Chapter One: The first day pt. 2
DJ entered his room with a look of exhaustion on his face. The room was very impressive considering the size and space. A large black marble dresser stood across from the queen-sized bed, decorated with fuschia, violet and turquoise blankets and sheets. Sitting next to the windows were cushioned chairs and his boxes and crates, ready to be opened. He looked out the windows to get a view of the sun shining brightly in his eyes. There was still daytime left and there was still a lot to do. Unpacking was the main thing but procrastination and tiredness was slowly creeping in. Also the thought of what to do for dinner on the first night there echoed in his mind. "Hmm...might wanna cook something that won't take long to prepare," DJ said to himself, looking out the window, squinting his eyes from the sunlight. Before he starts opening his boxes the cell phone starts to ring. He takes it out of his pocket to see "Isma Sweetheart" is calling him. "Hey hey!" DJ answered cheerfully. "Hiii, DJ! Did you forget to call me when you got there?" Isma responded in a disappointed tone. "I was busy trying to settle down, missy! You hush!" DJ said as he laughed. "But yeah, I made it to my new home safely. How's things back on your end?" "About the same, except that you aren't here to hang out with! I already miss you bringing in more new music for us to listen to," Isma said, trying not to sound sad. DJ nodded in silence for a few seconds then answered, "Hopefully, when everyone here is all moved in, we can come and visit! I don't know how long that will be but it'll work out." He imagined him and his group of homestays traveling back to Ohio and introducing them to Isma. A weekend of catching up with recent events and dancing to countless records like goof balls. Nothing but pure fun and entertainment. "I'm sure it will all work out for everyone!" Isma said, breaking DJ's train of thought. "For now we just gotta wait until everyone on your end has settled into the new house. It may take a while but it'll be worth the wait!" "Yeah, true that!" DJ said as he walked over to the bed and sat down. "Speaking of which, how's the first guest? What is she? Where is she from?" Isma asked with high curiosity in her voice. DJ frowned as he responded with, "Well...I don't know much about her except her name, Illyana. We met for a few minutes and then she just...went up to her room without another word. I'm worried that I scared her off. Oh, and she's an Arachne." "Scared her off? I highly doubt that's the reason she's not very talkative at the moment," Isma giggled a bit. "Since this is all new to Illyana, she's probably taking her time to adjust to the new country and new home. I was like that when you first met me, remember?" A silent nod of agreement was DJ's response to that. Of course new homestays wouldn't be comfortable to America's environment in a few hours. It's all about being patient with them and giving them time to adjust. No need to rush any one of the liminals that will live here. "Yeah, I remember. You were so quiet and shy!" DJ laughed. "Hey! It was my first time seeing a human like you that was so kind! I didn't know how to react!" Isma laughed along. They both laughed a moment longer and sighed, DJ spoke up and said, "Heh, yeah. But seriously though, thanks for the reminder. I just have to be patient for now. She'll come out of her shell when she is comfortable. I can wait." "Whenever she's comfortable, let me know so I can say hi to her! It'd be nice to talk to an Arachne!" Isma said, her voice raised in excitement. DJ nodded and responded, "Will do! For now, I gotta get some food ready for both of us. I'll talk to you later." "Be cool, daddio! Talk to you later!" Isma laughed as she hung up. DJ shook his head with a giggle, setting his phone down on the bed. If there is one thing that DJ is going to miss the most is his friend trying to use the old school lingo he uses and apply it to her vocabulary. A lot to learn on how to use them, DJ thought. He gets up to open a box marked "Kitchen Supplies" and takes out a rack full of spice jars and a rice cooker. He shifts his focus back on making dinner before it gets too late. "Okay...I hope you're not a picky eater, Illyana."
The dinner he had in mind was nothing too big but just enough for both himself and the Arachne roommate. Spam and ketchup fried rice is the dinner he thinks can be fulfilling for the liminal. Chicken and mixed vegetables was his plan B if the fried rice didn't work out. He takes his spices and rice cooker and heads back downstairs when he stops midway to look to his right. The door leading up to the attic, or Illyana's room, was closed. DJ thought it would be kind to give Illyana a heads-up about dinner that's coming up, but at the same time he didn't want to bother her right now and tell her after everything was done. A few seconds of pondering and he gave in to the former rather than the latter. DJ walked to the door and knocked a few times lightly. "Illyana? Umm..I'm going to make dinner now…" DJ yelled. He waited for a response for a few seconds but there was none. Anxiety slowly crept in, thoughts of what could've happened to Illyana popped up. Did she run away? Was she uncomfortable around humans? Is she not feeling well? He dispelled those thoughts out of his head and reminded himself of what Isma was talking about earlier. Just be patient. Just have patience. He took his supplies and walked downstairs to the kitchen. He didn't get a chance to get a better look of the kitchen earlier so DJ was surprised at how much room he had. A round wooden table that seats about 6 or more people sit at the end of the room next to a backdoor. The countertops were smooth black marble along with the kitchen island sitting in the middle of the room with four stools in front of it. A double door refrigerator stood on the other side of the island and on the other end of the kitchen led to a bathroom for those that need to clean their hands before eating. He also sees a double wall oven lined up on the wall next to the kitchen sink. "Ooooh, baking just got a lot easier now," DJ said to himself, smiling as he looked inside the ovens. Thoughts of baking so many desserts for his new friends and guests begin to swirl in his mind. Different types of breads, pies and cakes that he can make plus double the equipment to use is getting the young man hyped. He'll have to wait for now as he returns his focus to dinner for tonight. He sets his rice cooker on the counter and plugs it in and looks inside the cabinets to see if the pantry was already stocked. To his surprise, there was a lot of canned food, boxes of pasta and bags of rice ready to be of use. DJ smiled as he takes a bag of short grained rice and a large bowl to the sink, quickly washing the rice over cold water three to four times. He places the cleaned rice in the cooker and sets it to cook, nodding in satisfaction. "Alright, that's done. Next is my other stuff," DJ begins to walk up to his room and takes more of his crates marked "VHS tapes and Records" downstairs to the basement. The lower level consists of two parts: One half of the basement is a rec room with a mini kitchen upon descending the end of the stairs to the right and the rest of the room has a leather couch and a few cushion chairs sitting on the other end. A wide-screen television is set on the wall opposite of the couch on what appears to be a fireplace. On the other half of the basement lies a pool that stretches ten feet long and wide enough for a large breed Arachne to swim in. On the other end on the right was a jacuzzi that seats probably eight people. DJ can tell that everyone will spend the majority of their time down here. He takes out his phone and begins to take pictures of both sections of the basement, feeling giddy about the fun and hilarious moments that can happen here. The second he was done he runs up the stairs and straight back to the kitchen to check on the rice. DJ must've made it on time because the rice cooker started beeping, letting him know that it's ready. He opens up the cooker to let the steam and heat out and prepares the next step for the dish, but something in the back of his mind was nagging him about letting Illyana know again about dinner. Once again he didn't want to be a bother and give her more time to herself. Go check up on her. Don't leave her by herself. The nagging thought grew more harder to ignore for him so he put the rest of his cooking on hold and walked upstairs to Illyana's bedroom door. He hesitates to knock the door again. "Agh, come on DJ! You're gonna do this or not?" He said to himself as he finally knocked three times on the door. "Hey, Illyana?! Dinner will be ready soon! Just letting you know, okay?" There was still no response on the other side. DJ waited a little longer for an answer, the urge to enter and check with the homestay rising. He knew he'd be in the wrong if he attempted that option. In fact, Illyana would tie him up somewhere with her webs with swiftness. He shook his head at the frightful outcome and knocked once more. "I'll be downstairs in the kitchen, okay? Just..take your time," DJ said lastly as he walked back downstairs to the kitchen. As soon as he cleared the stairs, the Arachne's room door cracked open slightly. Six silver eyes peek out with heavy sadness. She didn't want to come out until much later, but she would feel bad for ignoring the human's invitation to dinner. "I hope he's not one of those pretenders.." Ilyana proceeds to walk downstairs without a sound.
Finalizing the meal for tonight didn't take as much time as DJ expected. It was just an easy recipe that'll probably keep his new liminal guest full. The wok he cooked the rice in was filled with diced spam, eggs, and vegetables and smelled amazing. All that's left is Illyana showing up to eat her share. DJ sighed and turned his attention to the dirty dishes, ignoring his worried thoughts circling around in his mind. "Just be patient, man. Just be patient," he told himself as he started washing the dishes. "She'll show up. You worry way too much. You just gotta respect her space. You just met her! I hope she enjoys the-". "What did you make?" A soft, soothing voice made DJ almost jump out of his skin. Instead he yelped and turned around quickly to see Illyana sitting on one of the stools in front of the island. Her hands were folded, her chin resting on them. She looked at him with curious eyes, looking at the food and then back at the host. A smile crossed her lips. Arachne knows how to spook an unsuspecting human even if they aren't trying to. A few seconds of silence. DJ cleared his throat and answered, "Umm..fried rice. It's spam and ketchup fried rice." Illyana nodded in understanding. "Uhh..how long were you sitting there?" It was DJ's turn to ask a question. "Not long, I think. Apologies for not answering earlier when I was in my room," Illyana answered, tapping her chin with her thumb. DJ nodded as well and shifted his focus on the cooked meal. He opened the dishes cabinet and pulled out two plates, filling both up with the fried rice. He hands one to Illyana with a spoon and napkins. "It's okay. You were taking your time trying to adjust to your new home so I understand," DJ said. "I do want an apology for scaring me like that though!" Illyana gave him a smug look and giggled. "No need to apologize for something as funny as that shocked look on your face." DJ sighed as he picked up an empty stool and sat across from Illyana. "Figures. You're very proud of yourself about that, huh?" he smiled. Illyana picked up a spoon and scooped up the warm sustenance, eyeing it warily. Her smile faded into a frown. "DJ, right?" Illyana asked. He stopped mid-consumption of his first bite and nodded. "What's wrong?" The Arachne put down her spoon, looked at DJ with serious eyes and asked, "What do you think of me?" A confused expression crossed his face. "Umm..I don't understand…" Illyana folded her hands again. "What do you think of me?" She repeated. DJ folded his arms and pondered the question. Did she mean as a whole? Did she mean her Arachne half? Either way he formed a solid answer. "I think that you're an interesting person. I mean, we just met today." He laughed a bit. Illyana looked at him with stern eyes. "Do you really think of me as an actual person, or a literal deadly monster?" She put more emphasis on the last word. DJ shook his head and answered. "Monster? I don't think you're a monster. If you were, you wouldn't be amongst us humans." He folded his arms. "Yeah, your appearance looks monstrous, but that doesn't define who you really are on the inside." Illyana was taken aback by his answer. "You just said you barely know anything about me. I could be one and take your life in your sleep." DJ looked away and nodded. "Well.. you could've done that a few hours ago. But like I said, you're not a monster. You are a person." Illyana's expression softened. The last thing the human said repeated in her head like a broken record. She wanted to say that he's spouting nonsense but she knew his words were honest. This human was genuine in his answer. "I appreciate your honesty," Illyana said. "You humans would pretend that my appearance is not troubling nor disturbing. But you're not like the others." DJ looked back at her. "Wait, others? You were assigned hosts before me?" Illyana waved her hand. "They were in such a hurry to send me back to the Exchange. Some were better at masking their fear, while some felt like they were walking on… what's that phrase again?" "Walking on egg shells," DJ answered. "You don't have to worry about that here, okay?" A pause. Illyana looked down at her portion of food and looked back at DJ. "We'll see," a hint of distrust in her voice as she picked up a spoonful of the steaming rice and devoured it. Her eyes widened at the sweet and savory flavor. DJ smiled at her reaction, watching her take another bite. "This is amazing!" Illyana swallowed another bite. "Looks like I achieved a professional chef as my host." Her smug smile returned. "Oh stop it! I'm nowhere near that level," DJ laughed and ate some of his portion of food. The two ate in silence as the day goes by, DJ confirming that one thought in his mind that they're off to a good start so far. Welcome to your new home, Illyana.
I've been meaning to get the next chapter done for a while but I got sidetracked by some of my other hobbies (mostly gaming lol). I hope you enjoy it and if you have feedback or advice, let me know please. Much love!