Longing to be Human

Chapter Two

Chapter: 2

-Years Before-

A peaceful Monday morning lying in a cozy, warm bed, deep within the heart of New York City was where I was. In a half-asleep state, I glanced over at my alarm clock. Ten minuets until it's gonna start buzzing off of the stand, I thought. Rolling back over, I tried to close my eyes, but the little voice in the back of my head said that I might as well get up.

Groggily placing two feet into the cold, hardwood floor, I stretched and yawned lazily. "I don't wanna get up," I mumbled to myself as I stumbled to my dresser to find some suitable clothes for school, since going to school in pajamas wasn't all that fashionable. After getting dressed in slow-motion, as it seemed and making sure that my wolf tail was crammed into my right pants leg, I wandered into the bathroom and was shocked by my appearance. My short, raven-colored hair looked as though a rat had attempted to make a nest in it, but not before a giraffe gave it a cow-lick.

Out of disgust with my own reflection, I snatched up my hairbrush from the side of the sink and began to attempt to tame the wild beast. I brushed it until it finally gave up and behaved as hair should. Then, I spiked it with some holding gel. There, I thought to myself, I look like me and not a half-asleep zombie... Still half-asleep, but not a zombie. Looking in the mirror again, I saw one green eye and one blue eye, both overly tired-looking, staring back. After splashing some cold water on my face, those two eyes livened up a bit.

I took a seat in front of my bed, looking for my black boots that were usually under my bed.

"Looking for these, Randy?" asked a voice from behind me.

I spun around to find my mom standing in my doorway, holding a pair of boots by their shoe strings.

"Yeah. Where were they?" I asked.

"The garage," she said, smiling and handing them to me. Her smile on her beautiful, kind face was something that I never forgot, not as long as I lived. The long, curly brown hair that framed her face made her look as gentle as dove. But if those eyebrows ever furrowed on her forehead, she lost that look of tranquilly.

"Wonder how they got there," I muttered, laughing as I pulled one boot over my right foot with the sock. "By the way Mom, have you seen my other sock?"

She shook her head no, causing her hair to do a dance about her head.

"Thanks," I told her as she left. I put my other boot on my foot without a sock. That feels so weird, I thought as I walked from my room. Placing my hand on the carved hand-rail, I made my way down the stairs to the kitchen. The large, ornamental dining room table was set for seven, the number of people in this crazy family.

As I causally took a seat in one of the chairs, my elder brother Zanon came skidding into the kitchen. Half-dressed and rambunctious as ever, he ran over to the same table that, unfortunately, I was sitting at. His un-combed hair fell into his eyes as he plopped down into the seat across from me. "Morning, Bro!" he shouted, waving as though I couldn't see him.

"Good morning," I snarled back. Zanon and I never got along; I was just awaiting the moment when he would do something irksome.

Zanon happily smiled at me, only being nice since Mom was within ear-shot. "Have you seen Raúl this morning?"

I raised an eyebrow at him. "No?" The rising intonation in my voice hinted that I was unsure of his question.

Snickering, Zanon grabbed warm biscuit from the basket that Mother had just set down on the table.

"Zanon Adolfos!" Mother reprimanded, "Wait for your siblings and father." Her forehead wrinkled and her mouth turned to a frown.

"Yes, Mam..." he growled, putting the biscuit back into the basket.