Short Stories!!

"Getting Close to You"

"Rei? Rei! What are you doing with that knife?"

"...chopping grapes? What the hell does it look like?"

The blonde stopped running and slammed into the counter, his eyes hovering just above the granite and watching as she meticulously chopped a few more.

"I just had to make sure you weren't chopping your arm. Like last time."

She gave him a scornful glance and sighed, "Look, I fell on the knife, okay?"

He got up off the floor and grabbed the knife and set it down, "Look me in the eyes when I'm talking to you," no one was used to this assertive tone from Vladimir, "We both know what you were doing."

Rei pointed to the knife and then to the bowl of green grapes, "They're cotton candy grapes. Try one."

He sighed and plopped down on the stool to his left, "There's no way they actually," his eyes widened and he let out a small squeal of delight, "They taste so good! Where did you get them from?"

She gestured outside of the window, "Ted and Anne's market down the road. It's a place where my dad always loved to shop."

Vladimir scowled, "I've never heard of it."

"Yeah, it's only open at night. Anne gets home late and it's the only quality time that the two can be together. Such a nice aged couple. Anne was my babysitter when I was younger."

"Really? When did they move in?"

She took the grapes, put them in a small container, and then placed them in the fridge, "They've lived here for a while. Grew up in this town back before it became as popular as it is. Anne's ancestors used to live here and she ended up staying. Her grandson, Connor, was my best friend in elementary school."

"I had no idea that your town had Native American heritage."

"Yeah, wait, how'd you come to that conclusion?"

"I'm not sure."

"She was an immigrant from Vietnam, but that's beside the point. There's a lot of things hidden here," she smiled at him as she walked to the lounge chair and sat down to his left, "You'll just have to stay around long enough to learn about them!"

The room was quiet for a few seconds and Vladimir reached for the television changer.

"Don't get too excited, Vlad, we don't have a lot of tv programs. But try and find something to amuse yourself."

She let out a heavy sigh and stood up. Something about her was off. It couldn't have been the way her feet padded unevenly on the floor or the way her cardigan appeared to be hiding much more than a flat chest. Everything about her was strange. This was just how Rei was. She was completely unpredictable, which made her both familiar and entirely unknown.

Vladimir jumped to his feet, tossing some pillows to the floor in his wake, "Hey, where are you going?"

She gestured to her bedroom, "I'm going to take my dog out."

"Your dog?"

"Yep. She's not too fond of other people though. I'm not sure why, but she's overly attached to me. Not even my father can get close to me when she's out."

"Why in the world is it so protective?"

Rei stopped to think before replying, "Well, ever since my little incident, she just started getting closer to me. I'm not sure why. Maybe it's because she thinks that I'll leave her for a long time again."

"How long were you gone for?"

She stopped and twitched her fingers, "A few years."

Vladimir furrowed his brow and opened his mouth to speak before closing it. Rei was already walking down the hall, and his words would have only been drowned out by the dog's ferocious barks. Rei stopped walking and sat down at the end of the hallway. She didn't go to the door of the room in which her dog was kept, but she stopped at another door and curled up in front of it. He got up silently and tiptoed to where she was before kneeling down in front.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

Rei broke out into tears as she began to speak, "It's just not fair, Vlad. It hurts me to think that other people would kill to live like me. It's all a matter of perspective. As much jealousy as we have for other people, and to think that there are only others who look at us the same way."

He was shocked, "Where is this coming from?"

"I had an eye-opening experience when I was twelve. A few classmates and I left detention early one day and went on a journey to explore an abandoned mansion. Pretty stupid, I know," she stopped speaking and leaned her head on Vladimir's knee, "but, I thought a lot when I was there. I'd separated myself from all of them, and as I walked up a crumbling marble staircase I thought about something. It doesn't even matter who you are. You're either too rich, too poor, too young, or too old. No one is equal, nor will they ever be. It just isn't fair. I used to look at this huge house down the road from me back when I lived in Iceland. I was jealous of them, I couldn't stand it. Why did they get to have such a nice life, three cars, and a cleaning service scrubbing their carpets twice a week, while my parent's stretched paychecks at our apartment to make ends meet every month? It made no sense. I've met homeless people before, and I've helped out at shelters before. I've even lived at one of those shelters before...but...why?" Vladimir was absolutely silent and Rei continued talking, "I guess I'll never understand. I've worked so hard to improve myself. I've come so far, and still, nothing earth-shattering has happened to me."

She flopped down onto the ground and Vlad sprawled out on the hardwood next to her, "Well, maybe it's because you are the earth-shattering thing."

"What's that supposed to mean, Vlad?"

He hesitated before responding, pondering his word choice, "You're the most unique person that I've ever met. And no, it's not just because I've never seen an albino before, it's just your life experiences. Maybe, you're meant to do something great. You're supposed to be the change in the world that you want to see."

It was about the time Vladimir finished speaking when nails could be heard clicking across the floor. They got progressively faster until a rather small red husky was standing above Vlad's head. It lowered its head to his nose and barked loudly before promptly sitting on top of his stomach. His face was priceless, eyes wide as dinner plates and sweat beading on his forehead. Rei broke into a shriek-like laugh and rolled around on the floor.

"HEY! STOP LAUGHING AND GET HER OFF OF ME! SHE MIGHT BITE MEEEE!"

"Oh come on! It's obvious that she likes you already, which is weird but..."

"BUT WHAT?!"

Rei giggled, "Stop yelling first! Come here, Willow," the husky got up quickly, padding over to the girl's side. She blinked her heterochromatic eyes slowly as she eyed Vladimir intensely, "See? She's fine. But...maybe she knows something about you that I'm just now realizing."

Vladimir sat up and wiped his face before he spoke, "Like what? Inform me."

Rei placed her fists on the ground and hoisted herself up. Walking over to the nearest window, she placed her right hand behind her head, "Well, maybe she knows that you're like me. We're both a bit lost inside, maybe a little broke, but when we're around the right people, we warm up and start to heal," she turned back to Vladimir, "am I wrong?"