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Authors: Jack Lewis
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couldn’t have walked these extra fifty yards without
you.”
He
looked through her window and saw her front room where candles glowed, and
April was stretched out on the sofa with a book covering her face. Once again
he found the idea of a warm house inviting, but he buried the feeling.
“Just
be careful,” he said. “You never know what can happen in this weather.”
A
second after the words left his mouth a groaning sound came from Bethelyn’s
house, and then there was a crash. The slate roof of the cottage collapsed
under the strength of the wind. Slates span off and fell to the ground, and Bethelyn
stared with shocked eyes as once smashed next to her foot. April sprang off the
sofa and let her book fall to the floor.
Ed
rushed inside. Bethelyn followed and ran straight to her daughter, but Ed went
upstairs. In the master bedroom everything seemed okay. The same couldn’t be
said for the second bedroom, which was missing a ceiling. There was a wide hole
where there had once been a roof, and an angry night sky sat above it. It took
ten minutes for the warmth of the house to be shattered and replaced with a
freezing channel of wind. Water poured through the hole in the roof and soaked
into the carpet, ruined the bedding and made a sopping mess of everything it
touched. He was too late to do anything.
Downstairs,
Bethelyn paced the living room and ran her hands through her wild hair. She
turned to look at Ed as he walked into the room.
“What
the hell are we going to do?” she said.
April
stared at her mother with glum eyes and sagging shoulders.
Ed
knew what he had to do., He didn’t savour it, but there was no escaping it.
“You
can stay at mine,” he said.
Bethelyn
looked at him strangely as though she hadn’t expected the offer.
“What
about Rex?” said April.
“Rex?”
“It’s
her bear,” Bethelyn told him. She put a hand on her daughter’s shoulders and
scooped her toward her. “No honey, Rex is going to stay home and guard the
house.”
Bethelyn
looked at Ed and covered her mouth with her hand so that April couldn’t see.
She mimed words at him, but Ed couldn’t understand.
“Rex
is upstairs,” she whispered.
Now Ed
understood. That meant the girl’s bear was ruined.
“I’m
not stupid mum,” said April. “The house is flooded. Rex will get wet.”
“He’ll
be fine.”
“But
mum.”
Bethelyn’s
voice became sharp. “April, stop it.”
The
girl pushed away from her mother and started to cry. Ed couldn’t stand it, but
not because the girl’s tears upset him. He just found crying children really
annoying. Then thing that annoyed him most was that he knew most of them faked
it. Still, he’d been a kid once, so there was no use being a hypocrite about
it. Anyone can grow out of their childish ways. It was the adults that refused
to who were the real problem.
“Hang
on a sec,” said Ed. “Which room is yours?”
The
girl looked up at him. As he suspected, her tears had dried the second it
seemed she might get what she wanted. Despite that, he could tell she was
genuinely upset about her bear. Maybe the dramatics was just habit she’d picked
up to get what she wanted with her mother.
“You
can’t go up there,” said Bethelyn.
“Is
Rex in your room?”
April
stood up and nodded. “My room’s the one next to the bathroom.”
The
house was already cold from the wind that rushed through the broken roof. As he
passed the living room he saw that without the glow of the candles it looked
just as lonely and empty as his own. Darkness had a way of making everything
seem that much worse, even things that in the light were a source of joy. Ed
had spent so long in the darkness that his whole life view was covered by it,
and he realised this was partly to blame for how glum he was.
Upstairs
was even colder, and a pattering sound came from the bedroom.
you.”
He
looked through her window and saw her front room where candles glowed, and
April was stretched out on the sofa with a book covering her face. Once again
he found the idea of a warm house inviting, but he buried the feeling.
“Just
be careful,” he said. “You never know what can happen in this weather.”
A
second after the words left his mouth a groaning sound came from Bethelyn’s
house, and then there was a crash. The slate roof of the cottage collapsed
under the strength of the wind. Slates span off and fell to the ground, and Bethelyn
stared with shocked eyes as once smashed next to her foot. April sprang off the
sofa and let her book fall to the floor.
Ed
rushed inside. Bethelyn followed and ran straight to her daughter, but Ed went
upstairs. In the master bedroom everything seemed okay. The same couldn’t be
said for the second bedroom, which was missing a ceiling. There was a wide hole
where there had once been a roof, and an angry night sky sat above it. It took
ten minutes for the warmth of the house to be shattered and replaced with a
freezing channel of wind. Water poured through the hole in the roof and soaked
into the carpet, ruined the bedding and made a sopping mess of everything it
touched. He was too late to do anything.
Downstairs,
Bethelyn paced the living room and ran her hands through her wild hair. She
turned to look at Ed as he walked into the room.
“What
the hell are we going to do?” she said.
April
stared at her mother with glum eyes and sagging shoulders.
Ed
knew what he had to do., He didn’t savour it, but there was no escaping it.
“You
can stay at mine,” he said.
Bethelyn
looked at him strangely as though she hadn’t expected the offer.
“What
about Rex?” said April.
“Rex?”
“It’s
her bear,” Bethelyn told him. She put a hand on her daughter’s shoulders and
scooped her toward her. “No honey, Rex is going to stay home and guard the
house.”
Bethelyn
looked at Ed and covered her mouth with her hand so that April couldn’t see.
She mimed words at him, but Ed couldn’t understand.
“Rex
is upstairs,” she whispered.
Now Ed
understood. That meant the girl’s bear was ruined.
“I’m
not stupid mum,” said April. “The house is flooded. Rex will get wet.”
“He’ll
be fine.”
“But
mum.”
Bethelyn’s
voice became sharp. “April, stop it.”
The
girl pushed away from her mother and started to cry. Ed couldn’t stand it, but
not because the girl’s tears upset him. He just found crying children really
annoying. Then thing that annoyed him most was that he knew most of them faked
it. Still, he’d been a kid once, so there was no use being a hypocrite about
it. Anyone can grow out of their childish ways. It was the adults that refused
to who were the real problem.
“Hang
on a sec,” said Ed. “Which room is yours?”
The
girl looked up at him. As he suspected, her tears had dried the second it
seemed she might get what she wanted. Despite that, he could tell she was
genuinely upset about her bear. Maybe the dramatics was just habit she’d picked
up to get what she wanted with her mother.
“You
can’t go up there,” said Bethelyn.
“Is
Rex in your room?”
April
stood up and nodded. “My room’s the one next to the bathroom.”
The
house was already cold from the wind that rushed through the broken roof. As he
passed the living room he saw that without the glow of the candles it looked
just as lonely and empty as his own. Darkness had a way of making everything
seem that much worse, even things that in the light were a source of joy. Ed
had spent so long in the darkness that his whole life view was covered by it,
and he realised this was partly to blame for how glum he was.
Upstairs
was even colder, and a pattering sound came from the bedroom.
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