Silent Emily

The Return of the Russian

I opened my eyes and immediately felt sick.

Axel was already gone, he had left earlier in the morning and woke me up before with a kiss on the forehead.

My nose hurt and I forced myself up, my legs shaky as I exited the bedroom and headed toward the bathroom. I pushed the door open, shutting it behind me as I sat on the toilet.

The warm drizzle of pee filled the bowel and I rolled out some of the toilet paper and wiped myself before flushing it. I turned on the water, letting it run over my hands before squeezing a bit of soap from the bottle by the sink into my palms. I rubbed them for a few seconds, watching the bubbles slide over my skin before letting the water run it all off of me.

I stared at my reflection in the mirror. My nose was purple and black, the stain of blood underneath it. It wasn't broken but damn did it hurt. My dark hair was flung onto the top of my head in a ponytail and I tried to remember when I did that.

I forced my eyes away when I heard Beth crying and I made my way to her nursery. The door was open and Ivy stood over her crib, playing with one of her toys over the baby's face. Beth let out what could have been a chuckle but all the noises were still new to me.

"Hi mother." Ivy greeted as she heard me enter the room. Her bright eyes glistened in the sun that came through the single window of the room.

"Hi Ivy." I said back, walking toward the dresser and pulling open the drawer. I fumbled through the clothing before deciding on a plain white onesie and little pink shorts from the town. I stepped toward the crib, pulling Beth up and kneeling on the floor. Ivy grabbed one of the blankets off the dresser and laid it out so I could place Beth onto it. I took off her sleeper, undoing her diaper and putting on a new one before sliding the new clothing onto her tiny body. She grinned up at me, cooing as I picked her back up. Her face leaned toward my breast and I fed her while walking down the stairs.

My stomach burned with every step and Ivy took my free hand as we trailed down. Her little fingers weaved through mine and she beamed up at me as I watched her.

"Are you making breakfast mother?" Atticus asked. He was sitting at the table, one of his comic books in front of him as he looked over the illustrations. I peeked at one and remembered it.

It was the book Anne was reading the first time we kissed.

I shook my head. Dwelling on her would do me no good. I had things to get done.

I placed Beth in Ivy's arms as I pulled eggs from the refrigerator.

The front door opened as I cracked them and placed them into the hot pan. Arms wrapped around my waist and I looked down recognizing them.

"Hi Axel." I said. I felt his chin rest against my shoulder as his body leaned into mine.

"Hello Emily. I came in to make breakfast but it seems you're already doing it."

He removed his head from my shoulder and took his place at the table. I grabbed a spatula from one of the drawers and moved it around in the yellow-white sludge. Once it was done, I plated the eggs and set them on the table.

"Kids," Axel yelled. "Come eat."

I listened as Felix and Ethan raced into the kitchen, sliding their bodies into their chairs and shoving large portions of the eggs down their throats. Ivy handed Beth back to me before sitting next to Cora who had already taken her seat. She pushed the eggs around on her plate, staring into them intently. Axel pulled out the seat next to him and I sat down, wincing as the throbbing from my stomach continued. I brought my own eggs toward me, sliding them onto a fork and eating them. Beth was asleep against my chest as I watched all the kids and Axel eat their breakfast.