happens from the middle of the chapter to the end of the chapter :)

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I rubbed my stomach and stared at the empty plate in front of me, hardly able to keep my eyes open. Charlie was sitting next to me at the dinning table, and Adam was sitting across from us. Both of them imitated me. We were all stuffed from the spaghetti and meatballs we cooked together. I was surprised at how good a cook Adam was. If I had made it alone, I would've probably burned the house, and I didn't need any more trouble. 

I heard a loud burp and looked to my side. Charlie covered her mouth with a napkin.

"Oops! Sorry!" she exclaimed. The three of us broke into laughter. I threw my napkin onto the table. I kicked my legs on top of the table and leaned the chair back so that the two front pegs were floating in the air. My mom would have my head on a plate if I ever did that. She wasn't here to see it though, so there wasn't a problem.

I closed my eyes and breathed in the moment. Everything felt right. It felt like I was sharing a normal dinner with my family in a normal house situated in a normal town. Sure, it wasn't my biological family, but by this point Adam and Charlie were practically family. My eyes flew open when I felt myself tilting backwards. Before I could grasp the table, my back made contact with the floor. 

"Oooph!" I grunted as I rolled off my chair and stayed on the floor. Adam and Charlie laughed even harder. Adam stood up and pointed at me, tears forming in his eyes. Charlie clutched her stomach and fell to the floor, rolling around next to me in laughter. After a couple minutes, we all settled down. Charlie and I lied on the floor, our heads touching, while Adam made his way around the table. 

"You girls should take a shower and get to bed. It's going to be a long day tomorrow," Adam said. Adam and Charlie were going to stay at my house for tonight to make sure I was okay. Charlie would sleep in my room and Adam would sleep in my mom's room. In the morning Adam would head over to his agency and figure things out while Charlie and I would go to school. Adam insisted that we don't go to school. He claimed that we needed to rest for a couple days before loading ourselves with tons of schoolwork. We both wanted to school though. Charlie and I knew it was a big part of what made my life normal. It would help my psychological recovery.

Charlie stood up and climbed up the stairs. I remained on the floor, a queasy feeling seeping into my stomach. "Actually Adam, I think I'm going to go for a walk," I said. He seemed uneasy about this.

"Are you sure? It's sort of late," he asked.

"Yeah, I'm just going to walk down the street and back. It'll be quick," I replied. He reluctantly nodded and followed Charlie up the stairs. I headed out the door and walked down the empty sidewalk. I was still in the same raggy clothing I've been wearing since my kidnapping. As much as I wanted to freshen up and change into clean clothes, I knew I needed this walk. I needed to settle my stomach and my thoughts. I looked down at my foot that was kicking a piece of rubble from the newly paved road. I guess they've been fixing this town while I was gone, I thought. I continued to kick the piece of rubble until I bumped into someone. I stepped back and sighed when I saw who it was. 

"I can't stop bumping into you today, can I?" Nolan asked with a small smile. I returned the smile but didn't say a word. 

I finally spoke up after a while. "I'm sorry about earlier today. I didn't mean to snap at you, I just had a lot on my mind," I apologized. The more I thought about earlier today, the worse I felt about it. He was one of the nicest kids in our school. No one likes being mean to a nice kid, including me. That's just heartless.