There is Everything for You Here

Chapter 5

I woke up bleary-eyed, hair sticking to my face. I didn't need a mirror to tell me there would be sleep lines all over my face either. I stretched out in my bed, yawning. The window was still slightly open, and there was a nice breeze floating in. It was beginning to smell like springtime too. I rolled onto my side and watched the birds perched on a tree branch just outside the window. I liked the way they hopped like little bunnies on the branches, singing their hearts out.

Well, the first nights here hadn't been so bad. Sure, it was strange being here, and the beds weren't hotel worthy, but this was going well. I checked my phone – 7:58am. Breakfast would be almost ready. There were a few texts from Marco too, but I would answer those later. I gazed over to Klara's bed. She looked like a lump under her blankets.

 For some reason she slept with three blankets – I didn't know how she managed to not sweat herself to death in there. Even in the cool spring mornings we had lately I could only ever sleep with one. I sat up slowly and placed my bare feet on the cold wood. I must have kicked off my socks while sleeping. Eager to not have to hear the wretched sound of Klara's 8:00am alarm clock, I slipped my socks back on and padded along to the bathroom, senses on high alert. I didn't want to have to make small talk with anybody this early in the morning.

Unfortunately, the universe didn't exactly listen to my plea, although I had found lately that it rarely did. Fortunately, it was just Liam.

"Morning," He said with a mouthful of foam. He stood outside the bathroom, leaning against the wall, toothbrush sticking out of his mouth. He had his glasses on – black with round lenses. He kind of looked like Harry Potter with them on.

"Hi Liam," I said. "Sleep well?" I tried to smooth a piece of hair that had escaped behind my ear, but it still fell in front of my face.

"Yeah," He nodded. "My new roommate woke me up at two in the morning though," he explained, spraying foam as he spoke. That must be Isaac, I thought. "It took me forever to fall asleep again after." He dipped back into the bathroom, spitting out the foam and rinsing his mouth with water.

"You're not supposed to do that, you know," I reminded him. "It washes away the fluoride." He straightened up and smiled. He had a nice smile.

"Thank you, dentist," he said, and gave me a wink as he walked out. "Bathroom's all yours," He called.

I went to the sink and pulled my hair out from its bun, allowing it to fall down my back in crooked red waves. I combed the knots out gently, staring at myself hard in the mirror. I still looked like me, but I felt so different. Away from the trivial challenges of everyday life, my problems all felt so small, so far away. I wasn't sure if I liked it or not. I quickly washed my face with cold water to wake myself up a little more and joined Klara back in the room.

She was already wide awake, hanging upside down at the foot of her bed, arms stretched to the floor. She grunted loudly as she pulled herself back up.

"Did you already go to breakfast?" she asked, frowning. I felt a twinge of happiness that she wanted me to wait for her.

"No," I assured her. "Let's go now." She stood and headed to the door. In the hallway, she ran her hand down the wall, catching sometimes along the peeling wallpaper, until we got to a door with Jameela's name on it. She knocked loudly, pressing her ear to the door to listen for any noises.

"Hello?" she said, cracking the door open. "Do you have a moment to talk about our lord and savior Jesus Christ?"

"Do you think maybe she went downstairs?" I whispered in the darkness. The room was still dark, but the window on Jameela's side had the blinds drawn a crack, letting in a sliver of light.