SOUL DORM

21

I'm a believer...

***

CHAPTER 21:

THE SECRET OVEN

As soon as the elevator doors closed, I turned to Tarben. "You didn't have to do that."

"No, I didn't," he replied without objection. "But I wanted to." He pressed for the second floor among the rows of buttons.

"Why?"

He took a deep breath. "Because I'm so over these shallow, smart asses having an opinion about everything when they're actually clueless about it all!" He glanced sideways at me and frowned. "And... you really need to eat something. You look like you're about to faint."

I wasn't expecting such a response. "Th-thank you," I stammered. "Actually, angel Ria said she would send something to my room."

"Meh," Tarben scoffed. "We can do much better than that."

Meanwhile, the elevator had stopped, the door opened, and Tarben gestured for me to proceed down the hallway. I stepped out onto the second floor. We walked along the corridor, with Trouble still in Tarben's arms, showing no signs of wanting to get down. We turned toward the left wing of the mansion and walked a little further. When we reached a door shaped like a teapot, Tarben stopped.

"You can't share what you're about to see with anyone," he warned.

I thought he was serious until I caught the smile playing on his lips. As soon as he opened the door, the smell of warm cake filled my nostrils. I followed him into the room. Inside, it was dimly lit, except for the moonlight streaming in through the windows, and it grew even darker as Tarben closed the door behind us.

"Watch your step," he said, but before he could finish his sentence, I had stepped on something soft and let out a squeal. Startled, I jumped back, bumping into a ball and losing my balance again. Tarben's hand was instantly on my arm, preventing me from falling or doing something even more foolish.

"Stay still until I turn on the light, okay?" he said.

I could hear the amusement in every syllable that came out of his mouth. If I were him, I'd have fun with someone as clumsy as me too. I followed his instructions, cursing myself internally. Soon enough, a solitary light flickered to life in a distant corner of the room. Then another joined it, followed swiftly by more. Before I knew it, a constellation of stars hung above us, as if they were strung on a string.

I took a cautious step forward into the room. Now that I could see where I was going, I hadn't caused any more accidents. Still, I was cautious because the room was filled with all kinds of toys, large or small. Plush bears, dolls, cars, trains, toy soldiers, puzzles... As soon as Tarben set Trouble down, my cat leaped after a bouncing ball and disappeared among the shelves.

"Before you ask, we're not here for the toys," Tarben said.

As he turned away, I hurried after him, not wanting to lose sight of him in the vast room. We wound our way through shelves towering up to the ceiling, resembling a maze. Just after we passed a cabinet brimming with porcelain dolls, Tarben came to a halt in front of me, stretching his arms wide.

"Ta-da..."

I craned my neck over his shoulder to see the space in the middle of the cabinets. It was... a kitchen. But a miniature one. Everything was a toy. The oven, the refrigerator, the vegetable rack, the table in the center, surrounding chairs... I watched in amazement as Tarben made his way to the counter. He knelt down by the oven.