Flip Side of Love

Chapter 1

Christopher woke up startled. Out of breath and panting, he surveyed his surroundings.

"You okay there buddy?" So much for getting his heart rate back down. Looking towards the source of the voice, he had to pinch himself to make sure he was not dreaming. When the figure remained perched upon his desk as casually as can be, he rubbed his eyes vigourously to double check he was lucid.

"What are you doing here?" Christopher finally spluttered out once he realised that the figure was not going anywhere.

"You tell me, after all you called me here." The figure replied with a raised eyebrow. Christopher always hated that, when she would turn the line of questions back to him.

"Well I don't know. I was busy in dreamland before you showed up and gave me a heart attack."

"Please, you were already panting and out of breath before you even saw me. What was your dream about?" She asked, a smirk taking over her face.

"Don't change the subject."

"Why not? If you don't know why I'm here, then neither do I." She said as though it was that simple. "But, let me preface this by saying that I am not a ghost. I'm not here haunt or to terrorise you. I'm not an angel, no halo above this head. I'm not... what's another cliché in these situations? Whatever, the point I am neither, neither, nor. Now that we've gotten that over and done with, if you're not gonna tell me about your dream, I suggest you get out of bed and get ready." The figure continued, this time whispering, "considering you're running really late." Looking at his phone on the bedside table, Christopher realised that yes indeed, he had slept through his alarm and was running late. Stumbling out of his bed, he hissed as he stubbed his toe against the bed frame.

"Every time. You think you would have learnt by now." The figure laughed at his expense, as he hopped around on one foot.

"Something funny?" Christopher droned out unimpressed.

"No, not at all." The figure said, whilst failing to control the giggles, she was releasing. But in her defence, he was hopping around on one foot with his pants pulled down half-way. To top it all off, he was wearing Winne-the-Pooh boxers. So yes, all in all, he was a sight to behold. "Go take a shower okay. Though I'm sure you could not show up at all. I mean, it's not like anyone would mind."

"I'm going to shower now." Christopher grumbled, ignoring her statement completely. 'I'm going mad' was his first thought when he locked himself in the safety of the shower. 'Absolutely and irrefutably mad!' Even the warm shower was not having the same therapeutic effect as usual. 'What was happening?' Shaking his head, he decided to forget about the lodger in his room for a moment. He decided that getting clean was top priority at the current moment, he could worry about all else later. Once he finished showering he brushed his teeth and completed his hair and skin routine. After that he stuck his head outside the bathroom door and seeing that there was no one in the main room, he proceeded to tip-toe his way to his wardrobe.

"Still here." Letting out a huff, Christopher gave up on sneaking around. " Are you ignoring me?" She asked, eyebrow raised in amusement.

"Stop talking." Christopher commanded, his body completely tense. Smiling the figure proceeded, to pretend to zip up their lips, lock them and throw away the key. Shaking his head, Christopher finished getting ready before leaving his house for work.