h Chapter Thirteen g
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Sunbeams burst from around the edges of the skies puffy white clouds, streaming their way to the planet, shedding a soft, early morning light onto everything. A car drove slowly by the house, its horn honking loudly at a dog that was moving slowly across the street in front of it. The owner of the dog, the woman who lived directly across the street, was yelling angrily at the dog, trying to get it to move out of the street.
The noises, breaking through the quietness of her bedroom, caused Alaysia to stir. She began to slowly awake from a troubled- restless nights sleep. She just lay there, not wanting to get up yet, her arm draped over her eyes, trying to keep out the sunlight that was coming through her window. After lying there just a few short moments longer, Alaysia sat up, swung her legs out, and shoved her feet into her slippers. She was awake. It was time to face the day.
Wanting peace and quiet for just a little while longer, Alaysia quietly slipped out of the room, leaving her sisters sleeping. She went down the hall, silently opened the door to her grandfather’s room, and peered inside. He was still sleeping, snoring loudly. This puzzled Alaysia because, as far as she knew, her grandfather had been sleeping since yesterday morning. Her grandfather had told her that he wasn’t feeling well. “I just need myself a little nap.” he had said to her. She had never known her grandfather to sleep this much though. Well, she thought to herself. Maybe he got back up last night, after we all fell asleep- and then went back to bed again? Alaysia closed the door and made her way into the kitchen. She plopped herself down onto the nearest chair and just sat there staring out the window into the yard. Alaysia was thinking about what happened last night, and about what would happen tonight when they met the Oogie at midnight.
“Might as well start breakfast, Alaysia sighed aloud, rising up from the chair.” While she scooped fresh coffee into the filter and turned on the coffee maker so it’d be ready when her grandfather awoke, Alaysia just couldn’t seem to shake this weird feeling of dread- an odd strangeness of something amiss. As hard as she concentrated, she just couldn’t place her finger on what it was. As she cracked the eggs on the edge of the skillet, the eggs sizzling in the hot grease- Alaysia’s mind finally became distracted enough that the strange feelings she was having faded, and so she set about the task of making breakfast.
“Good morning, Alaysia’s grandfather said to her gruffly, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.” Watching her grandfather closely, Alaysia could tell from his sluggishness that he still wasn’t feeling very well. It worried her because she had never seen him feeling this way. Her grandfather had always seemed to have such energy, was always moving around the house, outside in the yard- always doing something, never sitting still.
Alaysia went to her grandfather, smiling up at him she asked; “Grandpops, are you feeling okay?” “Are you alright?”
“I don’t really know for sure sweetie, he answered. I’ve never slept this long in my life, and it feels like all my muscles don’t want to work right- like I’m worn to a frazzle. Maybe I’m catching some kind of bug, the flu or something.”
Alaysia put her hand on her grandfather’s forehead, but he didn’t feel hot or feverish.
“Do you want me to call mom and tell her she should come pick us up, let her know that you’re not feeling well? she asked, concern in her voice.”
“No- don’t bother your mother with this, he said.” “Besides, I really don’t want you guys to go home. This is our first weekend with all of us together. Maybe after I’ve had my coffee- maybe then I’ll start feeling better.”
At her grandfathers’ mention of coffee, Alaysia immediately walked to the counter, poured the steaming black liquid into his favorite cup, carried it to the table and placed it in front of him.
“There you go grandpops, just made it myself this morning, she said proudly, smiling.”
Alaysia intently watched her grandfather sip his coffee. Without another word, he just sat there, staring down into his cup. Alaysia decided to leave her grandfather to his thoughts and began setting the table for breakfast.
When Alaysia was just about finished with the cooking and was setting out the plates, glasses, and silverware for everyone to eat with, Izayah and Shaylah came into the kitchen. Shaylah pulled out a chair and sat next to her grandfather who was still sitting there- staring into his coffee. Izayah- impatient as ever when it came to eating- walked directly to the counter, scooped up some toast, got a knife from the drawer, and began spreading some butter onto it.
“Where’s Micaiah?” asked Alaysia, carrying a plate piled with eggs over and setting it in the middle of the table.
“She’s in the bathroom, brushing her teeth, answered Shaylah.
Alaysia forked some eggs onto Shaylahs’ plate, handed her a couple slices of toast, and after getting the milk from the refrigerator- poured some into all four of the kids’ glasses. Izayah, half toast in hand, finally decided to find a seat at the table.
Alaysia, about to sit down and start eating herself, looked over at her grandfather and watched him, unmoving, still staring into his coffee. She reached across the table for his plate, put some eggs and toast onto it and slid it in front of him. Her grandfather remained unmoving, seemingly not even noticing the food she had placed in front of him. Alaysia was really beginning to worry because this just wasn’t the way she was used to having her grandfather act when she was around him. She had never seen him so quiet, so reserved.
Alaysia looked over at Izayah, and when he looked at her she nodded her head towards their grandfather. Izayah turned and looked at his grandfather, watched him for a moment, and then turned back to Alaysia and shrugged his shoulders indicating that he didn’t know what was wrong. Alaysia pursed her lips, her concern for her grandfather plainly showing.
Entering the kitchen- Micaiah stopped and looked around, then sleepily shuffled her way to the table and took a seat with the rest.
“Good morning Micaiah, Alaysia greeted her little sister.”
Acknowledging her sister- Micaiah nodded her head, sitting there with her hands in her lap, seemingly in a daze.
Alaysia, ever the little mother with her siblings- fixed a plate of food for Micaiah and gave it to her. Micaiah picked up a fork, cut up her eggs, and began slowly nibbling her food.
Everyone just seems so out of sorts, Alaysia was thinking to herself as she was eating. She knew that all the kids, including herself, were just tired from being out so late last night. It was her grandfather, the way he was acting- this was really puzzling her. She could sense that there was something very wrong, something not quite right, and she didn’t think that he was sick either. Alaysia wished that she didn’t have to wait until midnight to talk to the Oogie, if the Oogie even showed up. She hoped that the Oogie could help, could do something that would bring her grandfather out of this mood he was in. Alaysia just wanted her grandfather to be back to his normal self again.
For the remainder of the meal, everyone, with the exception of their grandfather, continued eating their breakfast in silence. Nobody talked at all. Everyone just sat at the table lost in their own thoughts.