Remains

Chapter 2

Avah was the first to wake up the next morning. She was happy to simply lay in silence in the calm darkness before the sun rose and after the moon set. Avah watched Yumi sleeping next to her for a few minutes. Everything was calm and still, and Avah was worried that if she moved even a bit she would disturb that. So she laid there and stared at the peacefully slumbering Yumi.

Then the sunlight came in the room, waking the others. Avah pretended to be asleep and Yumi shook her shoulder. "Psst, Avah, get up," she whispered. "We need to get ready to go, c'mon!" Avah yawned and stretched. "I'm up, I'm up," she mumbled to Yumi. "Get going already, I'm right behind you." Yumi giggled and bounced away, grabbing her backpack as she left the room.

Sock dropped Nemo's fully packed bag on him while he was lying on the mattress, trying to get more sleep. "Get up, Nemo," Sock ordered. Nemo wheezed and groaned, rolling on his side. "You didn't have to do that," he gasped. "My bag's heavy, you could've crushed my head with it."

"Oh, you have a thicker skull than that," Avah teased as she grabbed her stuff. "Hey," Nemo whined, sitting up and grabbing his beanie. "That was uncalled for!" Avah just laughed and left. Sock crouched next to Nemo, trying not to laugh. "Well, someone was going to say it," he mumbled. Nemo huffed and rolled his eyes. "Let's just get up and go."

Sock helped Nemo stand and Nemo rubbed his stomach. "That actually really hurt," he informed Sock while he grabbed his clothes for the day. "Oh, don't be such a baby," Sock replied. "I'll kiss it better, if you want." He smiled at Nemo. Nemo scowled, flicked Sock's forehead, and went to the bathroom.

Once they all changed out of their pajamas and into their regular clothing, Felix led them out of the apartment. The sun was just over the horizon when they got on the roof of the building. The five looked down into the crowded street below. "I can't wait!" Yumi squeaked, jumping excitedly. "Oh my gosh, you'll all love it there, when we get there it'll be all snowy but buildings will actually have working heaters and there'll be lights all over the buildings strung up and everything'll be decorated and it's so exciting!"

Yumi continued talking while her older brother looked around the rooftop. "There'll be so much food, like cake and cookies and pies and ice cream and oh! There'll be hot chocolate, too! You guys have never had that before, it'll be good, it tastes great." Felix suddenly stepped off the roof and vanished from sight.

The four were silent for a moment before Felix's head poked up over the rooftop edge. "C'mon, we'll travel on the street," he called. "There's a fire escape here we can climb down. Yumi can't travel on rooftops." Yumi huffed and crossed her arms. "I can, you just won't let me," she grumbled as the kids followed Felix down the side of the building.

Nemo jumped over the fire escape and hit the wall of the building next to theirs. He kept jumping between the two walls until he hit the ground. The others were there, waiting for him. "Are you done showing off?" Avah asked him when he landed and rolled. "I don't have to use the fire escape," he replied as they walked to the exit of the alley. "You could've fallen!" Sock exclaimed. "Be more careful, because if you slip up once, it'll cost you your life, Nemo!"

"Shh, all of you," Felix hissed. He stood at where the alley opened up to the street, looking around. There was no sign of anything hostile, but he walked out onto the road with his gun out anyways. Overturned and rusted car frames littered their path, along with fallen lamp posts and lifeless bodies.

The four kids followed Felix when he gestured that it was safe. "Be quiet, and watch your step. There could be a couple hiding among all these bodies," Felix muttered. They carefully followed his footsteps. Yumi stepped down on an arm by accident and squeaked when it cracked under her foot. The other three were used to this scenery, but Yumi was not. She looked ready to cry until Avah held her hand and guided her.