Our Family Portrait

chapter 1: noir

KYRAH FINISHED her four hour shift at a local convenience store, with a sigh. She felt stiff from standing for so long. She stretched as she began her walk to her apartment and winced as pain shot through her right arm. She wrapped her coat closer to herself, as the autumn breeze of September signaled the arrival of a harsh winter.

Then she heard a quiet sound from the alley across the street. Kyrah stopped dead in her tracks. Kyrah imagined the noise to be a figment of her imagination and continued walking, but the whimpers seemed to be growing louder each passing second. 

Kyrah decided to take a look, checking both ways of the road as she crossed to the other side of the street. She walked into the alley, hearing whimpers coming from behind a set of worn out boxes. The noise came from a little kitten, with dirty black fur. It had black buttons as eyes, both alert and worn out. It looked like it hadn't been groomed in weeks.

"What's up, little guy?", Kyrah asked gently.

Kyrah reached out her hand to lightly scratch the kitten's ear. It leaned into her touch, but continued to cry out weakly. Kyrah then noticed the kitten's left leg, covered in dried up blood and still bleeding.

"Shoot, you're hurt."

Kyrah took off her scarf and wrapped it around the hurt kitten. It was a bit difficult with her swollen wrist but she somehow got a hold of the kitten. She carefully took it out of the box and held it to her chest. The kitten whimpered at the sudden movements. Kyrah gave it a reassuring look.

Kyrah then assessed her two options; taking it to her apartment to treat or take the dog to the closest vet clinic. The vet clinic was at least 25 minutes, considering she chose to walk. She then considered the cost of the treatment. It would be expensive, and she had been saving to visit Italy, where her mother had spoken of her hometown with such pride and joy. Not to mention, her right arm was practically useless. Kyrah then looked down at the injured kitten she held in her left arm, it was strangely light. She examined the bloodied leg carefully. It looked as though the injury had been inflicted just hours ago.

"Well I certainly can't leave you here now, can I, bub?"

Kyrah definitely didn't have the materials needed to care for the injured kitten. Its injury was more than a small scratch. So she decided to head to the vet clinic.

Kyrah walked out of the alley, headed to the bus stop further down the street. The kitten had snuggled up in her arm and seemed to be snoozing off. Kyrah smiled a little at the sight of the small kitten sleeping. She took a seat on the bench at the bus stop, and waited patiently for a bus to arrive.

Deep in thought, Kyrah was pulled out by the sound of a squeaky stop as the bus came to a gentle halt. Kyrah got on the bus, paid and took a seat by a window. Her mind drifted off to the events that had taken place earlier at the convenience store.

START OF FLASHBACK

The sky was gloomy, the sidewalks empty, cars driving by every now and then. Apart from Kyrah, and an elderly woman surveying the aisles, the convenience store was empty. It was 5:57, the buzz of school kids having died out. Kyrah was lost in thought, something she seemed to be doing a lot more than usual. She briefly stopped her train of thought to attend to the elderly woman, who had chosen a set of pregnancy tests.

Now Kyrah wasn't one to judge, she assumed it was for the elderly woman's daughter, or friend or even granddaughter. Whoever it was, it was none of her business.

"That'll be 11.95" Kyrah said as she smiled at the elderly woman.

As the elderly woman finished paying, Kyrah heard the bell at the front of the convenience store. Kyrah heard sounds of giggles and hushed whispering. As she waved the elderly woman goodbye, she heard a group of teenagers walk in.