After Death, I Finally Met The Man Of My Dreams

Chapter 6: The River

...

After he finished, he returned back up the river towards the fish basket and his bedding. The sun had begun to hang low in the sky.

"I hope they had time to dry." Mochou wished as he walked.

He reached the area he set up the fish trap first. A little nervous, he slowly walked over to the river. Peeking inside he smiled wide. What he saw were three large fat fish. The basket was close to breaking as they swished around trying to escape.

"Yes!" He cheered throwing his arms up in the air."

Rustle*

"What?" Hearing a sound from the bushes not far away Mochou turned around quickly. He spun so fast it made him dizzy and he staggered. Holding his head in his hand he took a breath and glanced around the area. There was no one.

"Am I being overly paranoid after living in a world of flesh eating zombies for so long?" He whispered to himself. Not intending to waste time chasing ghosts Mochou returned his focus to the fish.

He stepped into the water that rose to his thigh. It was freezing cold most likely because it was still early spring. He endured the cold water and continued moving towards his trap. His clothing got wet but it was already damp from him doing laundry and setting the trap in the first place.

He grabbed the basket but it was too heavy to lift in one try despite water being able to leak out. He had to slowly lift it so the water could drain and the weight could be reduced.

Ugh*

Mochou's muscles ached and his body cried out in protest. As he finally got the basket full of fish out of the water.

"I think I might have pushed this new body too far for the first day." He said with some regret.

After he got the fish he used some reeds as rope and strung the three of them together through the gills. He didn't care if they died on the way back to the hut because he planned to cook two and dry the third for the morning.

Next he headed for his bedding and clothing. The sun had begun to set when he finally reached his clothing. He looked across the river and still saw no signs of anyone in the area.

He checked the bedding. It was still a little damp but the clothing was dry. He debated whether to risk public nudity and change into the cleaner clothes and wash his current ones right away. It was going to be dark soon but he could leave them to dry overnight.

Chill*

Then a chill and sense of foreboding hit him as he reached for his shirt collar. It was an instinctive fear and Mochou knew to stop.

"Let's avoid nudity. In the past nudity was always frowned upon." He said as he fixed his shirt.

Despite the bedding being damp he folded and placed it in the basket. He then secured the branches, the fish, and edible plants before he headed back to the hut.

...

Getting back it was already dark. Mochou wasn't afraid of the dark, but being so close to the forest did make him uneasy.

"I'll need to fix the wall." He thought as he made his way through the creaky gate.

The darkness didn't hinder him much because of the beautiful full moon and sky full of bright clear stars.

"It's beautiful." He thought as he took one last look at the night sky before entering the hut.

Once inside he didn't waste time and started a fire. Thankfully he gathered enough wood for a couple days. With the fire lit he reheated the soup he made for lunch. There was enough to have a decent meal.

Leaving the food for several hours might have been frowned upon in the modern world, but Mochou had long gotten over food safety concerns during the apocalypse where food was precious.

With the food boiling he quickly went outside and set up the large branches again to hang the bedding once more. There was a nice breeze so he hoped they could finish drying before bedtime.

After that he went to the well and began cleaning the fish. The three of them were nice and fat despite it only being spring. Mochou was happy and smiled happily despite the strong fishy smell and dirty work.

Once done he used the lemongrass he gathered to add some flavour with a little salt. Looking at the small bag his smile faltered.

"At this rate I have maybe three days worth of salt. I need to quickly find a way to buy more soon." He told himself.

Once prepped he placed two of the fish on sticks and set them next to the stove's flame to roast. Then he placed the other further away above the smoke outlet to cook. This way he could eat it in the morning without worry.

As he worked he felt his body slow. He sat down to rest while he watched the wood stove. He was exhausted but the list of things he needed to do only got longer.

"I'm not sleeping tonight until I bath." He swore as he looked at the well not far away. He would have to wash with nothing but a cloth and bucket of water but it was better than remaining covered in filth and sweat.

Once the soup was done he set it aside to cool. Then he went over to the well to get some water he could use to wash. The fish were nearly cooked so the residual heat from the stove was enough to finish roasting and smoking them.

He carried the bucket of water and placed it on the floor near the fire. He would have liked to boil it but he only had the one cooking pot which was currently full of soup.

He began to undress. Once completely naked he looked at his body. He had naturally seen some things when he went to the bathroom. But this was the first time he was completely naked. His fingers ran across his pale thin body.

It was definitely a man's body. But 'that' area was smaller than his previous one. The size most men might have tried to compensate for. His torso, arms, neck, and face all had scars. Some looked deeper while others barely noticeable.

"I don't think these were all made at the same time. Were you abused as a child?" He asked the boy from his dreams.

The worst scars looked to have been done at the same time. The older scars seemed to be of various ages and severity. Thinking about the abuse the young boy must have experienced made his heart ache.

He took a clean cloth from nearby and started to wash his body. The water was cool but being next to the wood stove helped him stay warm. He scrubbed his body as clean as he could given the circumstances. While he did he stopped to turn the fish and maintain the fire.

When he finally finished washing himself. He changed into the spare set of clothes he had washed. The clothing fit fine around the waist but not in length.

"He must have worn this when he was younger." Mochou assumed after he was fully dressed.

By the time he finished washing the soup had cooled and the fish were done. Feeling tired but knowing the importance of eating he sat down and enjoyed his soup. Along with it he took a bite of roasted fish.

"Needs more salt." Mochou commented as he continued eating the fish. He planned to eat two of the fish but after the soup and the first one he was full.

Mochou felt his eyes growing heavy after dinner. He knew it wasn't healthy but he wanted to plop down and sleep right away.

Barely able to keep his eyes open he grabbed the bedding that was sufficiently dry and carried them inside. Putting them down he felt a little dizzy.

"Why am I still dizzy after three healthy meals?"

Mochou hated feeling sick and not understanding why. In the end he could only conclude it was because the previous owner must have lived an unhealthy and poor lifestyle for years.

"It might take awhile but I will strengthen and heal this body." He vowed as he lay down to rest for the night.

...