The Life of a Borrower

Chapter 6

Ben and this mysterious girl made eye contact. She had pale skin, unruly brown hair tied in a low side braid, a denim type jacket and black pants. She also had on her own satchel filled with necessities. She was better dressed than Ben and his old crappy handmade clothes. Ben decided to make the first move, approaching her with a friendly wave.

"Hey, I've never seen you around before. Are you new here?" Ben asked.

"Oh yeah, I just moved here not long ago. My name's Lily." She said, holding her hand out for a handshake.

"Ben." He said, shaking her hand. "Where did you come from? I haven't seen another borrower in a long time." Ben said.

"A house not far from here. I lived there a while, but the family started getting suspicious and even a little angry. It was getting scary. I wasn't taking my chances with them so I left." Lily explained.

"Are you by yourself?" Ben asked with a bit of concern.

"Yeah, but that's okay. I've been getting by on my own for a while. What about you? What happened to you?" Lily asked, referring to Ben's bandages.

"I'm on my own, too. I was attacked by a rat." Ben said.

"Ouch. Where did you get the bandages? They look almost professional." Lily asked with confusion and skepticism.

"Yeah. I got them from..." Ben fell silent trying to finish that sentence.

"The human? Did the human put them on you?" Lily asked.

"Umm..." Ben didn't want to reveal that he broke the rule, but Lily had already figured it out.

"I saw you getting chummy with her. Be careful. I don't want to see a fellow borrower getting hurt." Lily said.

"What do you mean?" Ben asked.

"She may seem nice now, but it's all an act to deceive you. She'll betray you or treat you as a pet." Lily explained.

"I don't think so, she's been helping me. Sam is my friend. I visited her a few times." Ben confessed.

"Well, you need to stop that shit." Lily said in a blunt tone.

"Excuse me?" Ben asked in shock.

"Don't be naive, Ben. She is not your friend, and you need to stay away from her. Accepting help from a human and making friends with them is going to get us all exposed. I'm not trying to be rude, but it's dangerous." Lily explained.

"It's okay, Lily. I explained it to Sam already, she knows not to tell anyone." Ben said.

"It doesn't matter. I have to go and finish setting up my living space. Get some rest, and think about everything I said. Please stay away from her, it's dangerous, and I'm just looking out for you." Lily said.

"Oh. Okay..." Ben said.

"See you around." Lily concluded. She held onto the strap of her satchel and took off in the other direction.

Ben was totally conflicted. He didn't know what to think. He walked to his home and unloaded his collected food to his stash. Then he went to lay down in his make-shift bed, which was actually a stolen piece of cloth. He had a crush on Samantha and maybe it clouded his judgment. He wanted to befriend Lily, but didn't want to screw things up with Samantha. Why would Samantha help him if she was just going to betray him? Ben couldn't understand it. All the conflicting thoughts were making Ben's mind race. He laid there thinking for hours, and eventually fell asleep.

Ben woke up groggy and sore. He had been asleep for hours and it was already the next morning. He ate a mini cookie from his stash and heard Samantha getting ready for work. He then made his way outside the walls, hoping she could check his wounds before she went out. She was quickly tidying up her kitchen, and Ben didn't want to be a burden. He just watched and waited. When she was done scrambling around, her eyes finally met Ben's small frame. She looked a bit shocked, then smiled at him.

"Ben! Good morning!" Samantha cheerfully greeted him as she approached. His heart started thumping out of his chest as he looked up at her, awkwardly waved at her and smiled.

"Good morning." Ben said.

"How are you feeling?" Samantha asked as she crouched down to be more level with him. Ben felt a bit scared but pushed past it.

"Itchy... Can... you help me change the bandages?" Ben shyly asked.

"Yes, of course. But it has to be quick, I have to go to work soon." Samantha explained as she held out her hand for Ben.

"O-okay." Ben stuttered as he hesitated in front of Samantha's hand. Samantha saw Ben's hesitation and frowned.

"It's okay. I'll be as gentle as I can." Samantha reassured him.

Ben climbed into Samantha's hand and she took him into her bathroom. She took off all his bandages and cleaned the wounds.

"Wow. They are getting much better, only your torso needs a bandage." Samantha happily informed Ben.

"Yeah." Ben muttered quietly as Samantha wrapped his torso.

"You okay, Ben? It's great news, you should be happy." Samantha said with a bit of concern.

"Um... I was-" Ben started but was interrupted by Samantha's phone.

"That's my alarm to leave. I'm so sorry, Ben, I have to go to work but I'll be back later and we can talk. Is that okay?" Samantha said, feeling guilty.

"It's fine." Ben said as he tried not to look too upset.

"Are you sure?" Samantha asked.

"Yeah."

"Okay. Sorry, Ben, have a good day. We'll talk later." Samantha said as she rushed out the door. When she got to work, though, she was very distracted. All she could think about was the tiny borrower boy living in her walls, and how he seemed upset. He was distant compared to the progress he'd made talking to her.

Meanwhile, Ben made his way back to the walls where he again ran into Lily.

"Still talking to the human, I see." Lily said.

"She just seems so genuine." Ben admitted.

"Are you in love with her? Or do you just like to see the good in everyone?" Lily asked.

"Uh, the second one. I think. Is that a trick question?" Ben asked in confusion.

"You're letting your gaurd way down and it's making me nervous." Lily confessed.

"Why? Are you in love with me?" Ben asked with a chuckle.

"No, but I do want us to be friends. I don't know a lot of other borrowers either, and it's nice to talk to someone, you know? I just don't want to see you get hurt." Lily explained.

"I appreciate that. Being friends would be nice. I'll be careful, but Sam won't hurt us." Ben assured her.

"Us? Does she know I'm here?" Lily asked.

"No, but if you happen to run into her, just know she is not a threat. She's super nice." Ben said.

"I won't be letting my gaurd down any time soon, but it's good to know. She's at work now, right?" Lily asked and Ben nodded. "I'm going out borrowing, if you want to join." Lily offered.

"Maybe another time, I'm not feeling so well." Ben said.

"Okay, feel better soon." Lily said as she was leaving.

Ben went back to his home. Each time he interacted with Lily or Samantha, he felt very confused. It was exhausting. All he wanted to do in that moment was talk to Samantha.