My long nails wrapped around the old wooden boards of the train tracks buried amongst layers of grey gravel. The steel beams running either side were boiled under the sun slowly cooking them and my own body. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAw8WT77mGsf
72Please respect copyright.PENANAxKsszGaElP
The sky was clear, as it had been for a week now, with not a grey cloud in the sky. It was the perfect temperature too. The air was cool but not cold enough to freeze me or hot enough to choke me. It was pleasant to idle in on my wander to the house in the distance. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAO1di4dl7Go
72Please respect copyright.PENANAVgQzJKr1Wd
I kept my eyes locked on the tracks running as far as the eye could see through overgrown fields of grass that rippled like water in the breeze. My pace turned to excited running and my heart gripped at my chest when I saw a flash of orange and blue emerge from the house in the distance. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAUTA9vrZTa2
72Please respect copyright.PENANA2UMxcRXRZz
I bounded over the river and paused on the other side where people were moving across the empty road to the shops lined either side. 72Please respect copyright.PENANA6GYUBEVBLR
72Please respect copyright.PENANAvYl8hNkcWQ
I was in clear sight of them now. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAKk20RyRwpA
72Please respect copyright.PENANANRZMhZdhhl
"Soup!" the tiny voice blew on the breeze to catch my attention again. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAB5Gpob5rRu
It was so faint, but it was the sound I was waiting for. 72Please respect copyright.PENANA1LSauWgwDp
72Please respect copyright.PENANAgrYg8jlDQk
A portly man approached the tracks as quick as his waddling body allowed, placing distance between us so he could squint in the direction of the house. 72Please respect copyright.PENANApWRXVGqaZa
72Please respect copyright.PENANAyKVyY1M5jc
He was the news agency owner here. His balding head with a halo of grey hair and leathery skin once roughed by laborious work in his youth was easily distinguishable. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAb9hP4FVzHM
His corner-shop was only a few meters from the tracks so he could have the time to waddle out each afternoon I made my appearance to make himself known. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAzsqSmEgI0g
72Please respect copyright.PENANAWYH1A5LnL0
I used to call him Bartleby. He preferred Bartie.72Please respect copyright.PENANAEYsY7Lp7Ej
72Please respect copyright.PENANAkvT45kxgDp
"MISSY!" Bartie cupped his hands around his mouth before pointing them to me "you've got to stop feeding the beast!" 72Please respect copyright.PENANAq7yHWPfEcj
72Please respect copyright.PENANA4zRTtPYCnB
I snickered at his concern and walked past Bartie before he cleared his throat to halt me. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAH7WWDtEHtg
72Please respect copyright.PENANAXHAnxSeKQF
"You be good to her, Soup, you hear?" he scowled and waved a finger to me "I'll know if you do anything to her!" 72Please respect copyright.PENANA5MzpTV3Azx
72Please respect copyright.PENANAbuWLahQkr7
He had no reason to worry so much. It was the same empty threat he had been giving me for three months straight now. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAALDVVFoyoY
I just shook off Bartie's concern and raced for the woman waving for me to come. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAmEYebGspyN
72Please respect copyright.PENANAPJOUr02ZyB
I was smitten with her. She was so kind and had this wonderful light voice that was rougher around the edges. She had the most adorable freckles painted on her face and a lovely round body that she liked to swamp in knitted jumpers or flowing dresses she made. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAFfwIBMwUdt
72Please respect copyright.PENANAJZuwicjzQ3
When her features began to form on the figure bobbing closer into focus, I grinned wildly and pushed myself to sprint for her laughing face bent down to search for me through the sea of grass. I swam through it to break through to her open gate held back for me. Her scooter was heaved back into its stand here too. 72Please respect copyright.PENANA20V4XGBcFF
72Please respect copyright.PENANAOAM0zo9rWI
Missy stood on the wooden stairs to her porch hugging the front half of her little wooden home. It was a very cost place made entirely of old wood painted in a muted green. 72Please respect copyright.PENANARYDlQUS9B9
It had herbs growing in the windows glimpsing into her sewing room in the left where she had spools of fabric hung on the wall next to her machine and dotted cloth mannequins. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAsc8lCGpsku
72Please respect copyright.PENANAWHF33hxA1q
Her right window had parts of her kitchen on show. I had peered into it a few times when I had been too eager to wait, watching her cook on her gas oven nestled within stone countertops while she shooed me away with a smile. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAYkEivHRjY4
72Please respect copyright.PENANAlqzCFTMIUN
Missy had the window wide open to waft out the smell of the food she had been cooking. The rich beef spiralled around the earthy tones of stock and tangy herbs freshly plucked from her windows. I could smell the carrots and buttery pumpkin I knew were harvested from her garden nestled out the back. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAxoZzqgsh7I
72Please respect copyright.PENANAqEboerUhVA
That's how we had met. I had been raiding her gardens at night before she caught me and chased me off. After a few nights of futile attempts to stop me, and several vegetables left discarded in my escape, she started offering me her leftovers before it became proper meals. 72Please respect copyright.PENANA1NaoqkoQNB
72Please respect copyright.PENANAT052k7ACwM
She didn't know what to call me, so she called me Soup. It was her favourite thing to feed me, and the easiest on her budget made selling homemade dresses. 72Please respect copyright.PENANA3x6IOGy9QT
72Please respect copyright.PENANAkmUJxVsaEm
"Soup!" Missy cooed down to me waiting at the bottom of her stairs "I missed you! I'll grab your food. I think you'll like it today." 72Please respect copyright.PENANA2v7vV2pTrV
72Please respect copyright.PENANAXF3Lphkn1Q
I liked how her voice rose excitedly when she saw me. It sounded like she was greeting a lifelong pet dear to her heart. I didn’t mind that; I was just glad she loved me so dearly to put this much effort into caring for me. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAIFrnzGfLCq
72Please respect copyright.PENANAuShur9ho7A
"Beef soup with my own vegetables and the local meat. I cooked it with teriyaki before putting it in" Missy exclaimed as she returned carrying two stone bowls and carefully placing one down on the grass for me. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAcDMjK5Z2qe
72Please respect copyright.PENANAEgAQPUp14Z
My mouth was watering when I saw the mixture of colours beside me. Steam spiralled from the fresh meal Missy set down so she could fan out her checkered blue and white dress to sit on the stairs. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAbXCit9QIP8
72Please respect copyright.PENANAlzgEQVLlkr
She cradled her soup in her lap while I blew onto mine to try and cool it enough to scoff it down. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAtTdyAWd5cm
My stomach was begging for the hot meal that little birds and discarded rubbish along the roads could never satisfy. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAyNqRWdxund
72Please respect copyright.PENANAnXArnUySaC
"Thank you" I grinned to her and wrapped my hands around the hot bowl so I could lift myself onto my legs and drink it down. 72Please respect copyright.PENANANvglxrsvpw
Soup spilled down my chest to burn trails down my skin before I could swipe then up. The chunks of beef were chewy and wedged between my teeth. The bitter teriyaki coated all its layers to bring out the meaty flavour. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAxAs32X1GQ4
72Please respect copyright.PENANAhEkTt6PEqq
It was the cheap meat again. I don't think Missy could afford anything like the ones that fell from the bone or had soft marbles of fat throughout rather than thick coats. 72Please respect copyright.PENANALp8Z7JscWx
72Please respect copyright.PENANABtiMZFJ03c
She grinned and watched me try to keep my balance as I felt the meal burn a new hole in my stomach that growled for more. My legs trembled, not used to being so relied upon when I had all four of my limbs to power me effortlessly now. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAOP60pH0IwI
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I placed the bowl beside her and lowered myself back down. 72Please respect copyright.PENANABKtTBzYYKT
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"More please" I pointed.72Please respect copyright.PENANAofd1QpnkzO
72Please respect copyright.PENANAh5PDSas9wc
She couldn't understand me but smiled like she had. All she heard were the same noises I did whenever I spoke in this form. It was just a mixture of growls and low snaps that I preferred to keep quiet, so I didn't scare her. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAwKJhCyk1wU
72Please respect copyright.PENANAN4ulCJsayC
Missy liked it when I talked to her, and I liked it when I made Missy happy. 72Please respect copyright.PENANA5XQHN1ed55
72Please respect copyright.PENANAy1eBv4MNw2
"You're hungry today" she mused "did I not feed you enough yesterday?" 72Please respect copyright.PENANA1xebddVGUl
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I just smiled and watched her retreat back inside, leaving her bowl on the stairs. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAdstYpuG6JV
72Please respect copyright.PENANA9fRia1q9bQ
Missy was the type of person I would grow old with as a human. I often let my mind wander to what we could be if I hid behind my skin again as a human and tried to form a relationship with her in this home built for two. 72Please respect copyright.PENANA2ej4icAXoM
72Please respect copyright.PENANAeZJxYbHTCG
Despite having a sunny personality and being loved in town, Missy liked her quiet life. She didn't want her heart to be broken or taken advantage of. She was worried she was too poor to ever please a man or mother children. She hated that she was too scared to reach out and form those connections. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAH4Tlb43IRl
72Please respect copyright.PENANA3lLJOv3s2e
She liked me because I was an animal to her. I had no commitments other than one hot meal a day. I wasn't going to make her sad or upset her simple lifestyle with big ambitions. I didn't drain her trickling budget or offer anything outside the trinkets of lost belongings or junk I presented her with. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAsVSOKuI9h8
72Please respect copyright.PENANARWFyWLVjbe
I didn't want to ruin that. I kept in this form and didn't dare to try and act on my daydreams of being accepted into her life as her partner with open arms. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAVc1TrKn8js
72Please respect copyright.PENANAyYK9wyxTsu
I ate my soup and accepted her new name for me that spread through the town. It was simple and the way things were. 72Please respect copyright.PENANApf3IM2FlUC
72Please respect copyright.PENANAjtuokLylnp
"Here we go!" Missy returned from the house along with two slices of crusty sourdough she had pushed into the bowl "buttered it for you too, you greedy guts. I'm surprised you didn't eat mine." 72Please respect copyright.PENANAiaBAj3wJXc
72Please respect copyright.PENANApJkz3Au3L3
I was lucky to have her. She was too kind to be so afraid of life itself. Missy deserved more than it was handing her.72Please respect copyright.PENANALmowYVQfHL
72Please respect copyright.PENANARuNeoBck2M
I took the filled bowl to drop one of the slices of bread into her own before shovelling this one down greedily. 72Please respect copyright.PENANACkMjeOPzH4
72Please respect copyright.PENANA9LfA5JP5UA
I could feel the warmth of it leaking down my front from the inside and bubble in my gut gurgling from so much liquid drowning it at once. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAPFIG0n6pF3
72Please respect copyright.PENANAMZynMzKSle
I snapped down the tough meat, licked the bowl, then headed back for the wall of grass awaiting me. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAVvXpi1ENy8
72Please respect copyright.PENANADOC80siLYj
"See you tomorrow?" Missy called out with a worried frown. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAvdLVcyiwoh
72Please respect copyright.PENANAiDiDSEvWIZ
Of course, she would. I would never leave her wondering where I had gone. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAaZYZKifLaP
72Please respect copyright.PENANAxbSW8Yx3fw
I nodded and disappeared into the grass to follow the train tracks back to the East. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAqgc3x64aAH
72Please respect copyright.PENANALvQsC3axM5
I stared up at the moon nestled in amongst the glittering stars from my grassy ledge curved over several meters from the tracks behind me. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAZo6K3BOSmP
72Please respect copyright.PENANASfeKk7wO5B
The field surrounding me was dancing with wildflowers that stirred at the touch of glowing fireflies blinking through the air like showers of floating embers. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAAv8oW6iTmF
72Please respect copyright.PENANADiuTIjm3dd
They flitted like fire in the cool air and amongst the flowers. The fireflies reached for the stars themselves and I watched them ascend to the dusted void above. 72Please respect copyright.PENANA8QpuswR9U8
72Please respect copyright.PENANAvGty64QrWI
It was so peaceful here with only the moonlight basking over the land. There was no artificial glow of streetlights or the sound of cars screeching on tar. The only sound piercing through the silence was the scraping of metal as the train thundered by on its nightly route to distant towns. Each lit window slashed over the grass below, reminding me of the loud and bright reality amongst the dark serenity until it was gone again. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAilePOJFD1E
72Please respect copyright.PENANAMMApVbtot0
One day I might go visit those places. For now, I had my reason to stay here. 72Please respect copyright.PENANANQpTKJSGqf
I wonder if she just stopped to stare at the beauty of the moon too. Maybe she sewed in her room while wondering about things beyond her reach like I did? 72Please respect copyright.PENANArDZ9kbIwaL
72Please respect copyright.PENANAJmdm2j3aip
I smiled at the moon and laid back, so I didn't have to take my eyes from it. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAQOTAlfUAe9
The soft grass would be my bed tonight. Usually, I roamed for food or trash on the roadside for several kilometres to try and salvage something until sleep sapped my energy and I collapsed wherever I was. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAoFtcJVR8Fe
72Please respect copyright.PENANAxasMKQb8yf
The moonlit field of fireflies would be nice tonight. I could wait until Missy gifted me with her wonderful food tomorrow. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAPlGkHtzYWL
72Please respect copyright.PENANAbns6QmyqBX
I curled up with my hands wrapped around me, pretending they were hers cradling me and breathing warmth into me. 72Please respect copyright.PENANAeEOQ304HG9
72Please respect copyright.PENANASViik09T0R
One day...
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Soup
Author:
Lamington
ISSUE #2
Missy
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Soup
Fantasy
Romance
Short Story
Last updated: Feb 19, 2024
Total word count: 7,666
Total reading time: 35 Minutes
Writer:
romance
love
fantasy
friendship
shortstory
suspense
lovestory
shortstories
monsters
demon
cute
forbiddenlove
animals
human
shapeshifter
shifters
soup
missingperson
dresses
monsterxhuman
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