Summary: After the brutal murder of her found family, Gemi loses years of her life to grief, leaving her remaining family member, Chaim, to suffer alone. Gemi is too late to save him from the spiraling path of hatred and revenge against the killer(s), but the Fates are on her side.
___
Chaim left me on the worn down peach couch while he grabbed a glass of water for me, from the kitchen attached to the living room. On the coffee table was a new book- well, new to my eyes. It was rather worn from use, and had a library sticker on it.
On the cover, it had a profile picture of some woman I did not know, and a name for the title I could not recognize.
Chaim set down the glass beside the book, when I asked, “What are you reading?”
Uncharacteristically secretive, he flipped the book over and said, “Oh, it's nothing.”
“Ah, so it's erotica.”
Chaim's whole face turned red. “What?! No, it's not-”
“I'm joking,” I said in my new, and unfortunate, monotone voice, but my first smile in years. My face felt stiff and heavy, so I'm sure it was barely noticeable as a smile.
He pouted the same way Obi would, and it stung my heart. “How are you feeling?” he asked.
I wanted to feel lively again, but truthfully, “I'm tired.”
“Yeah, you should lay down and rest.” He did not hesitate to assist me, supporting my head like I was a delicate infant.
Before he could walk away from me, I grabbed onto his wrist with a weak grip. “Wake me up for dinner.”
He smiled with his eyes. “I will.”
Surprisingly, my nap was short- at least, in comparison to the double digit hours I'd been accustomed to getting. The sun was still out, and Chaim was still here. He was sitting on a loveseat with one leg under his butt, and the other bent and acting as a surface for his book. He was captivated by the pages, but I'm eager to talk to him again. I want-
I briefly woke up several more times before quickly falling unconscious, struggling with all my might to stay awake. Finally, when the natural light of the sun was dimming, I woke up.
The fragrant scent of fried garlic and ginger, and the rumbling sound of a thick soup boiling on the stove spoke to me like a siren, so I was able to remain conscious for more than a few seconds.
The sheer determination I had earlier in the day amazed me now, because I could not imagine sitting up on at this moment. I thought of maybe rolling over and plopping onto the ground, maybe it'd be easier to crawl.
The longer I stayed still, the stronger I felt, and eventually I eased myself up. The scent of Obi's favorite soup pained my heart, as anything that reminded me of the others did. “You made groundnut soup?”
Chaim whipped around fast, holding his spatula out like a weapon. It took a second for him to ease up, and I made a mental note to make a gentle noise or something before speaking next time.
“Oh, uh, yeah. Is that okay?”
Curse my misleading monotone voice, I want to sound spirited again. “Of course, it's delicious,” I reassured.
“It is. It'll be ready in 10 more minutes.” He put the spatula down, and headed towards the couch, but remained at a distance, simply leaning against the arm of the couch instead of sitting with me. “How are you feeling?”
Tired. I'm so tired, but, “Glad.” Glad I'm still alive today to see you again. “How are you feeling, Chaim?”
He gave me a soft smile, like a loving parent seeing their adult children in good spirits after a long time apart. “I'm glad, too.”
I lifted me arms, and waved my hands towards myself. “Can you come over here so I can hug you?”
He slid his legs over onto the couch, and fell into my arms. Curling himself in my embrace like he used to, but I wasn't strong enough to give him the bear hug he was probably waiting for. “How old are you now, Chaim?”
He took a moment of silence before answering. “I'm 16.”
My heart swallowed itself. Four years. I... I left him alone for four years... “You're,” my voice shook, so I shoved down the emotions welling up inside of me. “You're still a baby in my eyes.”
He chuckled lightly at that remark. “I know.” He sighed before pulling away. “I gotta make the fufu.”
“Did you get the-”
“Instant taro? Of course.” He ruffled my hair like I was the child. “I didn't forget it was your favorite.”
By time he got up, the exhaustion had already caught up to me. I rested my head against the plush backing of the couch, and stared at nothing in particular until Chaim brought two steaming bowls of soup and fufu to the coffee table.
He immediately spooned out a small portion of food, blew on it, and guided it towards my mouth with a hand under to prevent spilling. “Hey, I can do it myself,” I insisted, grabbing the spoon from his grasp.
With hesitation, he lowered his hands. “Oh. Uh, are you sure? I don't mind feeding you.”
I waved the worry away with my free hand. I slowly lowered myself to sit on the floor in front of my bowl, shakily holding my spoon. “Come, sit down with me.”
He did so without saying anything, and held his bowl in his arms, but didn't so much as take a bite of the food for himself. I was purposefully ignoring it, but I could feel that he was watching me. As simple as the task was, it was difficult for me. My muscles were significantly weakened, and a regular silver spoon was heavier that I could've possibly imagined.
I barely got in two mouthfuls before I could hold the spoon up no longer. Chaim put his bowl down. “Do you want help?”
I finally admitted defeat with a nod, and sunk my head into my chest. Like a parent of a newborn, he lifted my chin and fed me. He's still so young, and yet...
Don't cry! Don't cry. The tears spilled from my eyes unwillingly. I dropped my head and sobbed, “I'm sorry for not being strong enough.”
Chaim rubbed my back affectionately. “You don't need to apologize, it's only natural. You'll do physiotherapy and get stronger with time. You don't need to push yourself so hard right now.”
I shook my head, but couldn't even find the strength within myself to explain why I was crying. I'm sorry for not being strong enough this whole time. You're my baby brother, I should've been taking care of you instead.
After the meet was set up, Mark waited and watched as some people pulled up to some abandon farmhouse. Watching him dragging Maggie inside also but he had her face covered. Which Mark was grateful for. Soon he pulled up in his truck, deciding to leave his motorcycle at home. It was best that way. Much more quieter. The guy would probably freak if he heard a motorcycle or something. Getting out, he moved over to the door and moved inside.
“It’s about--” He stopped when he seen Mark. “You aren’t Sofie.” Mark couldn’t help but smirk a little bit, shaking his head. “Nope. You got some smarts but clearly not a lot.” He attention went to Maggie. “You are going to fine, sweetheart.” He told her even if she couldn’t see him. That also meant that she couldn’t see what he was probably going to force to do. “Here is the deal. You are going to leave these girls alone. Especially Sofie. This is your one chance to walk out of here.” Mark told him. The guy took out a knife and pointed it at Maggie. “Let me think about that...No. I want Sofie this way she can watch her sister die. Now bring me Sofie.” His knife move to point at Mark. “Or else I’ll kill little sister here and then you and then find her and kill her anyways for the hassle that she has made me go through.”
Mark shook his head. “Not going to happen. Good try though.” He pointed out, looking at the knife before back at the guy. “I’m going to give you ten seconds to put it down and then walk out of here. If you don’t I’ll take it and it won’t be pretty.” The guy just started laughing taking his eyes off from Mark for a second to look over at Maggie. Just as he was about to mumble something to her, that was when Mark grabbed him. knocking the knife out of his hand. Mark punched the guy in his face before hitting him in the stomach, kneeing him in the face when he doubled over. “I told you. Not pretty.” He commented, his eyes went to Maggie for a moment. Running over to her to lift the thing off her eyes. “My name is Mark, I’m a friend of your sisters. She sent me. I promise you, she is fine and so will you be. Let’s..” Before he could finish, he felt the guy grab him by the back of his shirt and he pulled Mark away from Maggie, punching Mark in the face.
That was when she seen it. The knife that guy had and Mark had knocked it out of his hands. Reaching for it quickly, she ran over to them and stabbed the guy right in the back since he was on top of Mark punching him. She couldn’t let him get away with this. Kill them both and her sister. She just couldn’t. Pulling the knife out, she stepped away from him and the guy stood up for a second and that was when she stabbed him again. Not just for her sister but herself also. What he did to her. She kept stabbing until he fell onto on the ground and Mark grabbed her. Scooping her up into his arms.
“It’s okay, darling. It’s going to be okay. Let’s get you home. I’ll deal with him.” He told her softly, walking out and over to his truck with her. “Here call your sister.” He took out Sofie’s phone and handed it over to her. Mark knew exactly what he was going to do. Duncan was about to get some company.
Summary: After the brutal murder of her found family, Gemi loses years of her life to grief, leaving her remaining family member, Chaim, to suffer alone. Gemi is too late to save him from the spiraling path of hatred and revenge against the killer(s), but the Fates are on her side.
Start from the beginning
The moment we returned home, Gorka shed his clothing until he was just in boxers, and plopped onto the couch. “Okay, goodnight everybody.”
Everyone dispersed from the living room, dragging their feet in exhaustion, but I lingered by the couch. Gorka opened one eye to peek at me. “You not going to bed?”
I pursed my lips, and fiddled with a loose string on the couch. “I was wondering if... maybe if you all could sleep in my room tonight?”
Obi grabbed Tiho's hand before he shouted, “We call the bed!” and ran towards the bedroom.
Bayar stumbled over the trash can as vae started running after them. “The bed is huge, you little shit!”
Gorka sat up and gave a defeated sigh before grabbing his pillow from the couch. “Sure thing, Gemi.” He threw his arm around my shoulder and held me close as he was walking by.
We all squeezed on the bed, too close to be comfortable, but it felt safe. There was an overwhelming warmth in my chest being with them again, but the fear of waking up from this perfect dream kept me up until dawn broke.
I woke up to an empty bed, but the loud voices of Bayar and Obi echoed throughout the house. I eagerly entered the kitchen where lunch was being prepared, and everyone was alive.
“Oh, you're up!” Bayar exclaimed. When I sat down at the kitchen table with everyone else, vae bent down to kiss the top of my head. “How'd you sleep?”
“It was great,” I answered honestly. For the first time in years, I wasn't plagued by nightmares followed by a lonesome reality.
Tiho, Obi and Chaim were the only ones actually preparing dumplings and other dim sum for lunch. Bayar was reading the script for some acting audition, whereas Gorka was quietly reading a book as he snacked on some carrots and hummus, likely prepared for him by Tiho. “Can I help out?” I asked our resident chef Tiho, while pushing my sleeves up my arms.
“Sure, can you get the wu gok dough from the fridge and start filling them?”
I nodded and promptly did as instructed.
It was effortless, falling back into routine with my family after all these years. Compared to the Chaim who spent years virtually alone, I never moved on. Although I could never shake off the trauma, that horrible past dissolved as if it were all just a bad dream and I've finally waken up.
It was the same as fate left it; Obi was still in university, Tiho was volunteering for multiple organizations, Bayar continued vaer night job, Gorka homeschooled Chaim, who was thrilled to learn anything and everything. I was still a shut-in, but my world was comfortable and whole again.
After a few days, I truly started to believe their murders were just some terrible nightmare. That is, until Bayar came home after dawn shouting, “Holy shit! Gemi was right!”
Vae woke everyone up starting with Gorka, shoving this morning's newspaper in his face to reveal the horrors I spoke of, but to a family I did not know.
Gorka read intently as everyone else gathering into the living room, crowding Gorka on the couch to read along with him. “This just happened yesterday,” Gorka said to himself.
“Gemi, you said it was a serial killer, right?”
Everyone looked to me. “Yeah.” How could I forget? How could I think saving them on one night meant they were safe forever?
“But the article doesn't say anything about it being a series of killings, this is a lone incident,” Gorka argued, still intensely reading the paper.
Bayar pulled the top of the page back to catch his attention. “What if this is just the start?”
“This happened just a block away,” Tiho commented.
“It happened exactly like Gemi said,” Obi chimmed.
Chaim was the only one who noticed the blood draining from my face. I hutched over, ready to puke or pass out, or both in succession. “Gemi-” They aren't safe.
I dug my nails into my thighs and closed my eyes. We aren't safe.
Then and there, I made my resolve. I'm going to save them this time. I'll catch and stop the killers if it's the last thing I do.
Author’s Note: Sorry for the short update! The next part of chapter 2 will be a lot longer.
Summary: After the brutal murder of her found family, Gemi loses years of her life to grief, leaving her remaining family member, Chaim, to suffer alone. Gemi is too late to save him from the spiraling path of hatred and revenge against the killer(s), but the Fates are on her side.
Start from the beginning
“We don't have any sweets in the house,” a younger version of Chaim pouted, and threw himself across my legs on the bed, like a dizzy Victorian woman would fall onto a fainting couch. He rolled over onto his stomach, crushing my legs under his weight. “Can you,” he looked down and fidgeted with his fingers before pouting, just as I remembered he used to do. “Come out with me to get ice cream or something?”
“Chaim?” I ended up whispering, overtaken by tears in an instant.
Just as he looked up at me with concern, Obi leaned against the door frame with his arms crossed, and announced, “Should I be offended that you didn't ask me to go out for sweets?” in a faked hurt tone.
My precious family, Chaim and Obi, alive as they once were. “Obi,” I gasped, crying more than I could control.
“Hey,” Obi's tone became delicate, and he moved towards the bed to comfort me.
Chaim pulled me into a hug, filling my heart with warmth for the first time in years. “I'm sorry Gemi, I shouldn't have asked. I know how difficult it is for you to leave the house.”
I attempted to suppress my tears enough to respond, but I ended up snuggling my head on his tiny shoulder. This must be heaven.
Obi, in turn, started to rub my back like he used to. “Hey, it's okay.”
I just grabbed onto his shirt and pulled him closer, mumbling words of thanks to the gods between sobs.
By time I cooled down from crying, a panic took over me in realization. Chaim asked to go out for sweets on that day... What if, rather than dying and reaching heaven, I am being tortured in hell, doomed to relive this day again?
“We need to go.”
I scooped Chaim in my arms, and quickly threw myself out of bed, pulling the blankets caught on my feet off.
“Wh-?” Chaim and Obi tried to voice.
“We need to go right now.”
Chaim wrapped his legs around my torso and held on tightly when I dropped one hand to grab onto Obi. How amazing it is to be in a strong body again! “Woah, Gemi, slow down!” Obi protested, unwillingly moving along with me.
“Ugh, you guys are so loud, I'm trying to sleep here!” Gorka shouted out, and my heart stopped. Turning the corner of the single wall dividing us, I came face-to-face with Bayar, Tiho, and Gorka in the dimly-lit living room.
“You're all alive,” I let out under my breath. Obi attempted to free himself from my forceful grip, but i held on tighter. I cant let him go. I can't let them die again! “We need to go out, right now,” I stated firmly, turning on all of the lights.
Gorka groaned and covered his eyes with his arms. “What the hell, Gemi?”
“We need to leave right now, we need to go to that pond near McDicks.”
“Mhm, I could go for some french fries,” Bayar added, though vae did not budge from the loveseat.
Gorka pulled down his sleeve to look at his watch. “It's 11pm, we should all be going to bed.”
“Please,” I started to beg, desperate to change history. “We'll be too late, we need to go.”
“I'm pretty sure it's open 24/7,” Tiho said.
“No- that's not- please, just get up and leave with me. I can't watch this happen again.” I stood my ground, letting the tears spill from me like a broken dam, but I persisted. I trembled before them as Chaim wiped my cheeks with his sleeve, then looking to Gorka.
Gorka's voice dropped into a gentle, but vigilant tone. “What's got you so scared? Did something happen?”
I closed my eyes and squeezed Chaim closer to me, trying to forget what he looked like covered in blood. “I promise I'll tell you, but we need to leave now, before it's too late.”
We all evacuated the house by 11:15p.m., and arrived at the pond shortly after. Chaim didn't bother asking for a sundae this time, instead choosing to cling to my side, silently looking up at me with concern. As we sat down, I let out a long sigh, half out of relief to be away from danger, half knowing the following conversation was going to be difficult to get through. “You're not going to believe me.”
They waited silently for me to continue, but I couldn't bring myself to say it out loud. You all died; how bizarre would that sound to living, breathing people? I just closed my eyes, and unwillingly envisioned their corpses and the pain attached to their absence.
Tiho leaned forward in our little circle. “Maybe we wont, but we love and care about you, so we're going to listen and take you seriously. We'll do anything we can to support you, we're not going to let you suffer on your own.”
I opened my eyes when Chaim grabbed onto my sleeve. I sighed again, then started the story from the beginning of this horrid day, to my last moments in that other timeline.
-
By time they were caught up with the tale too tall to believe, their concern had only increased. Still, they didn't challenge my interpretation of history.
“When would you feel comfortable going back home?” Gorka asked, wiping away the remaining tears from my face with his sleeve.
“Um, just a little bit longer. Chaim and I returned after we thought you'd be asleep.”
Gorka leaned over me to pinch Chaim's cheek. “Huh? Were you planning to do that today?”
“It's the only way we escape punishment from father time,” Obi commented under his breath.
Gorka squinted at Obi, and released Chaim, but did not comment further. A great show of restraint, because under normal circumstances, he would've chastised the both of them.
I missed even the conflict, and smiled as tears brimmed my eyes again. Tiho crawled over to rub my back as I sniffled, and I leaned into his touch. “I love you all so much.”
