The Kids Down The Street

I

The sound of tiny feet running through the halls filled the house. The sound draws closer and closer to the kitchen where a young girl moves around as she prepares a meal for her siblings and mother. "Innes! Innes!" a small voice shouts as a boy rounds the corner and runs into the kitchen.

"No running in the house, Felix," She scolds softly as she cuts up some fruit for her twin brothers, Nova and Nixon. She looks down at the strawberry-blond boy who tugs at her shirt. 

"Sorry Innes. But Innes, Nixon won't let me hold baby Alice!" Felix whines as he stomps his little foot. Innes steps down from the stool and bends down in front of her youngest brother, who wears a pout on his face. She removes hair from his face and places her hands on his cheeks.

"You tell Nixon that it's time for her tummy time, you also tell Nova that it's time to wash up for lunch. Then you go and wash up, once you are done washing up you go and watch Baby Alice while Nixon washes up," Innes says and places a kiss on the tip of Felix's nose causing the boy to giggle. Felix nods and runs off, Innes stands up and gets back up on the stool, and resumes chopping up the fruit. She separates the blueberries and strawberries into two different bowls, she then adds the cut-up bananas into the bowls, and places them off to the side, then she focuses back on the pot on the stove.

Upstairs Felix walks into a bedroom and walks over to where two boys sit on the ground with their backs to the door. He walks around and stands in front of the two, "Innes says that Baby Alice needs to do tummy time and that Nova and I need to wash up for lunch and when I get back you have to wash up too," Felix says as he crosses his arms in front of his chest. Nixon stares at Felix momentarily before putting Alice down on her belly.

"Hurry up then," Nixon says as he lays on his belly and plays with Alice. Nova grabs Felix's hand and takes him to the bathroom. Nova turns on the water which fills the sink and helps Felix wash his hands, as Felix dries his hands Nova begins to wash his. Felix walks out of the room and goes back to Alice's room.

"Your turn," Felix says as he slowly picks up Alice and takes her downstairs. Nova dries his hands when Nixon walks in.

Felix sits Alice in the high chair and starts to buckle her in, "oh, thank you Lix," Innes says as she places down two plates of pasta and two bowls of salad. She sets down a small bowl of applesauce and then helps Felix into the chair. "I'm going to take Mom her lunch, stay here," Innes says as she grabs another plate with a turkey sandwich and a small container of applesauce on it. Innes walks up the stairs and passes Nixon and Nova, who were on their way down. 

Innes stops in front of a bedroom door, takes a deep breath, and then lets it out. She knocks softly on the door, "Mama, I brought your lunch," she calls out. The door's lock clicks then opens slowly, and a pale face appears in the door's crack.

"Thank you, Innes," the woman says in a rough voice. She reaches out and takes the plate with shakey hands before disappearing into the room, the door clicking shut. Innes turns and walks back down the hallway, down the stairs, and back into the kitchen.

Lunch ends and Innes takes all the dishes to the sink to wash them. The front door slams open and hits the wall with a loud bang, Innes stiffens but continues to wash the dishes. She hated when he comes home. Innes takes a moment to relocate where all the others are when she hears a shout from the living room. 'Felix and Alice were upstairs in the baby room, Nixon was in his and Nova's room cleaning up, and Nova is-'  Innes's thoughts get cut off by the sound of glass shattering and a scream of pain, her eyes widen. Nova was in the living room, the room the sound of glass shattering came from, the room where the cry came from. 

Nova was placing the last book on the bookshelf when he heard the shattering of glass and the scream, without thinking he turns and ran out of the room and down the hall. He runs into the living room and watches as his father stands over Nova belt in hand. Nova lays on his side with his knees pulled to his chest and arms covering his head, he cries out as his father lands hit after hit on his bruised and battered body. Nixon can see the glass shards that dig into his side and face. Blood pools under him from cuts and reopened wounds that are hidden away.