ᥴ᥅ꪖᦓꫝꫀᦔ ꪻꪮᧁꫀꪻꫝꫀ᥅ (ON HOLD)

• F i v e •

Nathan October 1, 2019

I open the front door to my house. I step aside and let Aliyah in first. She stumbles into the living room and grips onto the armrest of one the long gray sofas, regaining her balance. I shut the door behind me and lock it. I quickly walk to the sofa that Aliyah's by and plop into the cushions. "You can sit down, y'know?" I tell her, resting my arm on the back cushion.

She nods. "I knew that. I just wanted your permission." Aliyah practically almost falls into the cushion, sinking into the crevices. "Oh fuck!" She yelps.

I put my finger to my lips. "Shh! Keep it down, please. And no more swearing!" I hissed.

She furrowed her eyebrows. "What? Is there someone else here?" She looks around the room, as if looking for clues. "This house is pretty small for two pe-" Suddenly a click-clack noise is heard from another room. A cracked-open door swings outward and a giant fluffy cloud of white and black comes trotting out of the room. "Y-You have a dog?!" Aliyah exclaims.

"Yep! A sweet, cuddly Husky. She doesn't bite. As long as you don't hurt me or my daughter." I say as my dog puts her head on Aliyah's lap.

She freezes in place, her eyes wide. "You have a kid?" Aliyah asks, placing a trembling hand on the dog's head.

"Yep. Aww, Luz likes you!" I exclaim.

Aliyah turns her head towards me, her body tense. "'Luz'?" She echoes.

I nod. "Yeah. Means light in Spanish."

Suddenly, Luz hops on the couch and practically crawls above Aliyah. "Wait! Wait!" Luz plops right next to her and rests her head on Aliyah's stomach. She winces, a look of pain taking over her face. Luz's crystal blue eyes stare up at Aliyah, who smiles. "You're such a silly girl." She says, running her hand through Luz's fur.

I smile at them, trying to find the words to start the important conversation. "S-So," I start. Aliyah peels her eye off of Luz and stares at me. "Uh...what did you wanna talk about? What was so...urgent that we needed to come to my house?"

She looks at Luz, then at the walls, then at the floor. Everywhere but at me. "I-I..." she stutters. She scoffs. "God, why do I want to trust you?"

I shrug. "I can tell that whatever is on your mind, you desperately need to let it out. I promise I won't judge."

Her eye shines in the dimmed light. "I don't know where to begi- Wait," She finally looks at me, but her expression is that same sinister stare she gave me outside. "Your last name. I-It's...." She's unable to finish.

"Labowski? I don't think it's a common last name. Why? Do you somehow know one of my family members?" I say, fiddling with my hands.

Aliyah nods. "Would you believe me if I said yes?"

My eyes widen and my body becomes tense. "What?"

"I-I met someone. S-Six years ago. Their last name was L-Labowski." She whispers.

I shake my head. "Well, my mom isn't in the picture so maybe you met her?"

Aliyah puts a finger to her lips. "No. It was a guy. He had a really...stupid mustache and was patient with me. Why was he patient?"

I scoff. "It can't be my brothers. They're both...Whatever, it doesn't matter. Maybe you met my dad?" I suggest.

Her eye widens. "Did he have some sort of gold badge? And a friend whose last name was Everett?"

I slowly nod. "Yep! That was him."

Aliyah stares at Luz once again. "Wh-Where is he now?"

I look at the ceiling. "It's...complicated-"