C H A P T E R T H R E E
Brighter   Times

The trembling got better and Delia didn't feel as anxious. If anything, she felt hurt, possibly hurt by Laurie, anxious that she had lost her only friend in this foreign place. Maybe she was being sensitive, she never really ventured out into the hurtful and scary world.

     All Delia did was a bit of teasing of his heartstrings and he walked out on her like that. His company, enjoyable but enjoyable to an extent. If she were to tell her Aunt and Uncle about her ordeal on why Delia was acting so strange, they would send her back to her Mom's with a letter telling her to leave Delia in a mental asylum. She was completely sane though and she had a voice and of course, a sane mind. The only thing keeping her here was her mom. Delia's aunt and uncle don't want another mouth to feed and she'll prove it.

     "I'm glad you're alright now. You seem close to that... Laurie boy." Aunt Marie gave Delia a concerned expression as she said that. She just wanted to laugh. As close as we could be, Delia thought, an echo of a sad laugh was stuck in her head.

     "I guess you could say that," Delia mumbled as she sat down at the dinner table, picking at the food that she didn't eat from this morning.

     "All the food is here, eat what you please. While you're doing that, I'll be writing to your Mom about your visit so far." She informed Delia and she agreed.

     The food, still delicious but cold at this point. And Delia's stomach growled as she accepted her breakfast into her body.

     Delia knew she had to talk to Laurie eventually but was she really cut out for it already? It had only been about 45 minutes since the two parted ways. Surely, he would be done eating by this time.

     "Oh Lord, what did I do wrong?" I whispered underneath her breath as the girl rested her head onto the wooden dinner table's surface. Her hand guided one more spoonful into her mouth before she decided she had finished eating for the day. She tried to organize the table and clean it up as neatly as possible, heading for her room.

     The floorboards creaked as they held Delia's weight, she's never felt so self-conscious before. It felt like the wood underneath her was telling her that she was a big ugly pig. These thoughts came from the part of Delia's mind that thought about public image. This is why she doesn't go out.

     "I... I need to stop." She said loud enough for her to hear her own voice. Delia walked into her room and shut the large chestnut coloured door behind her. Her arms were wrapped around herself lovingly while walking up and over to her windowsill. The shutters were open so Delia could see out. All she could see was a vast field and the edge of the woods that Laurie and she had gone into.

     A few kids were playing near the neighbouring house closest to hers, which was actually quite far, but the chill drew had wondered closer to her home. She even saw one of them glance up and stare at her for a few seconds. It was a young boy with hair the colour of his skin, very frail and fragile. He wore a hat that wanted to fall off his head at any given moment and Delia laughed as it did. She did give him a little wave, though she doubted he saw it.

Sometimes, Delia felt the need to sing. Her voice rattled as she sang a song she grew up with gently and quietly, hoping her aunt couldn't hear her. She sang to the people outside, they couldn't hear it but it had a catchy tune and although her voice was a bit shaky, it was the best version of the song Delia had sung in a while. She didn't and couldn't sing much, afraid of the embarrassment that people would talk about how awful she sang.

Delia was too self-conscious to enjoy life as it was. She didn't have anything to do, so she just stood there, staring until finally, she was bored out of her mind. Delia took a towel and went to get a little bit of water to soak it in before she tried to clean up all the corners and edges of her room that were sprinkled in the dust. Halfway done, Delia could feel her stomach clench as she tried not to vomit. The towel was completely covered in dust, dirt and grime. When was the last time someone cleaned the room? She screamed in her head before rushing out of her room with the towel, quickly giving it and wash before hanging it somewhere that had space. She needed more things to do.

* * * * *

Long after she finished cleaning her room, Delia had woken up from a short nap as her aunt told Delia to go down to eat. She almost smiled as the thought of scrumptious food-filled Delia's mind. Many images of meat and salads and clean plates made her body ache it.

     "No time to dwell on your thoughts! Quickly, the foods getting cold!" Delia's aunt said and she couldn't help but try to run faster than her down the stairs in her long dress. Uncle Daryl was sitting happily in his seat with his fork and knife in hand.

     "How's the food, Uncle Daryl?" Delia asked impatiently, his face said everything. He was confused yet, he couldn't complain.

     "It's quite lovely, Delia. Your Aunt did a good job as always." He replied, "We all know why you said that." Delia teased, he probably said that because he didn't want his wife yelling at him.

     "You've caught me!" He chuckled, mouth full and everything. Darn that old man, she laughed once more. It was one of the brighter times.

A U T H O R ' S N O T E

So, this chapter is a shorter one! This chapter might be messy and you may spot a few grammar and spelling mistakes. Let me know what you
all think! I appreciate votes
and comments <3