Beautiful, Beloved

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐓𝐰𝐨

 ┈ ┈༺♡༻┈ ┈𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘦┈ ┈ ༺♡༻ ┈ ┈ 

When I awoke I heard disturbing noises coming from the bedroom. Gross. I opened the front door and found the son outside. Unlike his parents, he was small and frail. He looked only a few years younger than me and his hair fell in front of his face.

"Hey," he said to me, not looking up from the woodwork he was doing. I walked over and perched down next to him.

"What are you-" I started to ask, and he looked up. His eyes were cold and unfamiliar, they made me nervous.

"I'm making a birdhouse," he told me, looking back down again. I nodded and admired the art he was creating. A birdhouse, that was cute.

By noon, we were all sitting back inside eating eggs.

"So, Doctor Cherryl-" the husband started, looking for conversation. I interrupted. "You can call me by my first name, Carlene," His eyes grew dark and he cleared his throat. "I think I'll stick to Doctor Cherryl," Something about his presence made my hair stand on end. But, this was my home for a while and I had to make a good impression.

"So," the son whispered, trying to change the subject. But then his voice cracked, and he had nothing left to say. I picked at my eggs and sighed.

The next few days were nothing special, and I was only called for once. The son had gotten a splinter, and I was there to help. After all, there were no other doctors for miles. And, I still didn't know any of their names.

After what I assumed to be about a week, the husband finally called the wife by her first name. There were no calendars or clocks, because the family insisted on relying on the sunlight. They had many odd traditions, ones that I didn't dare to question.

"Emmeline!" the husband shouted from the bedrooms. "Fetch me a clean pair of sheets," My eyes followed the dear wife, as she hobbled over to the washing machine.

I lost count of the days, and had finished all my books. So, I went to the only thing I had left to do. Talk to the son.

I followed him around the side of the house, my bare feet being tickled by the grass. His ears perked up and he looked up at me.

"What's on your mind?" he asked, lowering his equipment.

"Don't you get lonely out here?" I asked him, my voice shaking. He shrugged.

"Not really, I kind of got used to it. Ma and pa always say to be grateful for what you have," Spit flew out of his mouth when he said the word 'pa' and I cringed.

"What about the town?" I asked. "We go once a month, for groceries and stuff," he answered. Our conversation was like a game of tennis. Back and forth, back and forth. I wondered if he had ever heard of tennis, considering there was no cable or internet. I didn't even know how they hired me, without even a freaking telephone anywhere.

"I believe we're heading to town next Tuesday," he said, interrupting my train of thought.

"Next Tuesday," I mumbled. If they went once a month, it had been a month already?

"How do you keep track of the days?" I asked him. "Been doing it since I was a boy," he responded. It didn't really answer my question, but I nodded and picked at my nail.

Tuesday came after a good five days or so, and the cabin was chaotic.

"Go make yourself useful and pack a bag," the husband shouted at me. I flinched, over time he had not grown to like me. I guess it went both ways, because I wasn't a fan of his either.

We all piled into the car and drove two hours or so into town. The entire family belted out tunes.

"Ninety nine bottles of beer on the wall, ninety nine bottles of beer!" they shouted. I covered my ears, and squinted my eyes shut trying to tune them out.

The town was nothing like I expected it to be. It was super crowded, and there were carts all over the street selling the most random things. One person was even selling pillow feathers, which made no sense at all.

The son and I were sent to get the groceries, while the husband and wife went god knows where. We passed tons of people and posters, but one caught my eye. It read, Wanted, Darden Jase and it had a black and white picture of a young man. My eyes scanned the page and I found the word murderer. Goosebumps arose on my skin and I shivered. Suddenly, I didn't feel safe in a small quiet town. I was terrified.