I hear voices outside the door.
"Here hold this. I'm going to get another box from the car. Let you and your new roommate bond without me."
"Oh my god, Wanda you're being ridiculous. We haven't even met yet!"
"Whatever you say…" The sound of footsteps retreats down the hallway and I hear a key turning in the lock. I brace myself for fake smiles and awkward small talk as the door swings open… and I find myself staring into the shocked eyes of the last person I expected to see.
The silence (which lasts for the longest moment of my life) is punctuated by a crash as she (can it really be her?) drops the large cardboard box in her arms, and clothes and books spill everywhere.
"Lia? Is it really you?" she asks tentatively. Just the sound of my name in her mouth makes the memories come rushing back.
I'm sitting in an alleyway at night. Huddled against the wall, wrapped in blankets, I shiver uncontrollably in the March air. I'm eating stale pizza crusts I found behind a Domino's, nibbling on them as slowly as I can so that they last longer. Suddenly, a shadow looms into the semi-darkness as a figure walks in from the street. By now, I know well enough to press myself deeper into the blankets and against the wall. It's dark in the alleyway and it should be impossible for them to see me if I keep still. But whoever it is is heading directly towards me... almost as if they know I am there. I clutch my pocketknife tightly between my shaking fingers (knowing deep down I'll never have the guts to use it) and prepare for pain, humiliation, death… whatever suffering life has decided to throw at me this time. But then the figure comes closer.
It's a girl. She looks about my age. She has straggly brown hair that looks like it's never seen a brush and is wearing the tattered remnants of what might once have been a blue hospital gown. I stare fascinated as she holds out a hand.
"What do you want?" I ask nervously. She says nothing. "Go away," I say more forcefully this time. She continues to stare at me with desperate eyes and an outstretched hand. I look down and realize what she wants: the pizza crust. My growling stomach begs me not to give it up, but I just want her to go away. And maybe there's a small part of me left that feels pity for this sad creature. "Fine. Take it. Just leave me alone, okay?" I thrust the pizza at her and then retreat back into my blankets. But she doesn't leave. She takes the crust- and practically inhales it- then sits down in front of me, still staring.
"Who are you?" she whispers tentatively. I'm almost surprised to hear her speak.
"It doesn't matter. Just go away. You don't want to be here- trust me."
She finally looks down. "I'm here because I have to be," she says. I can't help but feel a little sorry for her. And maybe- just maybe- it wouldn't be so bad to not be alone. Just for a bit.
"What's your name?" I ask.
"I'm W."
I frown. "Okay… But what's your actual name?" She seems confused so I try again. "Like what's your full name? The one your parents gave you?" She shakes her head but I'm not ready to give up yet. "I mean are you a Wendy? A Willow? Wanda? I don't know, Winnifred?"
She looks thoughtful for a second. "Not Wanda. Winnifred."
"Okay," I hold out my hand. "It's nice to meet you, Winnifred. I'm Lia."
She smiles- slowly at first, but then all at once into a happy grin. "Lia," she repeats.
"Fred?" I whisper.
"Oh my god it's really you!" Winnifred rushes forward as if she's about to hug me but then seems to change her mind at the last moment. She stands back awkwardly and just sort of looks at me. "I never thought I'd see you again."
I can't believe what I'm hearing. "You never thought you'd see me again!? I thought you were dead, Fred!"
"I know I'm sorry-" she starts to mumble.
"You just disappeared! I came back one day and you were gone. I looked everywhere. I searched the city. I waited for you for days… but you never came back."