Isolated Souls

Chapter 5

The front door softly creaked as we stepped into the empty house. Thankfully, my parents were at work and wouldn't return until the morning.

"I can't believe I'm doing this." I muttered, looking over my shoulder at Kun. He had begged me to take him home with me, mostly because he had nowhere else to stay, and eventually I agreed. "Okay, you can sleep on the couch for the night. I'll grab you a fresh blanket and pillow from the closet." I turned and was halfway across the room when he stopped me.

"Wait. Can I use your shower?"

"Umm, sure." I frowned. "Did you have any extra clothes?"

He glanced down at his white suit and shook his head.

Oh, right.

I sighed. "Follow me."

I led him upstairs and down the hallway and into my bathroom. What shocked me was how well he seemed to navigate his way around the house. It also kind of freaked me out, but then again, what's crazier than hearing your teddy bear came to life.

I grabbed a towel out from under the sink cabinet and handed it to him. "Just call me when you're done. I'll steal some of my Dad's clothes for you to wear."

"Thank you, Ivy."

I nodded and left the bathroom, closing the door behind me.

The lights flickered for a moment when I turned on the light to my parent's room. I crossed the room and pulled open the dresser before rummaging through it for clothes that looked close to his size. Kun was honestly kind of scrawny, so it would be a challenge since my dad leaned a little more on the heavy side. After a couple minutes, I decided on giving him a simple white t-shirt and black sweatpants. It was the best I could do since the jeans looked too big. I wrapped the clothing in a neat bundle and headed towards the door, but something had me pause.

It was a photo of me when I was seven and my parents. There was a brightness in my dad's eyes that I hadn't seen for a long time. He was crouched down beside a smiling little version of me that was squeezing the life out of a teddy bear. I smiled as the memory surfaced in my head. This was taken on Christmas and the day I had first been given Kunnie.

My mom was standing on the other side of me with a hand on my shoulder. Her dark hair hung in loose waves around her shoulders, the same as mine. There was a cold edge to her smile as she stared into the camera.

"Ivy?" Kun called from outside the room.

I quickly stepped away from the photograph and exited the room. He was waiting for me in the hallway. His white hair was dripping wet as he held a towel around his waist; his white suit in hand. When he noticed me, his eyes brightened, as if he hadn't looked happy enough. Subconsciously, my eyes dropped to his bare, toned chest.

I felt my cheeks warm and quickly averted my gaze to my feet.

Don't stare, I scolded myself.

"Here." I held his clothes out at arms length and carefully snuck a glance up at him. He took the clothes from my hands and walked back into the bathroom, but I swear I saw the slightest hint of a smirk on his lips.

As if my face wasn't already red enough.

I ran a hand down my face in frustration. At this point, I was labeling myself as depressingly single.

I quickly threw his dirty clothes into the washing machine and prepared his sleeping space while he changed. A few minutes later the bathroom door opened and he stepped out with the towel slung over his shoulder. His hair was damp now, and the clothes seemed to fit him well enough. I was relieved at the thought.

"I left your pillow and blanket on the couch. Is there anything else you need? Water? Food?"

He shook his head. "No, that's all."

"Okay, then, goodnight."

"Goodnight."

--

I awoke to muffled voices coming from downstairs. I groaned as I wrapped myself more in my blanket. Today was Monday so I had to go to school soon, and I was definitely not pleased about the idea.

My mind drifted back to last night of my strange dream about my childhood stuffed bear turning into a teenage boy. As weird as the idea sounded, it was quite calming to think about. Maybe I didn't have to feel so alone anymore in a world this big.

Eventually, I dragged myself, grabbed my phone from my nightstand, and went downstairs. From the bottom step, I could see my parents sitting in the kitchen. The delicious smell of pancakes drifted through the house, making my stomach growl. Curiosity got the best of me and I peered into the dim living room as I passed. My steps froze.

A blanket was neatly folded on the edge of the couch with a pillow stacked on top. In the center of the couch sat Kunnie, my stuffed bear that I thought disappeared at the party. It stared at me with beady, black eyes as if it were trying to tell me something.

"Ivy? Are you awake?" My Dad called from the kitchen. I swallowed nervously and continued my walk to the kitchen.

So it wasn't a dream.

The kitchen was warm and bright when I entered. A hot plate of pancakes and fresh milk was waiting for me at the table when I sat down.

"Goodmorning, Dad."

"Goodmorning, sweetie."

I cast a quick glance at my mom. She had a coffee mug in hand as she flipped through a magazine. Dad sent me a swift apologetic look before taking a sip of coffee.

"Business is starting to drop." She said to no one in particular. "It's become harder to sell bears, let alone make them."

"I'm sure you'll be able to find a solution."

I was putting chocolate in my milk when my phone suddenly buzzed in my pocket. I tapped a few buttons and nearly knocked over the hot mug.