It's All Lies, Darling.

2. It Wasn't My Mind This Time

Chapter II

• It Wasn't My Mind This Time •

• <><><>•

"Ryland, get down here, breakfast's ready!" Adelaide yells through the house, waiting on her son to meet up with the rest of the family.

Her husband Collin sat with Gabriella and Kimbriella at the table, reading the newspaper and drinking his morning coffee.

"Chuck Rogan died last night," Collin says as he furrows his brows at the paper. Chuck had been a coworker with Collin about  a year ago.

"What?" his wife replies, shocked. "What from?"

"Heart attack." answers Kimbriella.

Everyone turns to her.

She sat on the chair, balled up and picking at her fingernails. Kimbriella never liked her feet hanging off of chairs or beds. She was afraid someone would grab her again.

"Honey, how'd you know?" Adelaide asks. "Did you read the paper before your father?"

"She couldn't have. I got the paper myself, off the sidewalk not too long ago." Collin says.

They all stare at Kimbriella, though she didn't notice, or seem to care.

Soon Ryland enters the room and they all drop the topic as it pops out of mind. He sits himself at the table and glances to Kimbriella.

"Kim, stop picking at your nails, you're bleeding."

This catches Collin's attention. "Kim, stop!" He swats her hands away and makes her eat her breakfast after washing her hands.

It was a difficult process for Kim to eat all of her food. If she ate too much, her stomach would ache and ache until she puked. Still, it was almost like she gorged herself every time she had a meal. She got her fast-eating habits from her father, even though she couldn't handle them.

"What are we doing today, Mom?" Gabriella asks as she carries a fork of pancakes to her mouth.

"We're gonna fix up the rest of the house, finish unpacking. Ryland and your father are going to work outside."

Ryland groans.

Their new house had so much work to be done. It was very old, and was pretty big. Outside dead vines crawled up the siding and weeds were overgrowing with the rest of the yard. As for the inside, the walls needed painted and the furniture needed set up. They moved in only days ago.

"Kim, slow down. We don't want you to be puking," Adelaide says to her daughter. Kim set down her fork and peered passed her father, into the small laundry room that was behind him. Inside, Kim saw a little boy, wearing an outfit looking like it dated back to the early 1900's. She wasn't taken back by it, she only got curious. She stared at him and watched him stare back. He had pale, plump cheeks and light blue eyes that stared into her's with a blank expression. Collin notices his daughter's dazed expression, and looks back to find what's she's staring at.

"What are you lookin' at?" he asks her.

"That boy." she nods over in the direction of the laundry room, waiting on her father to see him.

"There's no one there, Kimi." he tells her, bringing his mug up to his lips.

"But I see him," she says calmly.

"Please stop, Kim." Gabriella says uncomfortably.

Kim shrugs. "He asked,"

When she looks back over, the boy is gone. They continue with their breakfast and when they get done, Adelaide does the dishes and prepares herself for the housework.