Chapter 41: Damn It
At night, Nick again heard strange noises every now and then. It wasn't enough to wake him up more than for a few moments at a time, and it certainly wasn't enough to get him to investigate.
It might just be the Midnight Panther swinging by and rummaging through his garden and porch for sausages again.
He didn't pay it much heed. But if it continued, he would probably have to do something about it or at least investigate.
For now, though, the only thing on his mind was the tree and the axe he was going to use to chop it down. His body ached, and his blisters had taken root during the night, but it wasn't as bad as he had expected. A little salve for the hands and a little stretching for his muscles and he was good to go.
After breakfast, he went at the tree again. He couldn't feel any eyes watching him, so he wasn't sure if Mijko and Tilo were back. But then again, he hadn't felt anything before either. It didn't matter that he knew about their existence. They could probably watch him from less than a meter away, and he wouldn't notice a thing.
Just to be safe, he looked up. He did not see them among the branches.
'Maybe they're the ones making noise at night,' Nick thought to himself, but he doubted it.
If they didn't make any noise when they were right next to him, why would they be loud enough at night that he could hear them even when sleeping?
Chopping down a tree was monotonous work. It was a swing, another swing, a third swing, and a swing again. But Nick didn't feel bored.
It was satisfying to see the wood chips flying, hear the tapping echo through the woods, and feel the axe dig into the tree. It was also satisfying to use his body and feel the muscles that had started to stiffen as of late due to lack of exercise heat up and become revitalized.
Nick also found a surprising amount of entertainment in getting better at it. He adjusted his grip, the position of his feet, the angle of his hips, back, and shoulders. He adapted to the shape of the cut he had made and the hardness of the wood deeper inside than on the surface.