Dark Red|| Rumpelstiltskin

Chapter 8

Richard stood up, moving to where my wheelchair was. It sat next to the stairs, an optimal place as it could be hooked up to the stairs lift easily. He brought it over to me, allowing me to sit down and alleviate the pressure I was putting on myself. Even though it had been a while since my accident, I was still being advised to only use my prosthetic for 2 hours maximum. I rolled over to the cupboard, grabbing some vegetables and gochujang that I had from other meals I had made throughout the week. I had decided on Kimchi Jjigae for lunch, it was my comfort food and it had elements I knew Richard liked too. I hoped Henry would like it, the stew was spicy and full of vegetables. It was something that I had learned from one of the neighborhood kids when I was 12. She had told me that eating Korean food was a way of life, and I couldn't have agreed anymore.

I pulled up to the kitchen island, spreading the ingredients out on the table. Richard already had three cutting boards, two adult sized knives and a smaller sized kids knife. He had taught Henry how to cook when he was around 8 years, it was a passion of theirs that I encouraged anytime we made a meal. It also helped Henry recognize what he was eating, so he never felt unsure about what he was eating. We bonded over cooking, it brought us closer together.

Around 35 minutes later, the spicy stew had cooled down enough for us to eat. Richard plated to meal as Henry finished setting the table. I had poured glasses of water for us, it was going to be good for us after eating ice cream before lunch. We had eaten some of the devils chocolate while the stew cooked, it had gotten Henry's mind off of all the vegetables the meal had. Now, all we had to do was eat the meal. As we all sat around the table, we held hands. It wasn't anything religious, just a moment to appreciate the work we had put into this meal.

I wanted to take this moment to figure out what I was going to say to Henry, he knew that the fact that Emma had called him in the middle and tried to take him out of town was bad, but he still defended his birth mother. I didn't want that for him, he shouldn't believe that Emma could kidnap him because she was scared of responsibility. I would have reported a kidnapping, but Emma was the Sheriff, any report I could have made would be investigated by her, and that wouldn't have been helpful in the slightest.

There were some things in life that just haven't seemed fair.

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P E T E R

I was with Richard, he was pushing my wheelchair through the woods. The breeze was light, the flowers along the path that could survive the fall were seemingly extremely fragrant. The sun, while shining did not stop the air from feeling cool, each step Richard was taking caused the wind to nip at my skin. It was my own fault really, I knew I should have worn a long shirt but I already had this short sleeved one on and Richard seemed very excited to head down to the well. I didn't know why, but the way he was acting made it seem like there was a great gift waiting for me at the end of the path.

It was almost as if the world had graced our presence, the animals migrating, the gentle sway of my hair in the wind. Even Richard seemed at peace, I know that ever since he had taken my cousin's case he had been stressed. He would climb in bed with his shoulder hunched, mind far away as he agonized over his day.

I would help him relax, of course, but each day it seemed like the burden on his shoulders were getting bigger. I was worried for him, he was always the smartest man in the room and he seemed as if he was going up against the biggest threat he had ever faced.

As we walked, a feeling of warmth overcame me. Second by second, millions of pictures flitted against my eyes. It was like I was watching a sped up version of someone's life, each picture engraving itself in my memory. Suddenly, I wasn't just Peter anymore; I was Aster. I was the little boy whose mother died, now married and about to foster. The memories brought tears to my eyes, all of those years being reintroduced to my life begging me to slow down. Through all of this, Richard kept walking as if he weren't affected.