Loving Ashlynn (#Wattys2016)

Chapter 8 - Like A Kite String (Faith POV)

HOW MANY TIMES HAVE YOU READ LOVING ASHLYNN? IS THIS YOUR FIRST TIME? 

A/N: NOT THOROUGHLY EDITED.

Chapter 8 – Like A Kite String (Faith POV)

I spend the rest of my day in my room, I take my meds when the pain creeps up on me, and I study, doing homework assignments that were all written out for me by my various instructors.

For the rest of the day I put away the task that Sonya gave me, I reply to Patricia's text when she landed in O'Hare... and I work on all the missed projects, ignoring everything, except the words in the books, the ones I write for my answers. It's quiet in small portions of the time, mere seconds, I can almost forget the wall colors, the desk that's brand-new, and when I blink, I'm back in the safe house.

It doesn't quite scare me; in fact, it just seems to calm me, the familiarity of being on my own, no disturbances, just me and the silence. I pretend for those quick seconds I'm back in the place where I was eager to leave – the solemn silence. The landscape had changed, generally, but in my mind, with this new viewpoint, old mindset and no real frame of reference for what was real and not, I was torn in two.

Craving familiarity for my disposition and longing for experience from Dmitri's aspect, neither of which I was learning was actual reality. Around dinner time, when the sun was going down, and I knew that the house was filled with all the Conrads, and probably more people since I had seen two different cars come up. Hungry, but not enough to go down to sit at the table alone with all the Conrads, I remained in my room pushing my books aside; I laid my head on the table. The lump in my throat so thick I just closed my eyes that now burned with salty tears.

Pushing away, I limp over to the record player pulling out the three new records I purchased, White Ladder, A New Day at Midnight and Draw the Line. All albums of David Gray – ones I had never known existed believing that after 1995 this man and his band had never created music. A punch to the gut, but still in my foul mood, three old but new to me albums were the only thing that could change my sullen state.

After a few songs, there was a soft rapt on my door, then silence. Glancing up, I wait, until the person knocks again. "Oh – uh – darn – Faith, can you knock or maybe make some kind of noise if it's okay for me to come into your room? I want to check your cut and burns and I brought you dinner?" crawling over I turned off the light music, and then just knocked next to the player.

After three or four knocks, Kalenah pushed the door open, leaving it ajar she came with the same tray that Samson had. Going to the bathroom after she set my food down Kalenah came out, "I just wanted to know if you wanted help showering, or washing your hair, it's okay if you need help?" I blinked. She wanted to help me shower?

"You aren't supposed to get your bandages wet, and I know that you probably don't have good access to your arms, you have such thick hair," Kalenah rambled, her hands gesturing in a circular motion in front of her as she looked around the room, then focused on my eyes.

The truth was, I could use some help on my hair, I had washed it and then put the conditioner but with limited range, when I finally stepped out, some parts still had shampoo but I left it as it was.

I was tempted.

Very indeed. Yet I only just shook my head and surprisingly Kalenah nodded, coming forth to check on the burns, change the bandages.

"You're welcomed to join us downstairs... you don't have to lock yourself away, we want you to feel welcomed," she murmured as she checked my foot. "Is there anything we could do to make you feel more welcomed?" I tried keeping my face blank while I wondered if this was a trick. I mean it was – it had to me. Ask me what I need to feel more welcomed and then do the opposite... that's what Dmitri said Loyalists did. You wouldn't know sometimes that you were even with them, that you were mingling with them. They'd offer help, show you kindness but when it was time, before you knew it really, you were indebted and slowly over time you were turned into a Loyalist.