As Arthur was going deeper into the city, he heard familiar noises in the distance. It reminded him of the monsters that took his mother. Hearing the growls, caused Arthur to panic. His mind was telling him to move but Arthur couldn’t move his legs. His whole body was trembling as he stood in the center of the road.

Burning buildings surrounded him as the sounds became louder. “This can’t be happening. Those monsters disappeared. They shouldn’t be here!” thought Arthur.

While Arthur was hesitating, the beast surrounded him. He could see two along the road in front of him and two behind him. Their tails waged in the air as they stared at Arthur. He knew that he couldn’t fight them and his only chance was to run. He started to look around to try and find somewhere he could go.

There was an alleyway in front of Arthur, in between two burning buildings. Arthur quickly ran into the alleyway. He could feel the heat from the two buildings beside him as he ran. Arthur had a hard time breathing as he was running, making him go slower and slower. After a little running, he couldn’t hear the growls or footsteps of any monster chasing him.

“I made it!” thought Arthur as he got to the end of the alleyway. He dropped to the floor and tried to catch his breath, but the smoke and smell from the fire made it difficult for him to breathe.

Arthur got up on his feet and tried to walk forward. His senses started to weaken, he found it hard to take a step forward and his eyes felt heavy.

“I...need to...go,” said Arthur as he stretched his arm to the end of the alleyway.

Arthur’s body started to feel very heavy, he gritted his teeth and tried to stand. But his body couldn’t keep up. Once Arthur hit the floor, he heard loud footsteps approaching him from the end of the alleyway. Arthur tried to get up, but couldn’t move his body. The footsteps got louder as he started to crawl away.

“Please, I don’t want to die,” said Arthur as he dragged his body across the floor.

Eventually, the beast was right behind Arthur, he could hear the swaying of its tail as it approached his head. Arthur was too afraid to look behind, so he continued to stare at its shadow, which was illuminated by the bright fires behind him. Arthur started to lose consciousness, but not before a sharp pain started to appear from his chest. Arthur couldn't resist anymore and closed his eyes.

Arthur jumped upright from his bed, his room was dark. The only source of light was the moonlight from his window. He touched his neck while taking quick breaths. “I’m okay, I’m okay. There doesn't seem to be anything wrong,” said Arthur as he held the blanket.

Arthur tried to calm himself down, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong. He repeated, “it’s just a dream, the monsters are gone,” in his head until he calmed down.

Arthur sat back on the mattress and tried to close his eyes, but the memories from the dream started to appear in his head. The thought of dreaming caused him to tremble, causing him to stay up most of the night.

Arthur was woken up by a banging noise. His body felt more sluggish almost as if he lost some of his strength. He slowly got out of bed, as his eyes were adjusting the light.

“I’m up,” said Arthur.

The door slowly opened and a familiar figure entered the room. “Oh, sorry to wake you. Breakfast is ready, so I just wanted to let you know,” said Lucas.

“Thanks, will Emilia be making the food?” asked Arthur.

Lucas did a light chuckle and returned a small smile. “Of course, I guess you really liked her pizza. But don’t worry she prepared something,” said Lucas.

“Ok, I will be right there,” said Arthur.

Lucas nodded his head and left the room. Arthur ignored the odd feeling and started to change his clothes. Once he was ready, he left his room and walked down the stairs.

Once Arthur got down the stairs, he heard small giggling once he got close to the kitchen.

When he entered he saw Chloe eating beside the table. There was french toast and scrambled eggs on her plate. Arthur thought that it smelled really good and was excited to eat it. At the front of the kitchen, Arthur saw Emilia making the rest. She was humming with a smile on her face.

Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

Emilia noticed that Arthur entered the room and turned her head to him. “Good morning Arthur, you can just take a seat. I’ll have the food ready in a moment,” said Emilia.

“Thanks, auntie,” said Arthur.

Arthur took a seat around the table in the kitchen. Across from him, Chloe was eating her food. She took small glances at him while eating.

Arthur called out to Chloe. “Good morning Chloe,” said Arthur.

Chloe made a nervous smile on her face as she raised her head to Arthur. “Good morning, Arthur,” said Chloe.

Arthur noticed that Chloe seemed to be fiddling with her fork. Emilia came to the table with a plate of food in her hand. She was wearing a dark blue apron over her pants and shirt. In the center of the apron, there was a picture of a small panda eating cake.

Arthur felt like it was kinda cute. “What’s the picture on your apron for?” asked Arthur.

Emilia returned a surprised expression. “Oh, this is our logo. Since the bakery is closed for now, I brought the apron back home,” said Emilia.

Arthur could hear, Chloe giggling in the background. “The panda is so cute, can I have one mommy?” said Chloe.

“When you get a little older, then I will prepare for you,” said Emilia.

Arthur felt a little bad about the bakery, he didn’t like the fact that they had to close it temporarily because of him.

“Will the bakery open up soon? I hope I didn’t cause any trouble,” said Arthur.

Emilia put the plate on the table and started to shake her head. “No, Arthur, you didn’t cause anything. We just closed down temporarily to pick you up, but will be opening up soon,” said Emilia.

Arthur breathed a sigh of relief. “That’s great, I didn’t want to become a burden,” said Arthur as he started to eat.

Emilia slightly smiled and began to walk back to the stove. Arthur started to eat his food, he felt good eating a nice breakfast again. He recalled the time that he was in the hospital, the food wasn’t the greatest, but he knew that he had to eat it.

While he was eating his food he saw Lucas enter the kitchen. Lucas was frantically looking around the room until he found Emilia next to the sink cleaning plates.

“Emilia, you have to see this. We may not have to find another way to get supplies,” said Lucas with a small smile on his face.

A confused expression appeared on Emilia’s face. “What do you mean? The market is a mess right now,” said Emilia.

Lucas raised his hand and pointed to the living room. “It’s something you just have to see,” said Lucas.

Emilia released a small sigh, She put the plates back in the sink and hung her apron on a chair. “This better be good. You know there isn’t a simple solution to our problem,” said Emilia while crossing her arms.

Lucas nodded his head and gestured for her to follow. Emilia and Lucas both went into the family room. Arthur was very curious about what they were talking about. He started to think about what Emilia said to him.

“Do they have a problem with the bakery?” thought Arthur.

While Arthur was thinking, Chloe got up from the table with an empty plate in her hand. She put her plate and utensils in the sink. Chloe slowly walked up to Arthur while he was still eating. As she looked at him and started to fiddle with her hair.

Arthur tried to think of something that Chloe may like. He remembered that she was watching tv with Emilia yesterday. “What type of tv shows do you like to watch?” asked Arthur.

Chloe's shoulders jumped after hearing what Arthur said. She wore a happy expression on her face. “My favorite show is what I have been watching with Daddy. A group of people goes on adventures all around the world. It’s very funny,” said Chloe.

“That does sound fun,” said Arthur.

Chloe nodded her head. “Do you want to watch it with me? Sometimes daddy can’t watch it. I’ve always found it fun to watch television with others,” said Chloe.

Arthur smiled back at Chloe. She continued to talk about the show to Arthur as he was finishing his food. His conversation with her was interrupted by Lucas and Emilia entering the room. They had a troubled expression on their face.

They walked to Arthur and Chloe who were sitting at the table. Emilia led Chloe to the family, by saying she would watch television with her. Arthur was left with Lucas in the kitchen.

Many thoughts went through his head. He was hoping he didn’t affect his uncle's and aunt's business. “Is something wrong with the bakery?” asked Arthur.

Lucas shook his head. “No it’s not about that, I just wanted to talk to you about something else,” said Lucas.

Arthur felt confused after hearing Lucas's answer. “What do you mean?” said Arthur.

Lucas took a seat next to Arthur. “I recently learned that the majority of the people have been taken or rescued from New York City. The Virtue CEO along with the government announced that they will be finishing with the final parts of the rescue. Which would give the bodies back to their family’s,” said Lucas in an exhausted voice.

Arthur hesitated to open his mouth. “Does that mean we will be having a funeral for them?” said Arthur.

Lucas nodded his head. “I know this may be a lot for you to process, but just remember that we are here for you,” said Lucas as he put his hand on Arthur’s shoulder.

The memories Arthur was trying to avoid assaulted his head all at once. The voice of his parents resounded in his head. Their voices were blaming him for their death, just like from his nightmare. A strong feeling of guilt started to appear in Arthur once again. He tried to keep a straight face as he was looking at Lucas.

Lucas noticed Arthur’s expression and moved his arm from his shoulder. “It’s okay if you don’t want to talk about it. I’m ready whenever you’re ready,” said Lucas.

Arthur weakly nodded his head. Lucas helped Arthur clean his plate and he went back to his room. Arthur spent the afternoon with his thoughts, he didn’t know what to say to his aunt and uncle. Every time he tries to think of his parents, a strong feeling of guilt grows from his chest. Arthur decided to leave his room and take his mind off it.

Once he left his room he found Chloe in the family room watching tv. Chloe invited him to watch tv with her. Remembering his deal with Arthur, he agreed to watch television with her. In the evening she showed Arthur around the house. Throughout the day Emilia and Lucas seemed to be busy, Arthur saw them working in one of the upstairs rooms that seemed to be an office.

Once it was nighttime, Arthur was left standing in front of his bed. His thoughts were in chaos as he stared at it.

“Will the same dream happen again?” said Arthur.

Arthur hesitated but eventually got into his bed. As he went Arthur began to get more and more tired. Soon enough, he couldn’t resist and fell asleep.