What if {ereri}

1

Levi

I woke up on my mother's lap.

She looked like a skeleton.

So did I.

I blinked slowly. My body ached, my stomach twisted in on itself.

"Mommy."

Silence.

I reached out, tugging at her sleeve.

She didn't move.

I pressed my ear to her chest.

No breath. No heartbeat.

I pulled back, staring.

Waiting.

She'd wake up soon.

I curled up against her, my body too weak to do anything else.

She said she'd get better.

She lied.

⸻

Days passed.

The air turned sour.

My arms and legs shook when I moved.

The room was silent except for my breathing.

I sat in the corner, knees to my chest.

Waiting.

Waiting.

The door burst open.

I flinched, my body too tired to do more.

A man stepped in. His voice was rough, deep.

"Kuchel?"

Silence.

His boots stopped near me.

I looked up.

Blonde. Beard. Strange eyes.

His face changed when he saw her.

And then he looked at me.

"...Are you alive?"

I stared.

He knelt down.

"What's your name?"

I hesitated. My throat burned.

"L—Levi." The word barely left my lips.

He studied me.

Then sighed.

"I'm your uncle."

Uncle?

I didn't understand.

But I didn't ask.

His face softened—just a little.

"You want to leave?"

I hesitated.

I turned to my mother.

She wasn't waking up.

I gripped the hem of her dress, holding on.

But I let go.

I nodded.

He picked me up.

I didn't fight it.

I just closed my eyes.

⸻

We reached a checkpoint.

A soldier stopped us.