"Y'know how they say pictures are a window to the past?"
His words slowly inched from his lips as his eyes stayed trained to a page with a collection of photos carefully placed inside. A time capsule of his youth that he often found himself drawn back to. It told stories of better times, of love and youthful hardships, of growing, of togetherness.
"I think you stare out those windows a bit too often, Jack," Katarina sighed, staring down at him as his eyes still trailed the photos of the album. She had a difficult time getting her eyes to adjust to the dim light of the room he sat in, and it never got easier no matter how often she visited her cousin. It honestly amazed her how he could deal with living like he did. The lack of lighting was a reasonable thing, but there was always a smell of death, of decay and rot, that was almost in every corner of the house, and she often came by to make sure his living space hadn't ended up filled with trash.
If she was being honest, she felt a sense of pity with the way he lived. She couldn't bring herself to judge him either, not after all that happened.
"You should also figure out where that rodent is... It's basically ruined the entire house."
"What rodent?"
"Well what else could be rotting in your walls. Do you not smell it?"
"Oh... No, I don't smell it anymore."
She hummed. “Weird. I can call someone if you need.”
“I've got it.”
“If you say.”
He watched her, his fingers pressing harder into the pages between his fingers as he moved slowly to close the book. He slowly shifted in his seat, grinding his teeth slowly.
“Are you leaving soon?” His words were drawn out like falling honey, his eyes flickering up to stare directly into hers.
“Maybe.”
“That's a shame.”
“Yeah… It is.”
He seemed honestly impatient to see her leave, and she could tell. A sigh escaped her as she nodded, stepping back. “I'll see you later.” His lack of a reply spoke volumes and she stepped out of the room, shutting the door behind her. A satisfying click echoed in his room before he stood up, placing the photo album on his chair.
“Good riddance,” was all he said once he was certain Katarina was gone. He didn't bother looking for what was causing the smell. If it was any kind of small mammal it'd be gone soon, and he didn't want to deal with anything larger.
He silently walked to the kitchen, rubbing his hands together. He noticed the holes and strange stains on the walls but no longer could remember what caused them. Things were a fuzzy blur for most of his life. Only the photos he kept safely tucked away remained of his past. Though once he reached the kitchen, remembering what he had wandered into it for snapped him from his thoughts. He carefully opened the fridge, as if the action was enough to snap the door from its hinges.
The cold air hit him like a truck, though he knew he should have expected it. He quietly tapped his fingers along the top of the thick door, his eyes squinting down at the contents of the fridge. He seemed confused by a few items that sat in the fridge, mumbling about misplacing things as he carefully removed a dingy knife from a pool of grime.
“I'll need to wash that,” he reminded himself before rising off his hands and grabbing a can of coke from the fridge. He quickly opened it, the sharpest movement he had made that day, and slowly drank down the cold liquid, savoring the taste. He looked at the clock that sat on his counter, gritting his teeth absentmindedly. It read 6:47. It had for a while. Another thing on the to-do list as far as Jack was concerned, though.
He slowly began returning to the room he originally stayed in before he heard a knock at the door. He grumbled softly before going to answer it, though there was no one there. He shook it off before walking away. He noticed a fresh stain on the floor that led away from the door but shrugged it off, noticing a pain in his shoulder he hadn't noticed before. He huffed, slowly trekking back to his room, the soft squelch of a liquid under his feet. He just took it for a leak somewhere and slowly climbed into bed.
He noticed a figure laid in his bed and hummed in intrigue and studied them before realizing it was Katarina. He was sure she was just quietly resting so he laid down beside her, slowly slipping off to rest.