The Last Genie: A Novella

Chapter 6

By the time Kari got back from her shift as a barista at a local coffee shop; Ithel was tired, hungry, and very thirsty. After waiting for her to go inside and what he thought was enough time for her to tell Grace that her car was fixed, Ithel slipped out of his hiding place and walked to Grace's front door.

After knocking, Kari answered the door.

"Is Grace here?" asked Ithel.

Because of Grace's earlier description of Ithel's disheveled appearance, she was able to say, "Hey, are you the genie?"

Ithel was a little annoyed that Kari knew he was a genie, but again it was his fault for messing up his first interaction with Grace. So, he gritted he teeth and said, "Yes, now can I please speak to your roommate?"

"Thanks for fixing my car man."

"You're welcome."

"How did you do it?"

Ithel was growing a little frustrated, but he knew he needed to keep his cool. So, he said calmly, "Magic."

"Magic? Oh, sick man, that's awesome."

Then from inside the apartment, Grace said, "Kari," in a voice that would make any misbehaving child or patient snap to causing Kari to turn around and say, "Sorry, I was just saying thanks."

Then, Grace stepped into the doorway and said, "What are you doing here?"

Ithel, while putting on his most apologetic face, said, "I just want to apologize for this morning. I shouldn't have been bothering you while you were getting ready for work, and I was just wondering if you wanted to get something to eat."

"Why?"

"So, I can explain everything,"

"And, by everything, you mean you being a genie?"

"Yes."

Grace thought that even though Ithel was a little bedraggled and scraped up he didn't look like a bad guy, he actually looked pretty good, and he did fix Kari's car. So, what was one dinner?

"Ok, there's a Mexican restaurant down the street. I'll meet you there in 45 minutes."