Chapter 7

     The sheets around me had been pushed to the foot of the couch, my body was sweaty, and I was breathing hard. I wasn't the only one in the room. I could feel someone watching me but how long they had been watching, I didn't know. My eyes searched frantically around the room. Why wasn't I hearing eggs sizzling? Faintly, I could hear low, deep breaths and a shadow straightened. A wet towel was thrown at me and my watcher revealed himself. 

     "What happened?" My cousin asked.

     "How long have you been watching me?" I ignored his question.

     "I got up to make breakfast but, then, I heard you scream so I came to see what was up. You kicked your sheets to the edge of the couch and... I don't know... you looked panicky and scared."

     "It was a bad dream."

     "About what?"

     "Nothing." I refused to go into farther detail.

     "Well, come into the kitchen and there will be a glass of water waiting for you."

     "Thanks."

     I went to the kitchen and drank my water as I watched the eggs golden around the edges. My cousin watching the eggs, he was watching me as if to get inside my head. I refused to let him in. The eggs began to blacken and I had to tell him that they were finished. I was given burnt eggs for breakfast which I nearly gagged on. My cousin knew that something was up but I made sure not to say anything. The silence grew and continued to grow until my parents woke up. They said nothing to me but they talked happily to my cousin.

     It went on for days. My parents continued to ignore me, I was no longer allowed to do the shopping, which was actually rewarding considering I had done what I wanted, air raids still bombed several other states, the silence in my uncle's house continued to grow, and my cousin still looked at me strangely. I had permanently scarred my family just by being late. My days were long and boring with nothing to do but read and write.

     Four days after I signed up for the army, mid-January, I went to get the mail, my new chore. It was unusual that we got any mail but sometimes we did because of my uncle's job. On this particular day, there was only one letter and it was addressed to me. I knew what it was so I stuffed it into my pant's pocket. I would break the news to my family tonight, during dinner. When I got inside the house, I claimed that there was no mail and laid on the couch, under the cover to read the letter. It told me that I was to go to the church in three days and wait for a car to take me to a week of army training and from there I would move into the actual army. 

     There was a little relief that I would be training for a week first but I still shook insanely. Whether it was from excitement or fear, I don't know. I laid on the couch, thinking, for several hours. The minutes ticked away and soon after, so did the hours. My cousin called out that dinner was ready and my heart skipped. It was time to break the news. Would they be proud or upset? Can I handle my mother crying again? I can't just disappear, can I?

     I sat at the table and served myself some food. For once, my uncle joined us for dinner. Great, just great. Every member of my family wore a smile but me. I looked down and used my fork to play with my food. How do I start the conversation? Am I prepared for this? Am I prepared for the army?

Author's Note

Yay! We are getting farther into the story!! :)