Icelamb

Chapter 15

The news tore the smile off my face. I break down in tears.

I clutch the bedsheets and I weep profusely. I did not have time to comfort her, to tell her everything will be alright. I could not tell her goodbye. I think about this while weeping beside an unmoving Naade.

His face shows remorse but he just sits still. I feel his hand drape my shoulders. I look at him but he doesn't say anything and he looks uncomfortable but he doesn't leave me alone.

I lean towards him and weep on his shoulders. After a while, he speaks.

"Ara, I understand you are in pain right now but we have to practice now. You have to brace yourself, we can't let 'Aye' win. We will find your sister but you need training and every minute wasted draws us behind" he says calmly but firmly.

I sniffle my tears and nod at him. I stand up and tell him "Thanks"

He nods and begins to arrange the ruffled bedsheets.

I decide to push my problems aside and focus on the bright side. At least, my sister wasn't dead, I just won't be seeing her for a long time.

My heart ached at the thought but I make up my mind to be tough. Even if it's the last thing I will do. I head to the shower and step inside. Gbam!
   
I feel my head almost split with the headache that sits in my head. I accidentally switched the shower lever on.

And it was cold! Painfully cold! It seems to relieve me though. I adjust the lever to warm water and feel better.
     
I soak in the shower for few seconds as I watch the water wash away my tears before switching the lever back to cold water.

This combination appears to soothe me and relieve me a bit of my headache.

I layer my cotton candy scented shower gel and marshmallow scented shower oil and mash them together in my sponge and rub all over my body.

The cotton candy scent brings back an old memory of when my sister and I were young and our parents would take us to the amusement park and after a long day of riding the roller coaster, or going on a scary ride.

Our daddy will buy us each a stick of cotton candy with our mum frowning and muttering how we shouldn't take sugar and she would then threaten to give us a herbal mixture when we got home. The herbal mixture was always so bitter.

We would bite our cotton candy and savior the melting gooey sweetness in our mouth and then go home to drink our herbal mixture.

"Oya, before I open my eyes, drink the 'àgbo' (herbal mixture). Though she did not always close her eyes, our mother will say with a stern look on her face and ignore the pleading look in my eyes. Our daddy will just watch us and not say anything.

Titi and I would hold our nose with one hand and gulp it down. We would then scrunch our faces and shake our head.

I break down in tears again remembering a segment of my childhood.  I let the shower wash away my tears and after I feel better, I turn off the shower.

I arrange my toiletries back into the shower caddy and I pick a towel from the towel rack and wrap it around my body.

I move towards the door to dress up in the bedroom when I realize Naade is in the bedroom. He doesn't seem to notice me.

I blush at my mistake and retrace my steps to the bathroom.
I dry off my body and rub almond oil into my body in the bathroom.

I dress up quickly and I go to the bedroom to join Naade.

"I am ready" I announce to him.

"Didn't I tell you to hurry? An hour of our time is gone now" He asks me in an irritated tone.

I must have spent such a long time for him to complain.

"Sorry" I apologize throwing him a sweet, fake smile. He rolls his eyes and ignores me then resumes talking again.

"We are going to practice karate and self defense today. I need to train you but you are weak.

You will most likely faint If we start now. So you will eat breakfast now." He informs me rudely.

I hate the way he talks to me but I bite my tongue to refrain me from retorting.

We step out of the room and Naade leads the way.

The hall is dark and the lights are off. The halls could pass for a setting in a scary movie. Too quiet; too dark.

I try to move close to Naade as I am scared a little. He on the other hand walks fast, not minding the dark and quiet rooms.

I begin to leap to catch up with him. He is still too fast for me. He is already a distance away from me. He looks over his shoulders and...

"Will you walk fast? You are too slow" He demands in a bossy tone and clipped tone.

" You walk like you have hot coals on the ground. " I answer him in the same tone. I am tired of his remarks. They hurt me. Does every word that comes out of his mouth have to be mean?

"You don't have to treat me so badly, you know. We can work together with no arguments. Just tone down your approach to talking to people a little" I continue.

"oh princess! Am so sorry!" he retorts sarcastically.

" you really think all this is a joke. Well wake up! This is reality. You have to face the facts. No one is coming to save you." he snaps. I can't help myself, lord. I can't help the tears!

"Oh so now the waterworks want to rain this morning. Well tell them I don't care!"

I hunch my shoulders forward while wiping my tears with one hand.

"I may be little but I don't bend to people like you. I don't blame you. All you have is hate in your heart. You have nothing else to give" I say calmly to him.

He bends a little and he looks me in the eye. I sniff my nose trying to contain my tears.

"Is that all you've got?' He asks in a bored tone.

"No actually. It's just that I profiled you and I just realized you are not worth a letter of any words to come out of my mouth. I don't insult people. I don't have the time. You can't break me Naade, I will survive."

Lol. You can suggest comebacks If you want in the comment section. Ara stood up to Naade. What do you think though?