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Today starts like any other day. You wake up, you brush your teeth and pick out one of your many graphic shirts and jeans to wear, and you stroll down the hallways to the kitchen. You always pass by Noodle's room and, like clockwork, as you get to her room, she pokes her head out of the doorway with a grin plastered on her face. She's still in her pajamas and holds onto a doll that Murdoc found at a thrift store ("Every tyke needs a companion." It was one of the few good advice that Murdoc had).
"Ohayou!"
You pause in walking to look down at her. You're not sure of the exact meaning of what she said means but you learned it to be a greeting. "Mornin', Noodle. You just woke up?"
She nods and then giggles. It's not lost on you that she's lying, but you've never seen a reason to point it out. You gently place a hand on her head. "Wanna get some cereal?"
Noodle nods her head, and you both continue your way to the kitchen. Noodle had never been one to initiate conversations, but you feel odd walking down the hallway in silence, so you ask her if she has any dreams. She nods and rattles off her dream in Japanese. You have no idea what she's saying, but with the way that she starts punching the air, you think she was dreaming of fighting monsters, and this brings a smile to your face. Oh, how it was to be a kid.
As you two make it to the kitchen, Noodle grabs a chair so she can reach the cabinet to grab a bowl while you search for the cereal. It isn't in the usual spot that you left it, so you look in different cabinets with no luck. Your last resort is the fridge, and you let out a sigh of relief as a box of Fruity Pebbles stares back at you. You take it and the milk out and go over to stand next to Noodle, who hands you the bowl. As you pour her cereal, your right eye starts to hurt. It's a stabbing pain that feels as if your eye wants to explode, but you know that's not possible.
You ignore it.
You pour milk into the bowl, grab a spoon, and go to place it on the table. Noodle pushes the chair back to the table and sits down.
"Arigatou gozaimasu!" Noodle says before she starts to eat her cereal. You gently ruffle her hair as you go to prepare your tea. The pain in your eye is constant and feels as if it's spreading to your head as a dull ache forms.
You ignore it.
As the water boils in the tea kettle, you grab a tea bag and a mug. You look at the mug you grabbed, and it has Spider-Man's face on it. You remember when you found this at the store and begged Murdoc to buy it because you had left your wallet at the studio. Maybe Murdoc was feeling generous, or maybe he didn't want to deal with your insistent begging, but he bought it for you. You chuckle to yourself at the memory, but suddenly you're shoved.
"Outta the way, Faceache!"
The dull ache has become worse and is now a migraine that you can no longer ignore. You want to close your eyes so you can regroup yourself, but Murdoc is now shoving you. You lose your footing and fall to the floor, a mess of limbs, as the tea kettle starts to whistle.
"What are you doing on the floor?! Get your damn kettle off the burner!"
The pain has quickly become unbearable as the whistling from the kettle and Murdoc's shouting aggravate it. You want to move quickly stand up and turn the burner off but the migraine has coated your body in sludge, making the lights of the kitchen too bright for your eyes, the sounds piercing to your ears, and even the once nonexistent smell of the kitchen now prominent in your nostrils as you smell rotting garbage and Murdoc's body odor.
You are in pain.
You force yourself to stand up slowly, you shuffle over to the stove, and you turn off the burner. Without a word, you make your way out of the kitchen. You catch Noodle staring at you with a worried expression. You gently place a hand on the top of her head. You let it linger there for a few seconds before you continue walking, letting your hand slide off her head. From where you are, your room seems so far away, but you have to make it there. You lean against the wall as you trudge on towards your room.
When you get to your room, you want nothing more than to curl up on your bed, but first you scavenge through your drawer and, with shaky hands, take pills out of their pill bottles. You dry swallow them and then get into bed. You lie on your back, close your eyes, and let the pain envelope you as you wait for it to break and free you.