Consumed

Chapter 6: Milan

Her gut-wrenching scream jolts me out of my dreams. I sit up and run my hands through my hair. My parents are sleeping in their room downstairs; they're on the other side of the house, so they probably can't hear her very well. I, on the other hand, am situated in an empty room on a cot. The room's right next to my room. It used to my older brother's, but he moved out, and my parents let him take the furniture he'd bought with him. That included the bed.

My dad was going to put her in here on the cot, but my mom and I convinced him that she needed a real bed. She's sick. By the time I got her here and brought her inside, she was delirious and raving. I'm not sure if I can believe half of what she's said, but with the way she's screaming and her response to me when I met her at school, I bet most of it is true.

She's definitely being abused. I knew she was lying about that. But now I have to figure out how to help. Right now, I can help by trying to calm her down. Her screams have died down to muffled sobs and wails. They're forlorn instead of terrified.

Sighing, I get up and pad across the carpeted hall to my room. The door is slightly ajar, and the nightlight illuminates most of the room. She's sitting up in the middle of the round bed, staring blankly at the wall and clutching the hem of the comforter in her shaking hands. Her whole body is shaking as she cries.

"Meri?" I whisper, slipping across the room to where the bed is situated. I step onto the low platform the bed's sitting on and settle onto the mattress beside her. Tentatively, I reach out and touch her arm.

My mom put Meri into one of her silk nightgowns. Her skin is warm to the touch in comparison to the icy quality it had when I touched her hands earlier tonight. "Meri?"

When she doesn't respond, I slip my hand up to her shoulder, trying to reassure her.

"Why am I here?" Her dry whisper startles me. "Where am I?"

When she turns to look at me, her eyes are shiny with unwept tears, and I can feel her shoulders shaking under my touch. I wipe away a tear, not missing the way she flinches at my touch. Then, I move a little further away, thinking maybe she wants some space.

To my surprise, she shakes her head. "D-don't go. I don't know why I'm here, but please... Please don't leave me alone."

I nod with a soft smile and move closer.

She shocks me yet again when she wraps her arms tentatively around my waist, hugging me as tightly as she can. Her body is thin and frail. Not surprising. She wasn't cooking enough dinner for two. Just enough for her mom. I wonder how often she's even able to eat. "Thank you," she whispers.

I wrap my arms around her, resting my chin on her head. "You're welcome. What was the dream about?" It's obvious that she's not ready to talk about her home life or whoever's abusing her.

"I... It..." She inhales sharply and buries her face in my shoulder. Through my shirt, I hear her sleep-laden response. "My tenth birthday."

"Why did you wake up screaming, then?" Perplexed, I try to move away.

She trembles and clutches onto me, refusing to let go. It's like holding a frightened child. The feeling of protection she incites is strange. I've never felt it before. It's an unusual, but not uncomfortable, feeling.

"That's the day everything went wrong."

We stay silent. I wait for her to say something more, but she doesn't. Instead, she just hugs me and rests her head on my shoulder. Her clinginess is still shocking, but the surprise is fading. It's obvious that she hasn't had anyone play the role of protector in her entire life. Or if she has, it was such a long time ago that she doesn't remember.