"Mommy!" Rema cried out slamming into Rumi and I with tears running down her face and snot dripping from her nose as soon as we walked into the dingy basement. My heart sunk instantly because I feared that mom has decided to take a hiatus on her children. My feet refuse to move no matter how hard I tried to force them to walk over towards her.
"Stay here with Ronan," Rumi says to our little sister placing her small hands into mines. I watched keenly as Rumi walked over towards mom squatting beside her. He then calls out her name in a soft audible whisper. I tried straining my ear as much as I could to hear what he was saying but even with all my might, I couldn't make out a single word. I see Rumi pulling a blanket up to mom's shoulder tucking her in and then places a kiss on her forehead.
"You guys mom is fine," Rumi declared with an unfamiliar look in his eyes. I didn't know how to describe that look because I've never seen it before in my life. "Let's go upstairs so that she can rest peacefully," he then adds picking Rema up and began to walk up the basement stairs. We haven't been upstairs in the last two days since everything began except for the fact to get our share of rashing.
There were always people loitering around outside in our front yard. Some even pounded on the doors every now and then begging to take shelter from the stench of dead animals outside. Others tried breaking in a time or two before mom had Rumi and I to board up the windows and the back door. I never knew that my building skills that dad had forced Rumi and I to partake in before he was shipped off overseas would come in handy. Maybe dad knew something was about to go down before he left.
Mom thought that he was losing his mind as he kept rambling on about the end of the world was closer than anyone knew. "Rumi and Ronan you always have to be prepared for the unexpected. Don't get caught up in all the hype that is going on around you boys. There may come a day when I might not be around to protect you guys. Therefore you need to know how to fend for yourselves, Rema and your mom." Dad ranted on so many occasions. The last time he made that statement was six months ago and now look at us doing exactly what he said would happen.
"Ronan, did you hear a word of what I just said?" Rumi asked me while holding my face snugly in between both of his hands. "Go upstairs to mom and dad room and grab the two thick blankets out of the closet and bring them back downstairs." He adds without giving me the chance to answer his question.
The stairs made a creaking noise with every step that I took. The paint on the banister was chipping away in and it wobbled whenever you hung onto it. On the wall were many family photos covering up the big holes in the wall that came from wear and tear of two rough boys playing football in the house. Even though our house wasn't in the best of shape anyone with eyes could see that we were a happy family. Happier than most families on our block that had big houses and fancy cars.
My footsteps slowed when I get closer to my parent's room. Tears began to fill my eyes when I stood at the threshold of their bedroom door. A part of me knew that Rumi wasn't telling Rema and me the whole truth about mom. In my heart, I knew that he was only trying to protect us just like mom and dad had instilled in him to do.
The sensible part of me wanted to know the truth but the ignorant part of me wanted to be left in the dark for as long as it could. With those two thoughts twirling around in my mind I pushed my tears away and stepped into their room.
The one-room that was always warm and inviting now felt cold as a freezer box. The only presence that was left was loneliness and sadness and it was wrapping it's arm around me like a cold blanket. Refusing to give in to the temptation to sit and wallow in self-pity I run to the closet grabbing the two blankets and race downstairs where Rumi and Rema were. They sat in the middle of the semi-dark living room looking through old picture books.