The Attached

Ghosts

The bright morning sky entered through my window the next morning, as I stretched and welcomed it in. I finally fell asleep the night earlier, however only a few hours had passed by. Not a very good sleep, as I had remembered times in the bunker where I slept better. But that would change, right?

  Looking over my room, the boxes still piling on each other, the room still looking as if someone was moving out. Or in my case, moving back in. I didn't rush unpacking the boxes at the moment, for I tried to let them wait for awhile. I would get to them eventually, although I just got home the day earlier, and felt I didn't need to rush anything. My clock on the wall, ticking back and forth as I read the time. 11:43 am. I had been sleeping for six hours, as I finally fell asleep around five o'clock in the morning. The sun beginning to rise a bit, and that's when I decided it was time. Mom had remained asleep all throughout the night in that chair by my bed, however no one else had. Hearing the squeaks of the floorboards in the hallway and down the stairs, I realized I was not the only one who couldn't sleep. Feeling not as bad.

  This morning when I woke, mom was no longer in the chair, for I assumed she was downstairs making breakfast for her family of now four others instead of three. The shifting and mumbling I could hear from down the steps, and I believed it to be the rest of the family down there. I took my time getting up, feeling odd and out of place, with no one waking me up, like Noah used to do. I had always been a pretty heavy sleeper, and slept through long periods of time. Noah, being an early riser, always woke me up, most of the time with food in his hands, making us eat together first thing. Most days I was not ready to eat so earlier, however he didn't give me an option most days.

  This morning felt like old times waking up, bringing myself back ten years as I remembered waking up in this very room, looking the exact same when I would hear stirring around coming from the kitchen. It took me awhile to finally get up on weekends back then, for I let the day slowly seep into myself before getting up. Although on days when I knew something big was planned, I would jump out of bed so fast wind would kick out from behind me, yanking the covers off, getting dressed and rushing down the stairs. But those were only on exciting days, ones that consisted of birthday parties, or just plans with my friends. I often received very thrilling emotions when I would hang out with friends, as if I hadn't seen them in so long as a kid. The times I would hang out with Timmy and Logan, the three of us riding our bikes everywhere together. I wonder where they are. Have they heard the news? Do they know I'm back? Surly if they are still in town, they have heard about me. I think everyone has. Will they come and see me? Or have they forgotten about me? Like my family almost had?

  The lounge chair was still perched in my room, with mom's blanket lying on top. I really hope she doesn't sleep in here again tonight. I'm a big kid, I don't need my mommy in my room with me. But yet again, I think last night was for her, not for me. She knew I didn't need her sleeping by me for the night, it wasn't like I was a child anymore and scared of the dark. Last night was for herself, almost relieving knowing she could sleep by my bed, and she knew I wasn't going anywhere. Almost relieving for her, knowing I was home, and not lost somewhere out there. And last night was for her, for she wanted to be close to me, making up for years of lost time.

  Slowly and gradually, I stretched some more, yawning in the process as I sat up in my bed, rubbing the sleep away from my eyes as I stood up, my feet bare as my navy sweatpants covered them. Wearing a plain white T-shirt, rather a bit baggy. The clothes belonged to Johnny, for I didn't have any clothes I could wear coming home, my eight year old ones not fitting of course. Johnny had given me a few items of clothing, ones he didn't wear often anymore. Johnny and I were close to the same size, however he was more buff than myself, as I was rather thin and boney. Noah and I both were like that, since we barely ate well, or anything healthy in that dirt pit. We just ate whatever he brought us, which usually was a bag full of food products to last us a few days. A week tops. However he did come rather often in the beginning, and slowed down as we got older. Not just bringing food on his visits down, that not being the only reason to visit us either. But I didn't like thinking of those things, my body almost wincing and aching only thinking of those dark times; those dark memories.