Silence on My Own

A Visit

I awoke to to the sound of Laika barking. She didn't usually bark, so I had to go check it out. I got up out of bed and walked over to see what she was barking at. I looked at her eyes so I could see exactly what she was looking at. She was staring... at a wall.

"It's just a wall", I said. "There is nothing there".

The only thing that hung off that wall was my keychain collection. Each one was from a different place in the world and hung off a single thumbtack. It was one of my favourite walls to look at.

She stopped barking and turned around to glance up at me. She saw the upset look on my face and let out a whine as she made her way back over to the bed. It was six in the morning and I did not have work today. I wanted to sleep in. 

I followed Laika back into my bedroom and climbed into bed once again. I could feel the warmth of my blankets return to my cold skin as I curled up, and dozed off.

---

When I woke up again, it was 12:45 pm. Laika was still laying down at the foot of  my bed. I was relieved to see that she was behaving. I stayed in bed for another hour and relaxed.

When I finally decided to get up out of bed, I called my mother. When she picked up a normal conversation took place. 

"Hello Harper, how are you?", she asked.

"Im good, how about you mom?", I replied.

The conversation dragged on for about 5 minutes before she asked if she could stop in for a while. She had not yet been to my new place and wanted to check it out. I agreed and hung up the phone. 

An hour or two had passed before I heard a knock at the door. Laika barked as she ran over to investigate. I opened door and my mother walked in. Laika strutted around her and sniffed at her ankles. My mother reached down and gave her a quick pat on the head.

I watched as her eyes grazed over the living room. She was very judgemental and examined everything.  

She wandered around the rest of my house and I followed. I looked at her, and I could tell by her facial expression, that she was impressed.

"I'm surprised at how well your managing out here", she stated. 

"It's not that difficult", I said to her. 

"Living on your own in a place like this is strange, even for you", she replied.

My lips curled into a smile and I let out a laugh.

I knew I was strange, but I was completely fine with it. I also knew that living in isolation would be kind of scary at first but I would eventually get used to it, I had to.

"It's strange now mom", I exclaimed. "It won't be in a month or so".

She stared at the floor and nodded in agreement. Her attention quickly returned to me and I asked her if she would like to stay for dinner. She smiled at me and it let me know that her answer was a yes. We had never really spent much time together once I had moved out, so now felt like a good time to catch up.

----

I threw a pizza in the oven and sat down at the dining table. My mother walked up and pulled out a chair across from me. She slowly shifted her weight down into the wooden seat and then started telling me all about what she has been up to lately.

She continued to talk until I heard a beep. I got up and walked over to the stove. I pulled the pizza out of the oven and cut it into slices. I brought it back over to the table along with some plates. My mother reached out for a slice and placed it on her plate. I did the same and then made my way over to the couch. I sat down and my mother sat beside me. 

When we finished eating, she hugged me and left. I was somewhat relieved that she had gone, I was finally alone and could relax with Laika.