AR- Chapter 2

Enjoy!

2

-Akio and Asumi’s Past-

Part 1

                “Akio, I don’t think it’s a good idea and you know it,” four year old, Asumi, said. Akio smiled to reassure that everything was going to be fine. Akio was holding a plastic sword in his hand. They were looking for a way to get food from one of the shops. They didn’t have money to pay for it.

                “I need to do this. We need to eat to survive,” Akio responded holding her hand. Asumi nodded, but was still on edge about his plan. She didn’t approve of Akio’s methods although she had to go along with it. Asumi didn’t like the fact that they were trying to steal food. She was starting to wish that she had money to pay for it. It was their first week on their own. They hadn’t planned to steal anything at first, but it looked like the only option now.

                “I wish mommy and daddy were still here,” Asumi responded. Tears were starting to spring into her eyes. Akio sighed sadly and pulled Asumi into his arms. He didn’t want to think about what happened just a week ago. He started to calm Asumi down a little bit.

                “I know, but we can’t be weak anymore, Asumi, we have to try to stay strong because that is what our parents would want,” Akio said in his wise tone. Akio was pretty wise for his age. He squeezed Asumi’s arm tightly and she calmed down completely. She was still too young to comprehend what happened a week ago. The only thing that she knew was that her parents were never coming back. Akio knew his parents were never coming back either. Before their parents died they hid them in the closet. They both could see everything that was happening to their parents. It scared them to death.

                The men that attacked their parents didn’t even bother looking in the closet to see if there were more people. The men were stupid apparently. Akio and Asumi didn’t know what to do. They knew if they tried to go to an adult…they wouldn’t believe them. Most of the adults never listened to children.

                “Why did Mommy and Daddy have to go bye bye though?” Asumi asked him. Akio really didn’t have an answer to that question. He didn’t really know what to say to comfort her. He was still young himself. He didn’t have all the answers. The only thing that he thought to do was hold her until she was calmed down again.

                “We will be fine, Asumi, you know we will. I promise you that I will always be with you. I know you will always be there for me too. You are the only person I have now…” Akio said. He was making a promise to always watch over her. Be there for her…no matter what happened.

                They both walked to where they were going to steal their first loaf of bread. They hadn’t eaten in a couple days. They were both starving. Akio and Asumi had some food in the house they were staying in, but they didn’t want to waste it. They wanted to keep it in case of an emergency. Their parents’ murdered bodies were in Akio’s house. Both of them decided it was better to stay at Asumi’s. They both knew that eventually someone was going to find them and give their parents a proper burial. Akio and Asumi were just happy that her house was completely clean of blood. They were going to try to survive together on their own in her house.

                Asumi just wished that they weren’t going to steal the bread. She knew that none of the townsfolk were going to notice that the bread was gone. The town was small and somewhat in ruins. Not a lot of people lived in town anymore. It was great that there were still store owners in the town. The items were cheap, but neither of them had money. Still Asumi knew that it was wrong to steal from people. Her parents had always told her that she should be a good girl. She remembered that they would scold her when she did something wrong. Asumi learned her lessons well. Her parents had nothing to complain about. Asumi didn’t like to do bad deeds and now she was going to be doing one. She knew that if her mother was still alive…she would be ashamed.

                “Akio, I’m still scared, I don’t want to steal anything,” She said. Akio sighed at her. He knew when Asumi made up her mind; she was not going to change it. He had to take matters into his own hands.

                “Then just stay here then,” he whispered to her harshly. He felt bad when her eyes widened and tears started to form in them. He patted her head and the tears went away. She knew he wasn’t mad at her. He ran from the building he was hiding behind and went up to the bread stand. He knew that being short would work to his advantage. He could hide in places people wouldn’t expect. He reached up onto the stand and took two loaves of bread. No one had noticed that he was hiding anything when he ran away. Asumi was shocked to see that no one cared. Nor had anyone noticed that two loaves of bread were being stolen. “I got us some bread to eat.”

                Akio was in shock that it was so easy to steal bread. He didn’t want to make a habit of it. He took a knife from his pocket and cut a piece of the bread carefully. His mother had shown him how to cut bread before she passed. He was grateful for that. Asumi and Akio needed to make the loaf last for the next week. They made a pact that they were only going to take what they could once a week. Asumi now knew that she was going to have to become something she wasn’t…so she could survive. She didn’t like it one bit.

                Akio and Asumi walked back to their home slowly. They put the bread on the lowest thing they could reach…since they were both short. “Akio, can we please eat the bread slowly so we don’t have to steal for another two weeks? I know that if we eat a quarter of one piece it will last for a while. Please?”

                “Sure, I know it’s the best option. I don’t like stealing either, but we need a couple more things. We should at least get some fruit and vegetables in our system,” Akio responded. Asumi just nodded, but looked down at the floor. They stole two apples, two oranges, and another loaf of bread a couple of days later. During lunch they ate some apple and some bread. Dinner they had just bread, but they made sure their bellies were full. They were just happy they had a lot of bread left so they could last two weeks.

                “Akio, I’m just glad that you are here with me. I know that if you weren’t there…I would have ended up like mommy and daddy,” Asumi said hugging the small boys frame. He smiled widely and he pulled her tighter to him. She was shaking from the cold. He pulled the blanket off her parents’ bed and wrapped it around the both of them. They cuddled next to each other on the bed they were sharing. They both needed to keep warm so that they didn’t perish in the cold.

Author's Note

I hope you enjoyed reading this!

Reviews

[Emunah June.]

Dang, this just rounds the characters out more when you give them something motivational that drives their relationship. Anyone can mash two characters together and say "YOU LIKE EACH OTHER', but it takes a master of the pen to give them a story.

[Angie Diane♥♥]

Awe, thank you!
I love Asumi and Akio's relationship!

[joshua deathdealer]

i am saddened by their poverty and feel for the characters.. This chapter really helps to build on the readers emotion for the characters and gives light into their past. Excellent work dear.

[Angie Diane♥♥]

Thank you brother. While you're gone I'm going to work on this hard. It is still dedicated to you. :)