mysterious guitarist • bjorn andresen (ON BREAK)

I

𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙𓆙

Moving places was difficult, especially when your moving to another country. My eyes wandered outside the sliver of glass protecting me from the currently cold weather. The woman who birthed me, in a once cozy living room, was currently steering the vehicle we felt comfortable relaxing at the start of the ride and slowly got uncomfortable with time. Speakers built into the car were playing a song at first I didn't mind but got sick of it after hearing it too many times to count. My body was desperate to move out of this compact space and I felt tired of sleeping. I laid across the seats, eyes staring at the fabric covered roof that completed the pocket dimension. I barely realized we stopped until my mother made the sensational announcement that we had arrived at our destination.

My aunt's house was big — considering that she originally moved here for preferable income. The female that resided with my mother at youth was a loud woman, opposite from my mother. Aunt Agrafina was the star of the show, while my mother who carried the name Klavdiya was more of a lights worker, background character at most. Though the two ladies were raised by the same people in the same home, they turned out quite different. "Diya! You two have finally arrived! I had grown a few new grey hairs waiting for you pair to show up." Agrafina joked, still using my mother's nickname from a time they hardly remember. Agrafina embraced my mother whose posture was so fragile it could break with the slightest touch. I smiled at my aunt as I hadn't seen her in awhile. She pulled away from my mother and went on to hug me. Her body was warm and welcoming, as a mother's touch would have the same affect on others. She departed from me as I still felt her warm touch lingering on my clothes. "The kids are inside, sadly you two will have to sleep downstairs since we all sleep upstairs. I promise, the bed doesn't creak upstairs that much at night." She winked as she said the last sentence, intending it as a sexual joke between her and my uncle in law, which I understood. I opened the car door and took out me and my mother's luggage, handing it to her. What we took with us on the long ride wasn't much, there wasn't much to take either.

We entered the house as the slightly warm June Sweden air retreated from my body. "How has your job been, Aunt Aggie?" I asked, trying to create small talk between the circle of 3 women. It was awkward between my aunt and mother, the last time they had a true conversation was when my mom decided to move to Russia with my father, quoting that she was following her dreams and love was worth it. "Just as regular adults say, work is annoying but we must pursue in it to find happiness." My aunt said, sighing before she spoke. "Something I tried to do, which you didn't understand." My mother spoke, a first since we arrived. "Well, look how that turned out. You didn't even marry for Crispin's sake!" My fired back to my mother. "How was I supposed to know he didn't want to have children after I was 7months pregnant? I was unable to get an abortion, I didn't want one either!" My mother said back, clearly hurt in her voice. "I just wanted the best-" my aunt said before she was abruptly cut off by my mother. "We will discuss this privately, not over the phone, not in-front of the children but privately." My mother said, her voice shaky when she spoke. Just as my mother finished her sentence, three people came from the stairs. "Hey guys! Whatcha talking about?" The youngest said. My eyes lit up when I saw my favorite cousin, Aglaya. "Inka! I missed you!" She said as she ran her sock covered feet over to me, being careful not to slip on the hardwood floor. I opened my arms wide as we embraced each other. "Laya! How've you been?" I asked, intrigued to catch up with my cousin from far away. "Lots has happened while you were gone, for example i've gotten upgraded to a competitive ballet program!" Aglaya said to me while looking into my eyes, both filled with excitement. "Alright girls, let's talk about our lives later and help them unpack now." My aunt Agrafina said, pausing our girl moment for later. The other siblings looked at me with a welcoming smile, as we were all family.

Aglaya and me were chatting about our lives while unpacking my luggage into a comfy room. "I'd love if you'd bunk with me tonight. I finally was able to buy the newest Pink Floyd album." She said to me, trying to persuade me into bunking with her if I didn't in the first place. "I'd love to bunk with you Laya, Pink Floyd album or not." I said, reassuring her that I wanted to bunk with her since I arrived. Aglaya grabbed a photo book from my luggage bag and inspected it. "Can I take a look?" She asked, making sure it was okay to go through an item of mine. "Sure, it's got some pretty great photos. If the worst happens, I can work as a photographer." I said, joking with her before she opened the book.

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