One Last Meal

Mark had been carrying Mai on his back for a few minutes, slowly drawing closer to his home, a place he hadn’t seen since he left to perform the day before. With each step he took, his breathing became heavier and heavier.

“Mark, is everything alright?” Mai asked quietly. With her head buried into his shoulder, Mai physically noticed the changes in his breathing as they headed to the Reyes’ home.

“I don’t know. I’m just trying to push the thoughts out of my head,” Mark answered honestly as he took a couple slow steps down the street until they arrived at their destination. Staring up to the roof of the house, he thought of a time a couple years ago when he was laying up there, stargazing with Chloe next to him and Damian on the other side of her.

His parents were shouting at them from Mark’s window, yelling at them to go inside. After watching the three of them get up and head towards the bedroom window, they cleared the path for them. When the three of them were almost to the window, Chloe slipped and fell off the roof.

“Chloe!” Mark and Damian both yelled as they reached towards her and caught her.

As her body dangled from the roof, both brothers were struggling to keep her up since their momentum to catch her threw them off balance.

“Guys! Please don’t drop me!” Chloe pleaded as she held onto their arms, digging her nails into them, desperately trying not to fall.

“Mark, pull!” Damian commanded as he pulled on Chloe to try and lift her up onto the roof.

When Mark pulled, his hands slipped on the long sleeves of Chloe’s sweater. Desperately trying to catch her again, he flailed his arms after her, only to grab the emptiness of the air. His body stiffened up, preventing him from throwing himself off the roof, making him unable to reach Chloe.

“No!” Damian shouted as he dove to the edge of the roof, holding tightly onto Chloe. Damian struggled and grunted as he tried to pull her up, but due to the terrible leverage he had, he couldn’t make any progress.

As Mark went to go step closer and help, Damian had squirmed his body closer to the edge in a way that allowed him to use his legs to keep him from falling off the roof. Once he was in a sitting position, Damian’s adrenaline kicked into overdrive, allowing him to pull Chloe up and out of harm’s way.

“T-Thank you Dami! You saved me!” Chloe cried as she threw herself onto Damian once they were inside.

“Dami? Is that a new nickname?” Mark muttered as he looked on at Chloe and his brother sharing a hug.

Damian heard Mark’s remark and broke his hug with Chloe to press Mark about what happened on the roof.

“Why didn’t you go after her? She could’ve been seriously hurt!” Damian growled as he gave his brother a fierce shove into the wall of Mark’s room, knocking over some books that were stacked on a nearby bookshelf. With how hard he shoved Mark, it was clear that Damian was still on an adrenaline high.

“Damian, it’s alright! I’m fine! Please don’t fight,” Chloe pleaded as she pulled on his arm, tugging at it with urgency.

Mark, shaken up by the entire situation, struggled to come up with an answer to Damian’s question. With his mouth agape, his eyes and mind raced each other to try and find a solution before Damian could give him one. Unfortunately for Mark, Damian got there before he could offer up the sorry excuse he came up with.

“You should’ve dove after her, even if you put yourself in harm’s way,” Damian said aggressively as he turned away from his brother in disgust. He left the room and headed towards the bathroom, leaving the two of them together.

“Mark, it’s not your fault,” Chloe said softly. “It’s my fault. Don’t listen to him.”

“I’m sorry Chloe. I…I was scared,” Mark muttered out loud, not realizing he did so until Mai’s words brought him back to the present.

“It’s okay to be scared, Mark. ” Mai assured as she pulled her head away from his shoulder to look at his face.

“Things are never the same after a death, are they?” Mark asked as he took a couple grave steps towards the front door.

Mai stayed in silence, thinking back to the first time she returned home after her father passed. Everything felt wrong. She had always dreamt about waking up in her father’s arms and ending the long nightmare, but that end was never fulfilled.

“Of course they’re not,” Mark thought as he quickly grabbed his keys from his pockets and opened the door to greet the unfamiliar air in this familiar place.

“I’m home,” Mark let out quietly as he closed the door behind him and fell to his knees. His hands were no longer supporting Mai on his back. Instead, they were slammed into his face, trying to keep his composure in front of her.

Hearing his words “I’m home,” reminded her of the first time she returned to an empty house. Mai, still with her arms around his neck, leaned into Mark even more to assert her presence and support.

Mark tightened up his body when he felt her pressed up behind him. His soft sobbing immediately halted, and he turned to look towards Mai with watered eyes.

“Don’t be afraid to cry. I’ll look away if you want me to,” Mai offered as she rubbed his shoulders softly.

“I just need a minute to myself,” Mark said as he lowered his head down, looking away from her.

“Take your time. I can wait,” Mai said caringly as her stomach growled violently.

“That’s right, you were hungry,” Mark remembered as he quickly wiped his eyes, ultimately disregarding Mai’s previous comment. “Let’s get you something to eat,” he continued quietly as he hoisted Mai back up on his back.

Mai held onto Mark as if everything was normal, and after a few more steps, she got off of his back to sit on the couch.

“Mark, do you have an ice pack?” Mai asked as she massaged her ankle slightly. “It still hurts a bit.”

Mark nodded and quickly headed over to the kitchen. When he opened the freezer, he found an ice pack that was lodged behind some frozen treats. After closing the freezer, he opened the refrigerator. Mark noticed a container of food with a sticky note on top. When he pulled out the container, he read the note, and froze in place.

“For Mark, so don’t eat it Dami! – Love, Mom”

“Mom…” Mark thought silently as he stared down the container of food. This was the last meal he would ever get from his mother. Mark was desperately trying to hold himself together. He had already shown his vulnerability to Mai. He didn’t want to cry in front of her, so he quickly tried to erase the thoughts haunting him.

After taking the note off the container and putting it in his pocket, Mark put the container of food into the microwave to heat it up. Mai heard the sound of the microwave and perked her ears towards the sound like a cat.

Once the food finished heating up, Mark took it out and opened the tray, revealing the contents inside. The steam from the food created a small white cloud, but the scent of the food filled Mark’s nose with the smell of bittersweet happiness. Once the steam vented, the dish was clearly visible to Mark, though he already knew what the contents were of the tray. Grilled fish, served with boiled mixed vegetables, and a serving of rice to complete the meal.

This was one of Mark’s favorite dishes. With all of the emotions of sadness and loss he felt, Mark fully understood that he wouldn’t be able to enjoy meals like this with his family again. Mark stared down at the tray for a few moments, mentally trying to figure out a way to enjoy the meal, until he heard Mai’s voice.

“Mark? Did you find an ice pack?” Mai called out from the living room.

“O-Oh. Yes, I did,” Mark replied as he grabbed the ice pack, food, a bottle of water from the fridge, and a pair of chopsticks. He placed the food, water, and chopsticks on a portable folding table. After some deep breaths to calm himself down, he carried the table over to where Mai was sitting on the couch.

“Is this for me?” Mai asked as she pointed to her face with stoic movements.

“Yeah,” Mark answered somewhat unenthusiastically, hiding the sadness that came along with giving away the last meal that would be made for him from his loving mother.

“Thank you, Mark. This means a lot,” Mai responded as her stomach started rumbling viciously. In her head, she imagined the cups of instant noodles she had been surviving off of for the past few months. After a quick prayer to herself, Mai began to eat the meal, savoring that first mouthful of food as though she would never eat something like this again.

“I hope you like it. It’s one of my favorites,” Mark said softly as he sat next to Mai with the ice pack in hand. “Can you give me your foot? I’ll ice it for you.”

Mai looked over with a puzzled look, yet nodded and complied with Mark’s request. As she gave him her foot, he softly applied pressure with the ice pack.

“Does this feel any better?” Mark asked as he looked up towards Mai.

*     *     *

Meanwhile, Chloe, Damian, and Alexa had gotten to the Reyes’ home.

Damian was scooting his way backwards up the small steps that led to his home. With Alexa and Chloe’s help, he reached the top step, and sat carefully in his wheelchair. Seeing that the lights were on inside, Damian assumed that Mark left the door unlocked, and opened the door.

“We’re here-” Chloe announced as the three of them entered the house, only to see the current scene unfolding.

The three of them had mixed reactions when they saw Mark and Mai. Alexa, who had been feeling gloomy all day, found solace in seeing Mark and Mai. Damian, who was still unsure of how to talk with his brother, found beauty in Mai’s appearance. Chloe, who had been trying to be a pillar for Mark and Damian, found slight jealousy. A jealousy that wasn’t inherently negative, but a feeling that she had never experienced before.

“See? I told you not to trust Mark with your friend,” Damian remarked as he looked up to Chloe with a playful ‘I told you so’ look on his face.

“Mai?” Chloe asked as she saw Mai nodding to Mark while having a meal. Chloe also saw Mark holding her foot and an ice pack. “A-Are we interrupting?” she asked hesitantly. Chloe felt insecure and uncomfortable in her own skin, imagining that Mai and Mark had been alone for hours despite knowing they couldn’t have been together for long.

“Oh crap, this looks really bad!” Mark thought as he quickly dropped Mai’s foot and the ice pack he was holding in his hand.

“No, not really. You aren’t interrupting anything,” Mai answered plainly to Chloe as she ate her meal, almost as if nothing happened.

“Nice save,” Mark thought as he let out a silent sigh of relief.

“Thank you again for the meal and the ice,” Mai continued while taking another bite into her meal innocently, trying to fulfill her basic need of sustenance. “You’re very kind and hospitable.”

Chloe felt her heart pierce. Mai’s compliments meant for Mark seemed like daggers to Chloe.

“Mai, I asked if you could try and get him to open up a bit. I didn’t ask you to date him!” Chloe thought harshly as she took a quick step towards Mark and Mai, only to catch herself in what she was doing. “Wait, what am I doing? Why do I feel like this? I shouldn’t be thinking like this.”

“I-I was just trying to be nice,” Mark responded meekly as he stood up from the couch and held his hands out with his palms facing Chloe and Damian, hoping neither of them would press him about what was happening.

While Chloe was frozen in place trying to swallow the incoherent thoughts swirling around her mind, Damian and Alexa made their way towards Mark and Mai.

“Oh! Damian, this is Mai!” Alexa introduced excitedly, trying to change the mood. “Isn’t she pretty? Like Chloe?” she continued as she hopped into the seat next to Mai, the seat Mark was originally sitting in.

“You’re right little sis, she is pretty,” Damian replied, wheeling his way over to where Mai was sitting. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mai. I’m Damian Reyes,” he continued, holding out his hand for a handshake.

“Wait, you too?” Chloe thought as Damian complimented Mai. Chloe felt another dagger pierce through her, this time with the name “Damian Reyes” engraved on it.

“Why do I feel like this? It was just a compliment. Mai is pretty,” Chloe thought to herself. “I shouldn’t be jealous. My friends are just talking to each other. I should just join in with them,” she told herself as she walked over to where everyone was congregated.

“Nice to meet you, Damian,” Mai responded as she reached her hand to shake his hand. “Chloe has told me many great things about you and Mark,” she continued, shaking his hand firmly.

“Is that right?” Damian asked playfully as he looked at Chloe who had now joined them on a separate couch.

Chloe playfully rolled her eyes in an attempt to lighten the mood within herself.

“Chloe, is everything alright?” Damian asked in his mind when he noticed Chloe roll her eyes. He knew that something was off about her.

“Mai, what is this ice pack for?” Alexa asked as she lifted it into the air, bringing the focus of the conversation back to Mai.

“That? I just took a bad step in my heels,” Mai started as she gestured for Alexa to hand over the ice. “My ankle doesn’t hurt as bad as it did before. I might be able to walk home,” she continued stoically.

“I can take you home. Or we could have another sleepover at my house,” Chloe offered as she raised her hand to get Mai’s attention.

“Sleepover!” Alexa thought as her face lit up with excitement.

“A sleepover! That’s a great idea! We can talk, draw, color! I’ll ask mommy!-” Alexa shouted animatedly as she got up to run to her parents’ room. That was, until she got to her last word.

The room suddenly fell silent. Everyone was able to see the visual shift in mood from when Alexa started her sentence and when she ended it.

“Oh…right,” Alexa thought as she let out a small sniffle and fell back into the couch defeatedly.

Chloe looked over at Mai with a slightly more serious expression on her face. Mai understood what Chloe was trying to convey and turned to Alexa with a caring expression.

“Alexa, that’s your name, right?” Mai asked, moving her foot away from Alexa so she could sit upright.

Alexa, sniffling softly, looked up to Mai next to her and gave her a nod of confirmation.

“If your brothers are okay with it, Chloe and I would love to have a sleepover with you,” Mai said with a slight emotion attached to her words.

“That sounds like a lovely idea,” Mark interjected.

Alexa stopped sniffling when she heard this. She felt comfort and a small feeling of happiness in Mark’s words.

“Only on one condition though,” Damian commented sternly.

Everyone’s eyes flew towards Damian, wondering what was going on in his head. Mai’s was a look of confusion; Mark’s was a look of disbelief; Chloe’s was a confused look as she mouthed “what are you doing?”, and Alexa’s was a look of sadness.

“Can you grab some pencil and paper? I want to draw something,” Damian requested with a smile.

“S-Sure,” Alexa responded as she quickly got off the couch, ran upstairs, then quickly came back down.

“Thank you, sis,” Damian thanked as he placed the paper on the portable folding table next to Mai’s empty food tray. Then, he quickly got to work on a sketch.

Everyone crowded around Damian as he progressed further into the sketch. They watched in silence, and after 5 minutes of sketching, Damian unveiled his creation to them. Damian, Chloe, Mai, and Mark were all in a photo booth, taking photos with each other. Damian was wearing a shirt with a white collar, Chloe had on a sweater, Mai had on a nice dress, and Mark was wearing a hoodie. Every detail about them was documented in the sketch.

“I just need to add Alexa. I made this for you after all. It will only take another minute,” Damian said as he put his pencil down briefly.

“Damian! This is incredible! It’s perfect as it is!” Alexa exclaimed as she looked at the drawing.

“Are you sure? I can add you to it,” Damian offered as he picked up his pencil.

“This is fine. I love this! I want to take this to my room,” Alexa said as she waited for the others to have a good look at the sketch.

“You’re a great artist,” Mai complimented as she paid attention to the details in the version of her that was in the drawing. “Is this how people see me?” she thought as she smiled slightly.

“Wow. Why are you better than me at everything?” Mark asked playfully with a strong hint of truth behind his statement.

“Well, not everything,” Chloe answered as she rubbed Mark’s shoulder in support.

Alexa took the drawing in her hands and stared down at it. This was a sketch of people who were there to support her. People she felt that she could count on in this time of struggle without her parents. Even Mai, who had only met her recently, had a strong place in Alexa’s heart. Alexa hugged everyone in the room tightly, saving Damian for last.

“I’m glad I got to see you smile again,” Damian said to her softly as he returned her hug.

After a few moments of hugging, Alexa pulled away slowly, wiping at her eyes in case tears were about to fall.

“Come on Alexa, let’s go put this in your room,” Chloe softly said, holding her hand gently.

“Do you need any help going upstairs?” Mark asked Mai as Chloe and Alexa had already left the room to go upstairs.

“I’ll be fine. Thanks for the offer, but my ankle feels better now,” Mai spoke stoically as she grabbed the ice pack and followed after them slowly.

Once Mai was out of sight, Damian looked up at Mark from his wheelchair.

“Mark, we need to talk.”