This story is in Liesel's pov.
Disclaimer: I do not own the book thief and never will
"She's alive," I heard someone say. My eyes fluttered open and I saw the blue sky above me.
"Papa?" I asked. They pulled me out of the rubble of what had once been my home.
"Liesel!" A boy cried and tackled me in a hug.
"Rudy? What's going on?" I asked. Rudy let go of me and I turned to look at what was left of Himmel street.
"There was bombing," one of the men who had pulled me out of the ruins.
"Where is everyone?" I asked Rudy.
"They're gone," Rudy answered quietly.
"Gone? Gone where?" I asked. I knew what he had meant but I refused to believe it.
"They're dead, Liesel," Rudy whispered and pulled me in to a hug again. Sobs began to rake my body and it became difficult to stand. The police put us in a car and took us to a building where they would decide what would happen to us. I sat beside Rudy on a bench and held his hand tightly.
"It's going to be okay," He said softly. I looked at him. His eyes were sad and his face was covered with dirt and grime. I reached up and touched his dirty lemon colored hair and tears silently escaped. We were the only survivors of Himmel Street.
…
"Well your room is the third door on the left, Liesel, and yours is the one right beside it," Frau Hermann said to Rudy and me. We nodded and walked up the stairs slowly. We walked down the hall and I stopped at the third door on the left and Rudy stopped at his door right beside mine. I walked inside the room and sat down on the bed. Rudy walked in behind me.
"Aren't you going to look at your room?" I asked him.
"No, maybe later," he said and started poking around in my room. He opened a door of what I had assumed was the closet. He walked through the door and came out a second later.
"Hey guess what! Our rooms are joined," he said gesturing to the door. I got up and looked through the door and on the other side was indeed Rudy's room. There was a knock on my door and Frau Hermann entered the room. She brought in two trays of food for Rudy and I.
"Thank you," Rudy and I said politely. After Frau Hermann left Rudy and I sat down on the bed and pushed around the food on our plates. The shock had finally worn off and I was beginning to feel the pain of being alone in the world again. I set my tray aside and put my head into my pillow, so Rudy couldn't see me cry. Rudy would be able to tell anyway, because of the way my body shook as the sobs escaped me. I heard Rudy set his tray aside and he put his hand on my back.
He lifted me from the bed and put me on his lap. I cried into his shoulder as he told me everything was going to be okay and stroked my hair. I eventually cried myself to sleep.
…
"Liesel! Wake up!" Rudy said shaking me awake.
"Huh?" I asked dazed and confused.
"You were having a nightmare," Rudy informed me and the visions of Himmel street in my dream came back to me. I shivered and realized I was still in Rudy's arms. I looked up at Rudy, he looked tired. I climbed off of him and underneath my blankets. Rudy stayed at the end of my bed.
"You should go get some sleep," I said. He shook his head.
"I'm afraid of what I'll see when I close my eyes," he said and looked at me.
"Fine, stay here, but I'm going to sleep," I said. With that I rolled over and fell asleep quickly.
When I woke up again in the middle of the night Rudy was still awake and didn't look like he had slept any since the last time.
"Rudy, you have to sleep," I said.
"I can't," he whispered.
"Maybe you'll be so tired you won't dream, and if you do I'll be right here," I said. I could see him giving in.
"You can sleep right here," I said patting the part of the bed next to me.
"Fine," he said and lay down next to me. He turned his back to me and I traced designs with my finger on his back and soon he was sound asleep. I was just about to fall asleep when Rudy started to fidgeting. Maybe he's just a light sleeper, I thought, but soon he began to moan in his sleep. His eyes flew open in fright. He breathed heavily for a minute and then turned toward me.
"Liesel?" he asked.
"Yes?" I replied.
"Just checking," he said and he was silent for a minute.
"Do you want to talk about it?" I asked.
"About what?" he asked.
"Your nightmare," I replied. He was quiet for a long time.
"You were gone," he finally said.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"You died with everyone else in the bombing and I was all alone," he replied. I turned over on my side so I could look at him.
"I'm here, Rudy," I said and put my arm across him and put my head on his chest.
"I know," he said and put his arm around me. With his body heat keeping me warm in the cold room I quickly fell asleep.