What Will I Do Now?
Brid
It's been a day since I told Han about what happened to me in the woods, and he has not been the same. I feel him far away, even though he has not asked me to leave. The only one who hasn't changed is Mary, but as expected, she doesn't know anything, and she's just a girl. I wouldn't know what to do if he asked me to leave. My eyesight hasn't improved at all, but it hasn't got worse either. My knee doesn't hurt any more, and the constant headache has almost gone away. But I owe them my Life, and whatever they decide, I will abide by without hesitation.
Han and Mary's footsteps made me turn my head to where the noise was coming from. “Brid,” Mary ran toward me, hugging me. I smiled at her and hugged her back. Excited, she told me, “We went to the forest to collect mushrooms. Pa said he would make the best mushroom soup.”
“Yummy, really? I can't wait to try it.”
“Actually, you will help us prepare it. They still have a lot of soil despite me washing them in the River.” Han said, surprising me. His voice was friendly again as before. This brought me hope. Maybe he would let me hang out with them a little longer.
I grinned from ear to ear, “Sure, I just got water from the well. I hurried to get it ready for lunch.”
“Mary, bring the basket from the back of the house. We will place the cleaned mushrooms there.”
“Yes Pa,” Mary ran off without wasting any more time. But suddenly, the silence between Han and me was stressful.
“I offer you an apology, Brid.” His words made me turn to where he was. “I behaved like a jerk. What you told me surprised me a lot, and I didn't know how to react. I want to assure you that you are still welcome in our house as long as you want. Mary and I have come to appreciate your presence very much, especially her. She already sees you as a mother figure, and for nothing in the world would I break her heart by letting you go."
After a second of what all of this echoed in my mind, Han broke the silence again.
“What do you say, Brid? Will you do us the honour of your presence?”
My eyes went full of tears. I wiped them on the sleeve of my jumper and nodded. “Yes, Han, I will stay with you until you no longer need me.”
Nothing else was said since Mary entered with the basket, opening the door with a BANG! Even though I couldn't see her face, I could imagine the expressions of this little girl. I wasn't going to disappoint her.
I busied myself washing the mushrooms for a good half hour and when I'm done, Han put a pot of water to boil. He minced onion and other things by adding them to the pot along with the mushrooms. Half an hour later, the smell began to invade the small kitchen. My stomach started to protest, but fortunately, there was plenty of bread left over that we baked yesterday to pass the time.
An hour later and the broth was ready. Han wasted no time and served us a generous plate. “Yummy, I like them a lot, and I found them. Did Pa tell you that I found them, Brid?”
How to stop it? I started laughing. This girl was quite a case. “I bet they were the best in all the forest. When we have more time, we will go out one morning to collect more. How about that, Mary?”
“Yes, yes. I'll show you where they are. It's a secret place that only Pa and I know.”
“Oh! Yes, that part of the forest is where there is more humidity and where less sun is shining. They are better because that improves them. When I go to town, I always take the opportunity to take a few kilos with me and exchange them for other products, or money.”
That got my attention.” What else could we trade?” I asked him.
“Oh, mm! Not much now. My wife used to make products with the skin of animals that we hunted to eat. We take advantage of everything, but she is gone now, and I don't have time to take care of Mary and hunt. I just can't cope. My wife and I used to sit by the fireplace and sew for hours.”
“I can help, if you tell me how I will do it.”
“There's a chance it could work, but please be warned that it takes a lot of practice, and will be inevitable that you'll stab yourself.”
“I could also help by collecting the mushrooms. If I learn the way, it would be easy.”
“Don't take it badly, but I don't think you're capable of doing it in your condition. Sure, we could try, but I just want to tell you what will be difficult for you. The terrain is not very friendly, and for nothing, I would like something to happen to you. A fall can be dangerous, and what if you hurt your head again?”
“OK, OK. I get it. However, I would like to go with you. Mary could alert me to any obstacles. What do they say?”
“Yes, Pa, I'll help her. I see well, and nothing is going to escape me.”
“Mary, then you will be responsible for what happens to Brid while we are in the forest. Do you understand what a big responsibility is?” Oh! No, I had not seen it that way. Poor Mary. I was going to tell them that it was better that we drop the subject when Mary surprised me with what she said.
“Yes, Pa, I am responsible, and I will not fail her.”
My eyes watered. Mary was stealing my heart at a brisk pace. It is unthinkable to expect something like that after the contempt and abuse that I suffered in my pack. Not even my mate was able to say something nice. I thought about him after that, and my only goal was to erase that day from my life so that I never suffered that immensely.
