Evy took a small step forward as if scared that the boy would jump up and hurt her.
Almathea crouched herself behind Evy, which was a little comical considering Evy was way shorter than she was. It did not matter to her though, as Evy was much stronger than she was.
Evy used the back of the knife she was holding to poke the boy's cheek. His head moved and fell to the left, exposing his pale cheek. His skin was fair and his hair was a bright yellow color. Even after passing out, his lips were pursed together, as if he was having a bad dream.
Almathea poked her head over Evy's shoulder, "Is it dead?" she whispered.
Evy shook her head, "It is not an 'it', Thea. It looks like a boy."
"I know what it looks like, but didn't you see what it looked like before? That was definitely a wild animal, but it turned to a boy." Almathea moved from behind Evy and began to pack their things.
Evy's eyes flashed as she looked down at the boy who was passed out. She then turned to Almathea, "What are you doing?"
Almathea looked up from the backpack she was holding, "I wouldn't want to stay here and wait for him to wake up. He might eat us up. You were the one who said that tigers like to eat humans."
She continued to pack her things. Evy rubbed her forehead, "B-but."
Almathea was confused by Evy's hesitation. "Do you not want to leave?" She did not have a problem staying in their current camp, but Evy was the one who was a little skeptical about the tiger and was ready to pounce on it. There was no reason for them to stay any further.
Evy shook her head, "No. We should wait until he wakes up I think."
Almathea nodded, "If that is what you want."
With their combined power, they pulled the remaining half of the boy's body out of the bushes and placed it beside the small fire that Evy had pulled up.
The boy looked just a little older than they did. However, he was very skinny and tall. His blonde hair framed his face and fell down to his mid back. The two girls went back onto their cart and cuddled together for warmth.
Neither of them were able to sleep, and they stared at the stars, none of them saying a word.
After a few minutes, Evy turned to Almathea, "Hey, can you read me the book that is in the bag? I can't sleep, and pa always told me a story before bed."
Almathea her head to look at Evy who was still gazing at the sky. "You went through my things?"
Evy shrugged, "I was curious. Since you knew nothing about yourself, I figured that the bag might have something about you."
They stayed in silence for a few moments, the sound of crickets filling the area. "And…?"
"There was nothing I could tell about you from the stuff in your bag. But, there was this black screen that I found in one of the small pockets. Do you have any idea what it is? The one that looks like a mirror."
Almathea shook her head, "I also found it in the bag." She sat up and pulled the backpack towards her. From one of the smaller pockets, she pulled out the little book that was there.
The book was titled, 'The Boy and the Hat'. Every time she read the title of the book, she felt like she had been hit by a pile of déjà vu so she had never opened it.
She took in a deep breath and pulled open the first page, "Are you ready?" she turned to ask Evy.
Evy lay on her side, and bobbed her head up and down. "Ready whenever you are Thea."
Almathea took in a deep breath and looked down at the page. There was a small drawing of a boy holding a top hat. The drawing was bare and without any color. However, the boy had been drawn with a large smile on his face making him look very happy.
She showed the picture to Evy who had to squint to see clearly.
After she nodded, Almathea went on to the first page. "There once was a boy named Belette Asbiw whose father did not have much love for." She showed the picture of the little cartoon boy bowing his head in front of a larger cartoon man.
"Belette was one day locked up in his father in a little room at the back of the house, with only food and water to keep him going on." There was a picture of Belette sleeping on a small bed.
"A few years after he was locked up, Belette was brought out of the small room by his father. He was taken to a room much bigger than his own. On the bed, there was a hat that had many different colors. Delighted, Belette placed the hat on his head, and it fell down to his eyes." The picture was of a boy holding a top hat over his head.
"He was told that he was going to take his brother's place, and his name was changed to Mosauh. Despite being brought out of the room and being told that he was taking his brother's place, the little boy was often accused for making his brother go to a faraway place and that is why his father despised him." This picture showed the little boy looking out the window. He had his hand propped on his palms as he looked up at the night sky. Unlike his other pictures, the boy had a frown on his face as he looked up.
As Almathea read on, she felt very sad for the boy. It was almost as if she could relate to what the boy was feeling. She turned the page. However, it was empty. The pages had already been torn, leaving nothing for her to read.
Frustrated, she threw the book aside and glared at it. The sound of Evy's heavy breathing brought her out of her anger.
Evy muttered something in her sleep, cuddling closer to the angry Almathea. Almathea found her lips curving up in a smile, and she patted down the frizzy locks that were on Evy's head before drifting off to sleep as well.
.
S/T:
TIGER: Be my friend and let us play together!