Lured [The Broken Lollipop]

Thirst

Five days of search had passed. I could feel my lips ripping as if they had been sewn together every time I opened my mouth to speak. We had been travelling for days without food or water. I had grown so weak that my heels turn numb and my legs staggered with every step I took. My head was dizzy and I could barely see where we were going; not that it mattered though.

I followed Hansel as he slowly plodded along aimlessly, wishfully thinking that our house would suddenly appear at every bend we took. One, two, one, two, I counted in my head, as I lifted my legs off the ground with great effort. The trees began to fade; I could hear the song of the birds ringing in my ears. I took in a deep breath and watched his dirt-covered, worn-out sneakers disappear before my eyes.

"Gretel!" I heard Hansel called out,fear in his voice.

My eyes struggled to open, fighting with my eyelids for dominance. Finally, my heavy eyelids were pushed up, and I realised I was lying on the ground, my skinny limbs splayed out at awkward angles. My hand trembled as I reached for Hansel's cheek and stroked it with my cold and clammy palms.

"Hansel, just go on without me. I might not last long enough to reach there. I don't want to become a burden to you," I said softly.

"I will never leave you! I love you!" Hansel declared loudly, his tears dripping onto my hand.

I stared at him blankly. He stared back.

After quick seconds passed, he swallowed.

"Because you are my sister! And you are never a burden to me," he said hugging me tightly.

He grabbed my arm and pulled me to his back, he stood and held my legs in his arms.

"Hansel, you don't have to," I said flatly, but he ignored me.

He carried me on his back while we searched for food, water and of course, home. I tried to carry a little of my own weight, but I was so weak even to do so.

Hours past, and the sun started to set. Just then, I noticed something from afar; something that mirrored the image of the fading sun.

"Water," I whispered hoarsely, my heart speeding up in excitement.

"What?" Hansel asked.

"Water, I see water!" I climbed down of his back, running towards the reflection of the sun.

"Where?!" Hansel shouted, scrambling to follow me.

"Right there!" I said, pointing my finger at the shimmering, orange circle in the distance.

We ran as fast as our half dead bodies could towards it. My heart galloped with joy as I saw the beautiful lake, rippling as the wind blew across it. We bent our knees on the bank, and immediately started to drink. I drank every drop of it slowly to savour the taste of it, and so did Hansel. The water tasted like honey and syrup all mixed together; I had never tasted anything that good.

After filling ourselves, we sat by the lake to rest.

"Feels good to have water in our bodies again," Hansel stated.

"Yeah. I wish we could also take a bath, you smell like dead fish," I replied, laughing.

Hansel rolled his eyes and suddenly pushed me into the water. I landed into the water with a large splash, shock coursing through every fibre of my being. I extended my arms around me, searching for Hansel's hand. When I finally found it, he gripped me to pull me out, but suddenly, he released it. I was submerged in water again, but I managed to reach for the stones surrounding the pond. I slowly helped myself up, only to see Hansel's face filled with terror.

"What's the matter?" I reached out to him trying to move closer but he was moving away.

Finally, he softly said, "Gretel, you are covered in blood."

My eyes widened, and I looked down at my dress. It was crimson-coloured -- the colour of blood.

"Oh God! Why didn't we see that?" I screamed in abhorrence, my eyes not believing what I saw.

"I guess the blood had settled below the lake just before you stirred it up," Hansel answered, his face wrinkling in disgust.

"Gross," I answered, shuddering to think that we had drunk from the lake.

I looked up at the sky and saw the moon and the stars glowing in the darkness.

Smoothening the creases out of my dress, I said, " Let's just spend the night here. I'll go get some wood."

"No, stay here. Don't leave this place," Hansel said authoritatively.

He walked into the woods and soon his disappeared into the shadows of the trees.

Minutes passed, and I was tying knots with my trusty rope again, when I saw a shadow pass by. Fear crept over me. I got up and walked where the shadow was.

"Hansel? Hansel, is that you?" I called out.

The figure turned around. It was a pale handsome face, but it was not Hansel's.

"May I help you?" Asked the man, smiling at me.

"Do you happen to know which way to our house is?" I blurted, my heart picking up speed.

"I don't go far from where I live, young lady. I know no one in this place but myself and my household. May I ask, my dear, are you lost? If you want, you can stay in my house for the time being," He responded kindly.

"Yes, very much. And we are really in need of somewhere to stay. We have been searching for the way back home for almost a week," I said.

"We? You have someone with you?" He asked.

"Yes, I'm with my brother, Hansel. Speaking of which, he must be looking for me by this time," I said, rushing back to the lake to find Hansel burrying his face in his hands.

"Hansel!" I shouted.

He lifted his hands and burst into tears of relief. He ran towards me and hugged me so tightly, I could hardly breathe.

"I thought I'd lost you," he said in a brittle voice.

I closed my eyes and remained quiet, savoring the moment. A cough extinguished the perfect moment.

I turned around and grasped the man's unusually cold wrist. I pulled him closer to Hansel.

"This is...uhh..who are you?" I asked, trailing off.

"My name is Ulysses," he answered.

"Uhh.. yeah and he... uhh" I turned to Ulysses for help.

"I was looking for my pet wolf. I lost him six days ago, after I asked him to fetch something for me. Did you happen to come across him?" he asked.

Hansel and I looked at each other. There was no way that wild beast could be a pet wolf.

"No," we both said.

"Umm... okay. Would you two like to spend the night in my house?" Ulysses suggested, his eyes twinkling in the moonlight.

Joy surged through us.

"We'd love to!" Both of us shouted in happiness.

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Speaking of blood... I recommend you to read Kiko_is _ a _girl 's "Nursery rhymes not for children-Painting the Roses Red."