A Tiny Friend

That night, Kaia couldn't sleep. There was something that was on her mind. She remembered her parents showing up at the hospital. How exactly did her parents find out that her illness had returned? Did Annie tell them? "No...Annie wouldn't tell them about my condition's symptoms recurring…" she mumbled as she sat on the living room couch. She was cuddled up in the blanket with her laptop on the couch next to her. Her curly hair was tied up into a messy bun. She slowly sipped on the mug of hot chocolate with a candy cane floating in it.

The house was eerily quiet at night. So much so, that it was almost disturbing. After moving in with Alex, her life was full of noise. She liked it. It made her feel alive. She rested her head back on the back cushion, thinking to herself. Kaia didn't know why this frustrated her so much.

Kaia set her cup down, crossing her arms. "Why don't you call the hospital and see who has access to your records. You did say that Annie is extremely trustworthy." A deep and sleepy voice came from behind her, making her jump slightly. Kaia turned to look up at Alex as her furrowed brows loosened and the frown became a smile. "I'm sorry, did I wake you?" she asked softly. Alex smiled and shook his head. "I just couldn't sleep."

Kaia nodded slightly and stood up, closing her laptop. "You were lonely, huh?" she asked with a grin. He just smiled and held out his hand to her. "I never knew you could read minds." Letting out a small laugh, Kaia grabbed his hand, and they both went to their room. Alex climbed into the bed, settling under the covers as he held his arms out to Kaia. Kaia was about to climb under the covers but froze. A black shadow flashed through her peripheral vision. She quickly turned around in the direction of the black shadow, frantically trying to catch sight of it again. "What was that?" Her sudden outburst made Alex jump back up as he protectively grabbed Kaia's arms and held her close. Kaia frantically continued to look around the room before catching a glimpse of it again. This time, she jumped onto the bed with a squeal. "Oh, my god!!! It's a mouse! How did a mouse get into the house?" She frantically grabbed onto Alex's shoulders. "Get rid of it!!!"

Alex couldn't help but laugh at her reaction. "It's ok. Shhhh...calm down," he said while patting her head softly. "Where did it go?" he asked, looking back at Kaia. Kaia pointed over towards the dresser. "Behind the dresser." She crawled to the edge of the bed for a closer look. She carefully scanned the floor for any sign of the small black shadow.

Alex was amused as he watched her looking around with that frightened expression. He turned in the direction of the dresser and went to take a closer look. He walked over to the left side of the dresser, moving it ever so slightly before the mouse ran out. Alex was startled and shouted as he stumbled as onto the bed. He grabbed onto Kaia. Kaia blinked and looked over at Alex who was now holding her and burst into laughter. Her right hand went to her mouth while her other hand wrapped around her waist as she doubled over from laughing so hard. Alex grumbled, poking her side. "You don't have to laugh that much! That thing was huge!" Kaia looked up at him, trying hard to hold back her laughter. "I...pfft...I didn't think you would be scared...by a...by a" she gasped for air as she couldn't hold back her laughter and practically squeaked out the words, "by a mouse!"

Alex gave her a pout, then grabbed her by the waist. "Fine, you go get it then." He was going to push her towards the edge of the bed, but she reacted quickly and smacked his hands away. "NO! I'm sorry! I'm sorry, ok?!?" She squealed, moving away from him and inched closer to the middle of the bed, taking a few deep breaths to calm herself. Alex looked towards the direction of the mouse, then back at Kaia. "We have to call an exterminator." Kaia nodded. "Yes, but it's already so late, so what are we going to do?" she asked, looking over the edge of the bed with him. Alex took a deep breath, rubbing a hand over his face. He froze when he saw the mouse scurry behind the dresser again. He quickly jumped up, scooting the dresser back against the wall, attempting to trap the mouse there so it couldn't get out. The dresser was open on the bottom only in the backsides, and the front was blocked off, which was why the mouse couldn't escape. Kaia frowned. "You're going to keep it behind the dresser?!? What if it touches our clothes?!?" Alex looked at her with a sigh. "Then we'll just get them thoroughly cleaned, or buy new ones."

Kaia took a deep breath. "Let's call an exterminator first thing in the morning." Alex nodded and climbed back on the bed with a sigh. She looked back towards the dresser. "Are you sure it can't get out?" she asked. Alex responded with a "Yes".

Kaia climbed under the blankets, burrowing herself into them. "Let's go to sleep then." Alex nodded, laying down next to her as he pulled her in close.

In the middle of the night, they both awoke to the sound of scratching. Kaia tiredly blinked her eyes open to look at Alex who was also looking back at her with a sleepy expression. "I'm surprised you were actually able to sleep so soundly for that long. That thing has been scratching non-stop for an hour already…" Kaia groaned, digging her head back into his chest. The scratching noises stopped for a while and they both fell fast asleep because they were extremely tired.

Around four in the morning, Alex groaned as he heard the mouse once again. He looked around before his eyes locked onto the side table. Seeing the loose change, he quickly grabbed a few coins and threw them at the dresser. "Shut up!" he groaned in annoyance. Kaia, who was startled awake, turned over to cuddle him. "That mouse is so annoying!" Alex sighed. He gently removed Kaia's arm before sitting up on the bed. "That's it! I'm done playing Mr. Nice Guy! That mouse has got to go! I'm going to make some calls," he exclaimed almost hysterically. He flung the covers off and grabbed his phone before heading to the living room.

Kaia sighed as she heard the continual scratching sounds again. She rolled her eyes and stood up, grabbing the blankets and a pillow. She huffily went into the living room before throwing everything onto the couch. Alex had his hands on his hips as he searched for pest control on his phone. He turned around when he saw Kaia. She looked extremely upset and tired as she walked over to Alex and wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug.

They both made their way onto the couch as they pulled the covers over themselves. Alex sighed as he put his phone down after searching in vain for pest control businesses. The one that opened the earliest opened at approximately 9 a.m. and it was still approximately 4:30, so they snuggled on the couch for a few more hours.