Catharsis [Novel]

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

            After making sure the dog is tucked in with blankets and sleeping soundly (I refuse to name him...for now), I step back outside into the welcoming, warm blanket of the night.  I feel better than I have in a long time.   I have strength.  My thirst is gone and has been replaced by an awareness of my surroundings that is so sharp it is disconcerting.  More importantly, though, I have a goal.  I have a reason to be doing something aside from hiding, pitying myself and wondering about what is happening to me.

            Closing my eyes again, I think about what my next step should be.  I need food and water, but I doubt just walking into a store and purchasing it is my best bet.  I don't trust myself around people.  Or anything, really.  Even though, I'm not currently afflicted with that thirst, I don't know when it will come back.  Or what other new distraction may thwart my plans.  Pulling out my wallet (I picked up the habit of keeping a wallet in my pocket years ago from my dad.  It comes in handy.  Especially when you haven’t changed clothes in a few days.), I see that I have close to fifty dollars in random bills crammed in there.  Could be useful.  I'd rather not steal if at all possible.  I'm not that person.  Yet.

            But where do I go?

            Opening my eyes, I start walking out towards the street and turn north once I hit the road.  This part of the city is mostly abandoned, and I haven’t heard people around since I’ve been here.  An occasional car has gone by, but its presence has been so faint as to barely even register for me.  If my senses hadn’t been hyped up, then I never even would have known I was near civilization.

            Within minutes I lay eyes on the first few houses that border the commercial district I've been calling home.  They're completely run down and empty and a waste of time, but at least they show more promise than any of the buildings I'd seen previously.

            Burning through my excess energy from the rats proved to be an erroneous plan as it only made me thirsty faster.  My goal now is to conserve as much energy as possible and see how long I can put off the thirst.  If I use my new abilities, it will only be out of necessity and not frivolity.

            A quick search of the first few houses on the block proves to be a waste.  They are long abandoned with no useable food on the inside.  One appeared to recently house a family of bums or street people, but they had moved on and left nothing edible behind.

            Pushing further into the domain of the residential zone and leaving the safety and emptiness of the warehouse buildings, I finally arrive at the first houses that have the faint whiffs of people still clinging to them.  In the empty houses closer to the warehouse, I could smell people on the buildings, but the scent was stale and unattractive.  It was like the dried scent of an old salami sandwich, when you're really hungry for a steak.  It was present, but nothing worth paying attention to.

            But these houses as I approach this new block smell alive and wonderful.  I can hear people moving inside upstairs rooms, and the aroma of healthiness and vibrancy is everywhere.  Pausing in the street, I let it waft over me.  It’s pleasant, but not overwhelming.  Although it is all around me, its presence isn't consuming my conscience.  It’s just a reminder that a part of me has been pushed down deep, but the thirst still exists.  And that thirst would really love to be set free.

            Concentrating on the fullness of my belly, I’m able to push away the surfacing thoughts until they nearly fade from existence.  I’m aware of the people around me, and I’m aware of how badly I want to get at one, but it isn't something that will control me.  It is more of a nagging sensation.