Rat's Nest

I watch the fire burn for a while before turning away towards the kitchen. Grabbing some eggs and bacon from the fridge, I start up the stove and begin making breakfast.

           

My mother joins me shortly after the food is done, probably woken from the smell of the bacon wafting through the house. We eat in silence, and I take the plates up to the counter when we are done. I wash them quickly and set them on a drying rack. We both silently go back up the stairs. I drop my blankets off in my bedroom, now warm from the fire.

I head over to the bathroom and wash my face. I look up in the mirror, water still dripping down my face and into the sink. My eyelashes stick together, drooping low from the weight of the water. Bright green eyes stare back at me, now wide awake from the ice cold water. I drag a hand through my golden brown hair, pulling it back from my face. My mother was right about the knots. I tug at the ends of my hair, a full rat’s nest burrowed at the nape of my neck. I shift my eyes away from the mirror and shuffle my hands through a drawer filled with bathroom supplies. An old toothbrush, floss, hair pins, elastics, and finally I find what I am looking for. Stuffed in the back of the drawer is a brush. I pull it out, tugging it as it gets caught on something. I finally get it released and then firmly close the drawer. Bringing the brush to the rat’s nest, and dreading every moment that is about to occur, I yank hard on my hair, attempting to comb out the mess. My eyes swell with tears as the brush threatens to make me bald. Finally, and not a moment too soon, the knot gives way and my hair is free. I rub my scalp. I bet there will be a bruise there; I should have listened to my mother. 

Cold Mornings

*****

            Light peaks through ragged curtains, sending a path of light across my face.  I can see the light through closed eyelids. Groaning, I roll over to face the dark side of my room. The air is cold on my face. The temperature must have dropped considerably last night. I bundle the blankets closer around my body, suddenly aware of the lack of heat in the house. Wrapped up in blankets, I lay like that for a few minutes before daring to get out of bed. A pair of slippers lay neatly by the bedroom door. The floor is made of wooden boards, which means my toes are going to freeze when I walk over to my slippers. Groaning again, I sit up in bed keeping my blankets tightly woven around me. I cringe and then leap out of bed, pulling every blanket with me as I run across the room, nearly running into the wall as I wedge my feet into my slippers. Prancing around my room, I attempt to warm up my toes. I should have invested in an onesie that covered my feet. Instead I’m stuck with one that ends in elastics, so that I can roll it up if I get too warm. Great idea for the warmer days, terrible for the colder ones.

            Still wrapped in blankets from my bed, I trudge through the hall and down the stairs to the living room where our fireplace sits, cold. I grab some pieces of wood that lie beside it, and place them in the middle of the fireplace. The pile of wood is getting low, and I worry that it may take a few days yet for the next supply of wood to be shipped in from the cities on the coast. I place the wood on a bed of ashes, the remains of previous wood that had lived and died to fuel a fire. Crumpling up some old newspapers, I strategically place it within the fireplace, then take a match from the matchbox and light the fire. 

***Exam time for SnowKitty***

Sorry everyone, but there will be no new post this week!

Unfortunately, part of being a university student requires me to do these exams at the end of the semester that are worth 40% or more of my final grade.

SO, I need to focus on my studies right now, which means that I am taking a break from working on the upcoming plot. At my school, exams last 2 weeks, and as I have 3 back to back next week, that week is also off limits for a new post.

HOWEVER, I have an entire week after that until I need to do my final exam, so I may be able to squeeze a post in there somewhere.

So my estimate is between mid to late April for a new post.

Stay classy,
SnowKitty