Albino Child

Twenty Eight

"I have graciously visited you from my humble kingdom in the different dimension," N began with sweeping over-dramatic gestures, he had bowed steeply and with a lopsided grin began to skip over to where I was, "Oh, how I have missed you Ana; it has been so long. Way too long since we last saw each other."

I stood there trembling, I was stunned beyond belief as I stared at N who was leaping over with a childish giggle that echoed throughout this sterile chamber; I was shocked to have her, correction, him back with me, I was so sure that N was lost, never to be with me ever again, only in my memories and withered heart.

"Ana, are you okay? You look famished, your eyes have clouded over – have you been wearing your glasses at all lately, you should know by now if you don't it damages your eyes," N pouted feigning disappointment as he planted his hands on his hips in a parenting manner before breaking into a warm, pleasant smile full of wonder and reunited peacefulness and embracing me tightly; I would usually have fended myself from such human contact but since it was a special occasion and it was N, I returned the affection by grasping his body tenderly while smiling softly as he softly wept into my prominent collar bones.

The shorter male would not let go as I gently attempted to pry him off my body so I picked him up like a parent to a sleeping child and let him rest, having to adapt to this world would take time and to have him just be programmed with a new language must have been exhausting; Albino and ex-Acne took their cues and waved goodbye as they drowsily slipped a lazy smile onto their blank faces, they faded away as they walked into the entrance N came from as I once again slipped into the shadowy depths of deep sleep. As I immersed myself within the waters of a fluid state of dreaming, I felt my body revitalise as cool forces remade my physical sense of self, it was as if N had completely dissolved from where I was and had blown away as relaxed and let the supple soothing arms of sleep cradle me: layers of butterfly-wing-thin skin lace together over the broken areas healing as the keratin webbed and weaved through the surface, re-establishing fundamental strength; muscular tissue regenerated and reattached themselves onto limewater-coloured cartilage while haemoglobin-rich blood pumped platelets and general blood cells providing minerals that were essential for repair. These repetitive actions of bodily re-establishment surged internal strength into my being as I let the lukewarm sensation drown me in powerlessness.

I awoke to N's persistent shaking and his voice singing my name out in various nursery rhyme tunes, groggily lifting myself up from the comfortable position by leaning my weight onto my bony elbows and sighing, N shut her mouth and leaped off my bed and tugged my forearm in a demanding manner as he threw the crisp abalone-white duvet off the mattress; I groaned in discontentment and rubbed my nape as I yawned, finally swinging my legs over to curl my toes onto the sheep-skin rug that was placed on the side of my bed. N let go of my arm and frowned as I bent down to pick him up, that rascal would only be a hindrance if he could roam freely so I took him to the bathroom and opened the set of drawers under the sink to retrieve an unopened package containing a red toothbrush, passing it to N with my free hand, he ripped off the transparent plastic and colourful card wrapping off and tossed it into the metal bag-lined bin and squirmed out of my arm. The child slipped out of my grasp and went to take the item, run it under the cold tap and wait for me to do the same; taking my own out of the matted ceramic lavender cup that sat on the basin's ledge next to the water-stained hot faucet, I heaved out a heavy almost mournful sigh as I looked up and into the mirror, running a slender finger down the left side of my reflection, noticed that I looked rather... washed out and wasted, it was not the best of appearances but it was nothing I could change; after all, being skeletal was in my nature.

"Toothpaste, toothpaste," N demanded as he pointed finger guns at the half-emptied tube whose crinkled appearance mirrored my state of mind, "Toothpaste, toothpaste."

Nodding at his request, I placed a half-pea size amount onto the bristles and instructed him to clean his teeth; as I did the same, I received a vibration from my phone, there were two notifications: one was an urgent message from the police asking if I knew anything about P which was sent four hours prior regarding her disappearance while the other one was from R-C a classmate regarding whether I was going to the 'Elite Fashion Society Monthly Meet-up' later today; after unlocking my phone, I addressed the text sent by the police first.

'Well, there is a chance that she could have committed suicide.' I paused as my thumb hovered over the send button, I deleted the message and tried again; 'I am afraid not, the last that I was of her was the last time I went to campus.' I scanned the sentence multiple times as N tugged on the hem of my shirt in demand of my attention. Due to the continuous action, I finally pressed 'send' and patted the small child on the head as he beamed in contentment, he suddenly scampered off to my bedroom as I resumed texting on my phone; R-C, what should I tell her, should I attend the event or not? Probably, if I did not then I would be kicked out of the society which would mean that I would have difficulties accessing photographers to provide the money needed to provide for my hobby – doll-making: the porcelain was fragile and expensive plus the fabric and items used to make the accessories and clothing of the inanimate figures were lavish and high-quality. I rolled my eyes as I ran my bony hand through my hair, my fringe that brushed my eyelashes were flung back to reveal a high-hairline; I kept my locks rather long for my gender, not waist-line length but a measurement that tickled the protruding bone under the Atlas, the icy white strands of keratin had a satin sheen that was enhanced by the hospital-bright lighting inside the bathroom. Finally, I rinsed my mouth with water, ran the bristles under water to remove the remaining toothpaste and hastily ambled to my bedroom where N was impatiently waiting for me by rolling in my bed.

I sat beside him and asked, "What was it like in the second world?"

"It depends," he began with an uncharacteristic whisper, he no longer held a look of mischievous joy but now had a sorely plastered face full of grief, melancholy and nostalgia, "Let's not talk about it."

"Okay, I apologise for bringing it up," I murmured as he began to play with his hair, the strands curling around his index finger as he pressed his knees onto his chest in a foetal position, "What happened to you? You used to be so talkative and overdramatic; what changed?"

"Everything did, I still have the memories of before but I have changed, reformed almost; whether it was for the better or worse that is up to you but I am different now. When I am making those sweeping movements that I used to do, that is all planned and acted, okay? Sometimes I just want a break from it, such behaviour does require much energy exertion that sometimes just drains me; also, do you have my bracelet? I gave it to P to let her know what was wrong and I asked that she gave it to you once she realised."

"She never gave it to me, I got it when... When, I disposed of her," I replied stoically as I fished the item out of the top drawer of by bedside furniture, opening the black mesh pouch, I handed it to him in which he broke the cord holding the coloured beads together; I stare at him with a shocked look as he grinned manically, "What are you doing?"

He sharply twisted his head to face me and his eyes widened as he answered, "I need it gone, it ties me down too much. I'm hungry, feed me," he demanded as he skipped out of the room and skidded down the banister.

I followed the child and rolled my eyes, his mood swung from extremes too often and then demanding that I do what he wants was irritating but expected; he was childish and somewhat annoying but at least he was alive and with me now.