The tram ride home had hardly any commuters. All were in the city, or going into the city at the very least. Whistling as it drove off, I restlessly watched the receding buildings as the carriage left the bustling district. Echoes of the fanfare still held steady. By the time I reached the eastern outskirts, the bright sun was gone, completely hidden behind the clouds. It was not going to rain, I don’t think. The clouds were not too dark and the coverage seemed spotty at best. The lack of direct sunlight would only be temporary. Still, I strode down the interweaving streets with haste, as I had somewhere to be.
As the streets gave away, the buildings growing sparse and the fields taking over, I worried over how long I was away from the cottage. A few hours, at least. Perhaps four or five. I do not remember what time I left, but it was well past lunchtime at this point. I myself was hungry, my stomach rumbling over and over as I walked. The inconvenience offered some sort of distraction, perhaps for the better, as I followed the single dirt path, snaking through the fields and the countryside. Reaching the wall, the delineated line of stones just beyond the pastures, I was glad to see the children were not here today.
Inside the forest, there was hardly any sunlight. Only a few weak slivers of light managed to penetrate through the dense foliage above. There was no direct sun, after all. As the night had yet to come, the orbs of light were not out yet. Their absence was not too hard felt, given it was still bright enough to see. It did make the trail a bit lonely, though. There was no one for me to talk to. It was just me, moving briskly as I could towards the large glade at the end of the trail.
I started to run, remembering I was free of any prying eyes to do so. Running up the trail, smothered by gardens of flowers on each side, I got up the slate steps and stopped hard, reaching into my empty basket for the keys. The door opened with a creak to reveal a darkened hallway, lit only by the light I spilled into the cottage and the light from the glass door on the other side. I fumbled with shoes to get my feet out, leaving them by the door, then hurried into the dining room, setting the basket on the table and moving into the kitchen. Empty of anything, the keys were free to jingle around inside.
Thinking about food again, I eased my concern a bit. I had enough nuts and beans sitting around to eat if I ran out of ingredients to cook. I could save the milk for her porridge. Once that last remaining potato was gone, I could move on to rice. I had a few eggs left for myself. Only a few sticks of carrots.
I stopped. Was what I doing? I was standing still in the kitchen, thinking to myself. I should have gone straight to Alice. I beat myself down a bit as I hurried over to the couch. The wet towel was on the floor, I noticed, and I bent down to pick it up. Shaking it a bit and refolding it, I brought it back to Alice’s forehead. However, as I did, I noticed something. Her eyes were wide open, looking straight into mine.
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