Fester

I woke up with a soreness in my bones and sleep in my eyes. It'd been awhile since I'd slept so comfortably. What light peered through the curtains was dim and pink.

It was dawn. I waited for Addy to wake up.

I heard movement in the hallway. A door opened, closed. A moment passed and she shuffled into the living room. Her fingers swiped across her eyes. Her blonde short hair was in a tiny ponytail, locks fell into her face. She seemed more childish in the morning. Open.

I almost felt grateful for my usual sleeplessness. Being this dazed wasn't safe.

"Hey." Her voice was more of a whisper than anything else.

"You have any food?" Her response was delayed, then she brightened.

"Yeah, we've got canned foods." She walked over to the kitchen space and I followed. I didn't miss the use of we.

I leaned against the island while she rifled through the pantry.

She'd eaten less than a quarter of the canned food within these past months.

She pulled out a can of chili for herself, then turned to me.

"Just choose whatever you want." I pulled out some sort of hearty soup.

She pulled out a pair of tongs and I stared. She shrugged.

"We don't have a grate."

We moved to the fireplace again. She put on one log and started it up.

We set the cans in the flames and waited. I actually thought about staying here. The thoughts of food and sleep and shelter intoxicated me.

Maybe at least until the food runs out.

I shook it off. I could think about this later. She took the tongs and laid the cans on the coffee table and we ate.

"So, how old are you?" Her cheeks were puffed with food and her lips were tinged orangish. She looked up and grunted. I waited for her to finish chewing. She rubbed some of the color from her lips before speaking.

"I'm almost twelve."

"So, you're eleven." She frowned.

"Yeah, I guess." A little laugh hissed passed my lips and we sat in silence once more. I thought about the photograph and grabbed my pack. I unzipped it and pulled out more photos.

"I take a family photo when I camp out in a house. Wanna see?" She nodded and sifted through the thick sheets. Families of two, three, four, five, six, all exuding a loving aura. The fact that these people had a photo was proof enough that someone cared. I was too busy looking through them again myself before realizing that Addy had said something.

"Sorry- what?"

"Why do you take them? The pictures?"

"I don't know." I did know. I was jealous. And fascinated. And I wanted what these people had. Love. Bonds. Family. I was window-shopping for happiness.

It seemed too personal, too inappropriate to tell her that. So, I didn't.

"Just because, I guess." She didn't seem incredibly satisfied, but she didn't press further.

"We have board games, if you wanna play. I haven't really had anyone to play with for a long time." The fire cracked and I looked over for a moment before looking back at Addy.

"Alright."