Page 3 of A Soul to Touch

“I really need to stop drinking,” she muttered, lifting the bottle above her head so the remaining drops of alcohol would coat her tongue. “I always have weird, vivid dreams when I drink.”

She’d been hoping there were more than a few drops in the bottle, but as she turned her gaze to the side, she realised she’d knocked it over and spilled its contents. Before or after she had fallen asleep, she wasn’t sure. At least it fell the other way and didn’t ruin her futon.

Dropping the bottle to the side, she got to her hands and knees to crawl over to the last dry log. She threw it in the fireplace, knowing the remaining coals would eventually set it alight and rewarm the house.

Completely and utterly naked, since there was no one else in this empty house besides herself, she dragged her sorry, hungover ass to the kitchen counter.

She unlocked the wooden blinds and pushed them to the sides to reveal the long, plain, gridded window behind them. It was snowing lightly, the world a sea of white. With drowsy eyes, she paid the outside world no mind. It was warm enough within her house, and that’s all she cared about.

She reached across the well-maintained wooden counter for the ceramic jar she wanted, removed the lid, thenimmediatelysighed and rolled her eyes.

“I forgot I was out of my morning tea.”

She reached for another jar, one she rarely opened because its contents were precious and extremely difficult to obtain – and costly. She opened it.

“What the hell?” she growled, tipping the empty jar upside down to see a few brown speckles fall from it. “The coffee too?”

She stamped her foot, leaned over the counter while resting her elbows onto it, and groaned into her hands.I don’t want to go to town today!

She’d been saying that for three days.

However, she was now officially out of everything decent in this house. No tea, no coffee, and she was well-aware she was out of booze.

Nope. No. Not doing it.She leaned back so she could stand straight, rolling her shoulders back defiantly to no one but herself.I can survive without that shit. I’ve been doing it for years.

Her eyes drifted to the front door.

“There’s only one option left.”

A gasp was rendered from Mayumi the moment her entire, bare-ass naked body hit the snow. She’d thrown herself off her porch and into the thick powder right in front of her stairs, basically salmon-diving into it.

All her grogginess dissipated within an instant.

“Woo!” she squealed, sitting up and throwing both her fists into the air. She blinked at the brightness surrounding her in the late morning sun, as falling snowflakes slowly collected in her hair. “That never ceases to hit the spot.”

Her light, fawny skin began to pinken in some areas, the air frigid and cruel to her complexion.

She quickly got to her feet, incidentally sinking to her calf in the fresh snow and having to steady herself. She yanked her foot free and grabbed the metal bucket she’d brought with her so she could start shovelling snow into it.

Her nipples were tight and uncomfortably hard, almost pinching. They pointed the way as she sprinted inside her cottage house to escape the wintery elements, making sure to clean her feet before entering her home.

She placed the metal bucket over a heating rack within herfireplace before kneeling in front of it to warm her body and blue-tinged fingertips.

It wasn’t long before she had fresh water, and she used a ladle as a cup to moisten her tongue. Then she let the water heat for long enough that she could use it to wipe her body clean with a dampened cloth.

She had little else to occupy her thoughts and couldn’t help but look around her home while she waited.

Most would say it was modest. It bore only one additional room and was made mostly of wood, but it was sturdy and had stood the test of time. Her family had resided in this medium-sized cottage for centuries.

On the left wall behind her, there was a wide kitchen with a rack nestled between its countertop and the door. There were no cupboards above the counters, but many spanned underneath, and there was a rack behind the door hiding her dwindling fruits and vegetables. On the right hand-side of the counters was a dining table that had been pushed long-ways against the wall to save space, but could be pulled out to sit four comfortably.

Currently, there was only one chair available. The other three were being stored outside in a wooden shed.

Next to the table at the far left corner was a door that led into a storage room, where Mayumi mainly kept her clothes. It was designed to be a space for everyone living within the house to store personal items. Clothing, toys,weapons.

It was where her futon currently was. She’d rolled it up and put it away with all her bedding before she’d gone outside. Most of those who lived outside of protected villages used futons to save space, especially since the number of people within the house could frequently change.

She usually slept next to the fireplace as it often had the freest space – her parents had done this as well. It was also warmer in winter.

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