SHADES of GREEN ↬ m. wheeler

V. AWAKEN

CHAPTER FIVE
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❝AWAKEN❞

　
　

JADE AWOKE FEELING better-rested than she had in weeks. The temperatures had risen to the fifties, so when Jade stepped outside, she did not instantly freeze.

　After a shower, Jade sat on her bed, clean and refreshed, reading It, in spite of the fact that the book had actually been giving her nightmares. One morning, after reading about Bill's fear to find the corpse of his brother in a closet or under his bed, Jade opened her eyes and, not yet free of the grip of sleep, saw just what had been described standing before her: a small boy in a yellow slicker splattered with blood, a missing arm, dead eyes. She had jerked her blanket over her head faster than the speed of light.

　Sarah had left early, leaving Jade with a few pancakes for breakfast. Jade had forgotten, lost in her reading, and the pancakes lay untouched in the microwave. Either way, Jade never really got hungry in the mornings, although she knew breakfast was "the most important meal of the day."

　These thoughts brushed Jade's mind, just as she finished chapter ten (and the chapters were extremely long). Deciding to give her eyes a brief rest, Jade set the book aside and slid to the ivory carpeted floor.

　Jade's room was the last at a small hallway. She walked down this hallway, to turn left into the living room. The television was still on; her mother had probably forgotten to turn it off in her haste to work. Jade found the button on the box and killed the moving picture.

　With a brief look around, Jade found that her mother had also left a cup of coffee on the wooden, oval-shaped coffee table. The white porcelain was chipped in places, but this was not the reason Jade handled it with care. This mug had once belonged to her father; Sarah drank out of it, secretly imagining that her lips could still touch his, in a way.

　Jade went into the kitchen. Several windows lined the walls, pouring sunlight onto the white linoleum. Jade skirted the round kitchen table, and finally found the sink. Her mind wandered as she cleaned the mug, gently, mixing the air with the aromas of coffee and dish soap.

　Suddenly, a soft knock sounded at the front door. Jade gasped and nearly dropped the mug. She bit down hard on her lip then, so hard that she tasted blood. If she had dropped her father's mug....

　She set the mug gingerly on the counter, atop a clean rag, and made her way for the door, wiping her hands on her t-shirt. Jade swung the door open—and froze. Quickly, she regained her senses and threw her arms behind her back.

　Esme's pretty face smiled back at her. Her hair fell in white ringlets, Jade noticed with some surprise, quite a change from her natural silky straight. Her hair, however, was the least of Jade's surprise. Esme wore a mint green sweater tucked into a short white skirt. With her knee-high mint socks and white boots, she almost looked like a uniformed schoolgirl.

　"Hi," Esme chirped, perfect smile brightening.

　Jade tried to respond, but found that, in her surprise, she was struck voiceless. She did not realize that her face was twisted with every emotion she felt until Esme's smile fell.

　"What's that look?" Esme asked, warily. "Bad time?"

　Jade spluttered before she could speak. "How are you legs still working?"