Thea prepared some soup for the dinner as they did not feel like eating anything. She and Ruth were in Mrs Payne's room. The small house had lost its warmth. It felt lifeless and dull.
Mrs Payne had not moved from her place. She kept staring at the cold tattered mattress where once her husband sat smiling at her.
Her tears had dried after a day's cries. The numbness and the fatigue remained as her companions.
"Mrs Payne... Mrs Payne!" Thea called her name a couple of times.
"Huh?" The lady blinked at her dumbfoundedly.
"I have prepared soup for you." Thea said. She put two bowls in front of her. One was for Ruth, and the other one was for Mrs Payne.
"I do not feel like eating anything, my child." Mrs Payne turned her face away from the soup bowls.
"I understand, Mrs Payne. But you have not eaten anything since morning. You have cried so much and are exhausted. Please eat some." Thea tried convincing her.
