"Cal!!" Luka and Orly cried out excitedly. They ran up towards the frail old man, Orly holding out a piece of paper that yelled out 'LOOK AT ME!'. "CALCALCALCALCAL!!"
"H-Huh?!" The kids rammed into Cal with their little bodies, he barely managed to steady the pot of pumpkin stew that he had been stirring. After successfully saving the orphanage's supper, he turned and glared at two eight-year olds, "My goodness! You two! Can you be more gentle next time?"
"Sowwy..." The duo apologized cheekily, before reverting back to their old selves.
"Come look at what we drew for us!" Orly cried. Luka grabbed the side of the piece of paper and the two held it up to Cal together.
Cal leaned down and squinted at the paper.
On the surface, a rainbow of colors in the form of messy, scribbled lines filled the paper. It took a moment for Cal to realize that they were supposed to be little stick figures with names on top of their heads. It took another second for him to process that the stick figures were supposed to be everyone in the orphanage.
It was all of them. The biggest stickman colored blue represented him, with his name 'CAL' on top. The two little yellow ones next to him were definitely the two kids in front of him, 'LUKA' and 'ORLY'. The green one next to Luka was his brother 'KAI', who was twelve this year. The red one next to Orly is fourteen year old 'SHAW'. And then the purple stick figure at the end was 'DEAN', the oldest at sixteen.
Cal smiled patiently, "Wow, looks extraordinary! Why don't you show it to Kai and Shaw? It's dangerous here in the kitchen."
"Alright!" The kids rushed out to find the others.
Cal puffed out a breath of air as he stretched his back. His back felt really sore since that morning and the discomfort wouldn't go away no matter what happens.
He looked up at the ceiling, deep in thought.
My back hasn't ached like this for many years... He thought. Maybe I'm just getting old... or maybe it's—
"Cal?" A voice came from behind him.
Cal turned around and saw a young man standing behind him with a bucket of white paint and a brush in his hands. He wore a soft, wool coat and black breeches. A green apron was draped over his clothing, it was speckled with white dots all over.
"I've finished painting all the windows white," Dean held up the bucket of paint, his blonde hair waving in the cottage breeze, "Do you need my help in preparing supper?"
"I wouldn't mind a helping hand at all." Cal stepped away from the pot with a chuckle.
Dean stepped up towards the pot and took the ladle, stirring the stew inside evenly, "You should take a rest of day off. Talk with the kids. Play with them. It's been a long time since I've seen you spend some 'You' time."
"I know..." Cal sighed, "It's just... the war has been hard on all of us. And ever since that ghastly radio broadcast a few days ago..." He took a deep breath.
Dean opened a cupboard and took out a few porcelain bowls, "We should be fine, Cal. That broadcast told us that everyone in the city has been evacuated to the bomb shelters. And those on the outskirts should be fine. As long as we paint our windows white to keep out the radiation, it should be safe to leave the house after two to three days."
"I still have this bad feeling inside me." Cal admitted, "That whatever's gonna happen is gonna be unlike anything that we've ever seen before. Something disastrous. Something... catastrophic."
Dean sighed as he scooped up the stew into each of the bowls, "The government wouldn't lie to us. If they tell us that we're be safe, we will be safe."
"I hope you're right."
--
"Dean!!" Luka and Orly rushed towards him, holding out the drawing Cal saw earlier. "DEANDEANDEAN!"
"W-Woah!" Dean held up the bowls of stew he was holding, "Careful!"
"Look at our drawing!" They both cried happily.
Shaw, who was lazily slouching by the fireplace reading a book, groaned and rolled his eyes, "What a pain..."
Cal walked into the dining room with another few bowls of soup, saw Luka and Orly pestering an anxious Dean, and laughed heartily, "Alright, Alright children... put your things away, it's time for supper."
"SUPPER?!" A loud, booming voice came from the living quarters. From the small door way, a twelve-year old Kai charged outwards with a raging hunger, "DID SOMEONE SAY SUPPER?!!"
"Can you please shut yer' trap?!" An irritated Shaw snapped.
"Hey!" Dean tilted his head at him, "Please mind your language. And put your book down."
Shaw clicked his tongue and placed his book down on the coffee table. He stood up and adjusted his red garments and trousers. He had tidy and neat, black hair, and sky blue eyes. He sighed as he walked towards the dining room table.
Kai rushed up to the table as well. He wore a blue and white stripped bedclothes as if he was sleeping, his short red hair and plump complexion made him look like a ball of yarn. His grass green eyes sparkled with hyperactive joy. "What are we eating tonight."
Dean set up the utensils with Cal, "We are having pumpkin stew today."
"Pumpkin stew!?" His smiled, "I love pumpkin st—"
"Brother!!" Luka rushed up to him. He looked almost identical to his older brother, just a little smaller, and not as plump. He wore a warm wool coat and white Bermudas. "Come look at our drawing!"
"We did it together!" Orly added. She was the only girl and the most recent addition to the orphanage. A few months ago, before the war officially started, her parents were killed in a freak accident at a pottery-making factory.
She was sent to this orphanage a few days after the accident. When she first came, it took a week to get used to her new life. But eventually, she became good friends with Luka, and they were inseparable ever since.
Today, she wore a pink dress that suited her well, her autumn orange hair was tied back into a single ponytail, and her blue eyes were the color of the fresh blue sea in the summer.
"Settle down please." Dean smiled and walked up to them, "You might scare the neighbors."
"But we don't have any neighbors for miles, do we?" Luka tilted his head.
"By neighbors, I mean the monsters underneath your beds!" Dean growled and lifted the two kids onto his shoulders, causing the duo to break out in laughs of joy that spread across the quiet cottage.
Shaw was the only one that didn't seem so happy. He rested his head on his hand and rolled his eyes again, "So damn noisy..." He whispered quietly.
The big family finally settled down around the dining table.
"Time to say Grace, put your hands together everyone." Cal reminded everyone. Once he was sure that they were ready, he put his own hands together, "Dear Lord, thank you for all the wonderful things you have done for us. Thank you for a ripe harvest from our garden, and a delicious meal. We pray that you would protect us and keep us safe and happy through the war. In Jesus's name we pray..."
"AMEN!" Everyone said together, and they all started eating.
Cal and Dean watched with amusement as the younger ones scooped up their stew into their mouths with a zest that none could equal.
Cal smiled as he wondered if things were actually going to be okay, and he was just being paranoid for no reason.
But that was when they heard the planes.