Time twisted, and Cai hit the ground when Rachel hit the ground, the plastic chair and the fold out table she’d been standing on clattering the linoleum floor around her.
She lay there staring at the ceiling. Maybe she was winded or maybe she was in shock. The edge of the table had come down on her legs, below her knees, but it didn’t look heavy. She was little, though, maybe as young as Faye but skinnier.
There was a shout – a question- from another room but when she didn’t reply, a boy followed his shout in to find her. He looked as skinny as she did, though he had a gangly look about him like he was legging it toward puberty. Cai knew instinctively, the way he did sometimes in visions that this was her brother. “What were you doing? You’re so stupid!” He pushed the table off her legs, and she pushed herself up onto her elbows but cried out in shock when her arm buckled underneath her.
“Just wanted some bread,” she whimpered, and he looked up toward the cupboard where the bread was kept, and kiddylocked shut. “I think I broke my arm?” she sounded surprised.
Her brother’s eyes were wide in his grubby face. “I’ll get mum,” he said, and bolted out of the room.
Little Rachel lay on her back on the linoleum, touching her arm with her other hand. It didn’t hurt, but it didn’t work either.
It was hard to judge time in a vision, but it was probably hard for Rachel to judge time where she was, too. Cai got the impression that she was waiting for a while before her brother came running back in. He looked angry. “She can’t get out of bed,” he said. “I’m going to go and find someone who has a phone and I’ll call an ambulance okay? Can you get up?”
Rachel shook her head at the ceiling. Her brother stared at her for a second – Cai felt for him, thrust into the sudden responsibility for his little sister in the wake of a mother who couldn’t get out of bed.
He disappeared again but wasn’t gone for so long, only a moment. When he returned he was wearing a puffy jacket and carrying a blanket and a cushion, and he made her up a little bed there on the floor. She kept her arm out of the blanket cocoon, lying on the lino near a sticky patch of something brown.
Cai heard him leave, heard him locking the door behind him. There were lots of other noises around, people living their lives in the floors above and below then, in the flats on either side. There was a thump thump thump of music through the wall, dogs barking in the street below, traffic.
He was gone long enough that the Rachel’s shock wore off, and her arm started to really hurt. Instead of crying, she stared at it in a sort of growing horror, like she’d just realised this thing attached to her was going to kill her.
Then eventually she did start to cry.
Cai knelt on the floor beside her, as much as the non-presence, vision-persona he was could kneel. He’d seen children cry before, but not like this. Children cried for many reasons, and there’d always seemed to be a degree of shock in the tears. How could this have happened to me? I don’t understand? A wail, and a cry for some adult to come and help. Little Rachel, her dark hair a tangle round her face, began to cry like she couldn’t believe this was happening to her. At first, she cried like she was surprised to consider the idea that she might die on the floor.
But she did not cry so loud that her mother, awake in the other room, would hear her. She did not try to persuade her mother to get out of bed and come help her.
She cried quietly, like she didn’t want to disturb anyone with her death.
A wee while later, she stopped, as if crying had been her first instinct, but she was past instincts now, and knew it was pointless. Cai had never witnessed anyone – let alone a child – get to the point of tears where hopelessness set in.
When her brother came back he was by himself, and he looked like he’d been crying in panic too, or maybe just running hard. “It’s okay,” he said, kneeling down beside her. “I had to run to Greyson’s place and I gave him all my money and he let me use his phone, but there’s an ambulance coming soon okay?” He helped her sit up, and she opened her mouth in a silent scream as this jostled her arm, but she didn’t start crying again. She was past tears.
no subject
She lay there staring at the ceiling. Maybe she was winded or maybe she was in shock. The edge of the table had come down on her legs, below her knees, but it didn’t look heavy. She was little, though, maybe as young as Faye but skinnier.
There was a shout – a question- from another room but when she didn’t reply, a boy followed his shout in to find her. He looked as skinny as she did, though he had a gangly look about him like he was legging it toward puberty. Cai knew instinctively, the way he did sometimes in visions that this was her brother. “What were you doing? You’re so stupid!” He pushed the table off her legs, and she pushed herself up onto her elbows but cried out in shock when her arm buckled underneath her.
“Just wanted some bread,” she whimpered, and he looked up toward the cupboard where the bread was kept, and kiddylocked shut. “I think I broke my arm?” she sounded surprised.
Her brother’s eyes were wide in his grubby face. “I’ll get mum,” he said, and bolted out of the room.
Little Rachel lay on her back on the linoleum, touching her arm with her other hand. It didn’t hurt, but it didn’t work either.
It was hard to judge time in a vision, but it was probably hard for Rachel to judge time where she was, too. Cai got the impression that she was waiting for a while before her brother came running back in. He looked angry. “She can’t get out of bed,” he said. “I’m going to go and find someone who has a phone and I’ll call an ambulance okay? Can you get up?”
Rachel shook her head at the ceiling. Her brother stared at her for a second – Cai felt for him, thrust into the sudden responsibility for his little sister in the wake of a mother who couldn’t get out of bed.
He disappeared again but wasn’t gone for so long, only a moment. When he returned he was wearing a puffy jacket and carrying a blanket and a cushion, and he made her up a little bed there on the floor. She kept her arm out of the blanket cocoon, lying on the lino near a sticky patch of something brown.
Cai heard him leave, heard him locking the door behind him. There were lots of other noises around, people living their lives in the floors above and below then, in the flats on either side. There was a thump thump thump of music through the wall, dogs barking in the street below, traffic.
He was gone long enough that the Rachel’s shock wore off, and her arm started to really hurt. Instead of crying, she stared at it in a sort of growing horror, like she’d just realised this thing attached to her was going to kill her.
Then eventually she did start to cry.
Cai knelt on the floor beside her, as much as the non-presence, vision-persona he was could kneel. He’d seen children cry before, but not like this. Children cried for many reasons, and there’d always seemed to be a degree of shock in the tears. How could this have happened to me? I don’t understand? A wail, and a cry for some adult to come and help. Little Rachel, her dark hair a tangle round her face, began to cry like she couldn’t believe this was happening to her. At first, she cried like she was surprised to consider the idea that she might die on the floor.
But she did not cry so loud that her mother, awake in the other room, would hear her. She did not try to persuade her mother to get out of bed and come help her.
She cried quietly, like she didn’t want to disturb anyone with her death.
A wee while later, she stopped, as if crying had been her first instinct, but she was past instincts now, and knew it was pointless. Cai had never witnessed anyone – let alone a child – get to the point of tears where hopelessness set in.
When her brother came back he was by himself, and he looked like he’d been crying in panic too, or maybe just running hard. “It’s okay,” he said, kneeling down beside her. “I had to run to Greyson’s place and I gave him all my money and he let me use his phone, but there’s an ambulance coming soon okay?” He helped her sit up, and she opened her mouth in a silent scream as this jostled her arm, but she didn’t start crying again. She was past tears.