The Game We Play

Chapter Five

Ash yawned and sat up. She was still on the living room couch with Maia sprawled out beside her. They had watched "A Clockwork Orange" the night before and as disturbing as it was, it certainly took her mind off the previous day's events. Carefully as to not disturb her friend, Ash pushed the blanket that had been draped across the two off of herself and stood up. Noticing all the dishes they had left on the table, Ash gathered them as quietly as possible and took them to the sink. 

"Hey sweetie!" Maia's mom greeted her.

"Hey Mrs. Johnson." Ash responded. The delicious smell of breakfast wafted through the kitchen. "What are you making?"

"Hash-browns and eggs." Mrs. Johnson informed her.

"Smells delicious." Ash contentedly closed her eyes for a moment, allowing herself to be thrust back into the times when her own mother would cook.

"Momma!" Nigil yelled at the table. It was one of the only words he knew and he was abusing its power. 

"What is it, honey?" Mom asked him.

Nigil scrunched his face and looked at the small bowl of broccoli. Mom noticed his glare and laughed.

"Oh baby, you have to eat that. I know it looks intimidating- but they're just yummy little trees. See your sister enjoying her food over there?" Mom pointed at Ash across the table, happily munching on vegetables. For show, she took the last bit from her bowl and shoved it all into her mouth at once. The pleasant smell of eggs cooking was motivation enough for her to finish her greens before breakfast was ready, so she was happy to show Nigil how it was done.

Nigil stared at Ash for a moment before taking handfuls of broccoli and shoving them in his mouth. He attempted to chew, but his baby teeth weren't very good in the first place and his overly-stuffed mouth wouldn't close. He sat there for a few seconds, attempting to figure out how to deal with the situation he was in before spitting it all back out. 

"Eww!" Ash yelled as she watched him go back to eating the spat-up vegetables one by one.

"At least he's taking his time." Mom laughed softly.

Thinking back on it, Ash couldn't understand where things had gone wrong. Her dad still hadn't come back but her mom had still been the happy woman Ash loved. Maybe it had been a slow process, but she really couldn't recall. She just knew that eventually her mother ended up disappearing for hours after hours and she'd be stuck watching little Nigil. They were only a few years apart, but Ash had ended up having to be somewhat of a surrogate mother for her brother. Not that she ever really minded spending time with him, but she shouldn't have had to bear that responsibility.

"Are you okay Ashley?" Mrs. Johnson asked, snapping Ash out of her thoughts.

"Yes ma'am!" she said quickly. "I was just thinking about how much I love your cooking." Ash forced, smiling sweetly.

"Well aren't you a little doll." he adoptive mother replied. "You go on and get dressed. Make sure you wake up your sister too- we can't have her missing family breakfast."

"I will." Ash affirmed, walking out of the kitchen towards her room.

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Hello! Thank you so much for the read! I have to say, the amount of supporting I've been getting in the past few days is really motivating, so thank you guys so much! Make sure to stay safe! <3