Chapter 11: At Namine's...
A few minutes passed by and there was a knock at the door. I sighed, and dragged myself to my feet. As I slowly made my way to the door, Cookie and Snookie ran around my feet, almost tripping me constantly. I opened the door and was met face to face with Roxas. He had a big smile on his face and his hands behind his back, but not for long. He stuck one arm out, really far, revealing to me a single white daisy.
"Thanks..." I said slowly. "Um... come in." He handed me the flower and stepped inside of my 'house'. Smiling, he looked around. I put the flower on the table and tucked my hair behind my ear.
"Woah."
"I know. Sorry about–"
"You're lucky. You've got a lot more than me."
"What?" I just didn't get it.
He turned to me, smiling big, cheeks slightly pink and eyes closed. "Namine, I've got a house. You... have a home." He opened his eyes and let his smile pass. "I wish I had this."
"Are... you kidding me?"
"Why would I? You have pictures on the wall of when you were little with your family. You have two little cats that love you. You have a room that's probably filled with things that are important to you. I... don't have any of that." He ran his fingers over a dusty table in the short hallway, and looked back at me. "You have people you love." It was intense for a moment, he sighed and looked back at the table he had streaked, placing his fingers again at the end of the lines. "Never mind."
"Roxas, how... how about I show you around... a home?"
He looked up at me. "Yeah. Cool." We smiled at each other.
"Okay, well," I looked at my feet and picked up the two little kittens. "This is Cookie," I handed him the little cat. He looked inexperienced and clumsy holding a little animal. But he had said he'd never had a pet. I didn't want to let him hold Snooks yet... she has a dark side... "and this is Snookie." He started to laugh as Cookie meowed and climbed up onto his shoulder, and jumped down, rubbing against his legs.
"I like him."
"Good, because he likes you, too. Okay... um... there's not that many rooms. This is kind of the family room... and the kitchen." He nodded. I walked down the hall and he followed. I pointed to the first door on the left. "Mom's room." The second door on the left. "Bathroom." The first door on the right. "This is my grandma's room. She's lived with us since my grandpa passed, but she's kind of sick, so we take care of her." The third door on the right. "My room."
"You skipped the middle door."
"What middle door?" I looked at the wall. "Oh. I... kind of forget that's there sometimes... It's... kind of like an attic. It's where we keep old things. Photo albums, cook books, all the stuff my dad gave us. It's all in there."
"Oh." He smiled and walked to the back of the hall and put his hand on my doorknob. He looked at me and raised an eyebrow evilly.
"Roxas." I said. He started to turn the knob. "Roxas!" I laughed and told him to stop. "My room is really messy." I lied trying to get him to stop.
"You haven't seen messy until you've been to my house." He turned the knob a little more.
"Um... The cats will eat you!" I tried, he laughed, then turned the knob the rest of the way. "Roxas!"
"I'm opening the door... the door is almost open..." He began to push the door open, little by little.
"Roxas," I laughed. "Okay, fine. At least let me go in first and take down all the junk I don't want you to see."
The evil smile was back. "Nope!" And he opened the door, and stepped in the room, quickly shutting it before I could get in.
"Roxas!" I yelled, turning to the knob and trying to push. "Let me in! You know it is my room!" I kept pushing on the door, for a minute or two, then I gave up. "Roxas," I said.
"Namine," He sounded surprised.
"What?" I was worried.
"Who did all these?"
I sighed. "Nobody." I said quietly. "They're nothing."
He opened the door and tilted his head a little. "They're really good."
"Only the ones in the drawer."
"I didn't see your drawer."
"Good, you better not have." I pushed him a little to the side.
He laughed. "I'm not a pervert, Namine."
I opened one of my drawers and scavenged through it. I shook my head, wrong drawer, and opened another. There were so many papers in it, they almost started to fall out when I opened the drawer. I took out a handful of them and held them to my chest. "Nobody ever got to see these except me. My dad drew them. Do... you wanna see them?"
He smiled. "Yeah, sure."
I handed him the pictures and he stared at them in an obvious admiration. "So you like them?"
"Yeah. They're really good." His smile softened. "I like this one." He held one up and my face flushed red.
It was on lined paper, done sloppily by a five-year-old me. It was two stick figures, a little girl, and her 'daddy'. They were holding hands and smiling. "I Luv You DadDi" was written in the dark crayon at the top of the paper. "Luv NaMine" was at the bottom. I quickly snatched it back and he laughed a little, handing the rest back.
I sighed and looked at the stuffed drawer, shaking my head. I only wish I could take better care of them, take better care of my memories.
"Hey, Namine," He said, staring intently at the drawer. "I.. Think I have something for you. If -that is, you don't mind coming to my house so I can get them." My cheeks got hot.
"Yeah... okay."
"Alright. Let's go." And we started off to his house.
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It didn't take me very long to get to the apartment Namine lived in. I found her room soon enough, sighed, and knocked on the door. On the way I had walked through the park and pulled a small white daisy from a bush, I decided to give it to her. When she answered, I tried to look happy, but I kept my hands behind my back, in a sorry attempt at being sweet. I held out the daisy, but she just kind of looked at it.
"Thanks... Um... come in." I gave her the flower and stepped inside. I looked around. It was really nice, kind of like where you'd expect a modern day Cinderella to live, the fact that Namine lived here didn't surprise me at all.
"Woah." I said, in envy.
"I know. Sorry about–"
"You're lucky. You've got a lot more than me."
"What?" She probably thought I was being rude, making fun of her or something.
I turned to her, smiling, with my eyes closed. "Namine, I've got a house. You... have a home." I didn't know what else to say, that was it. A home. "I wish I had this."
"Are... you kidding me?"
"Why would I? You have pictures on the wall of when you were little with your family. You have two little cats that love you. You have a room that's probably filled with things that are important to you. I... don't have any of that." I pulled my hand across a dusty table, something you'll never see in my house. "You have people you love." I moved my hands back to pull just a little further on the table. "Never mind."
"Roxas, how... how about I show you around... a home?" I was smiling inside. That was the nicest thing she could have done.
"Yeah. Cool." I smiled, and she smiled back.
"Okay, well," She looked down and picked up two small cats, whom I hadn't noticed before. "This is Cookie," She handed me a little black and brown kitten. He moved all around in my arms, and I didn't quite know how to handle him. "and this is Snookie." Cookie ran up my arm, onto my shoulder, and jumped down. It tickled.
"I like him."
"Good, because he likes you, too. Okay... um... there's not that many rooms. This is kind of the family room... and the kitchen." He nodded. I walked down the hall and he followed. I pointed to the first door on the left. "Mom's room." The second door on the left. "Bathroom." The first door on the right. "This is my grandma's room. She's lived with us since my grandpa passed, but she's kind of sick, so we take care of her." The third door on the right. "My room."
"You skipped the middle door."
"What middle door?" She looked over at the wall. "Oh. I... kind of forget that's there sometimes... It's... kind of like an attic. It's where we keep old things. Photo albums, cook books, all the stuff my dad gave us. It's all in there."
"Oh." I smiled and walked over to the third door on the right. I looked back at her and put my hand on the knob, raising an eyebrow.
"Roxas." I turned the knob a little. "Roxas!" She laughed, and warned me to stop. I saw no harm, and kept going. "My room is really messy." Pf. Like I'd care.
"You haven't seen messy until you've been to my house." I kept turning the knob, slowly, to torture her. Nah, but I did want to see what she would do.
"Um... The cats will eat you!" I laughed. Yeah, okay. "Roxas!"
"I'm opening the door... the door is almost open..." I started to open the door, and was almost surprised I didn't have a complete klutz moment and just randomly fall in.
"Roxas,"She laughed a little. "Okay, fine. At least let me go in first and take down all the junk I don't want you to see." Stuff she didn't want me to see...?
Smiling evilly again. "Nope!" I got in and shut the door, holding it so she couldn't get in.
She was yelling at me, but I wasn't really listening. All around the room, on the walls, and the dresser, everywhere, were these beautiful drawings and paintings. They were all amazing, but there was one hat caught my eye. It was on the dresser, sticking out of an "UNFINISHED" folder. I could see most of it, it looked like she threw it in the folder in a hurry. But what I saw was a flower petal. Several flower petals, but they were all the same one... it was a time lapse. But nothing happened, for a long time, until it started to brown, and then there was a smile. My smile?
"Namine," I said, still staring at that one picture.
"What?" She was nervous, or so it seemed.
"Who did all these?"
She sighed lightly. "Nobody. They're nothing." But they sure as heck weren't nothing.
I opened the door and looked at her, confused. "They're really good."
"Only the ones in the drawer."
"I didn't see your drawer."
"Good, you better not have." She pushed me a little to get in and I laughed.
"I'm not a pervert, Namine."
She looked through a couple of drawers for a while, and it was obvious when she got the right one. I could swear to you right now that it was breaking some kinda physical law of property... mass... sciency crap with how much was jammed in there. She took a bunch of them out and held them up to her chest. "Nobody ever got to see these except me. My dad drew them. Do... you wanna see them?"
I smiled, feeling kinda special. "Yeah, sure."
She gave them to me and I was in complete awe. "So you like them?"
"Yeah. They're really good." I laughed a little. "I like this one." She turned red. It was obvious she had done it when she was little... maybe because it said "Luv NaMine" at the bottom... but still. I mean... I would have known... maybe.
She grabbed it immediately and I laughed and gave her back the rest. She sighed and looked down at all the drawings. They really did deserve better than that old drawer... it reminded me of how she must have felt. It didn't seem like she liked her home.
"Hey, Namine," I said, still looking at the drawer, thinking about what I could do. "I.. Think I have something for you. If -that is, you don't mind coming to my house so I can get them." She blushed, like she always seemed to do.
"Yeah... okay." She said slowly.
"Alright. Let's go." And we left.
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