Mansion of Dolls (Complete)

Chapter 09 (Rewrite/Edited)

"Come on, Taryn, you got to wake up," Rachael said to Taryn, who was still under the futon's covers. Fast asleep. She folded her arms over her chest and let out a breath. Her friend was totally out cold.

"Still no good, huh?" Stephanie asked as she entered the room and squatted down near Taryn's futon, her elbows resting on her knees while looking at Taryn's sleeping face. "Man, she's sleeping like a log. Has she ever done this before?"

"Not during the whole of the trip," Rachael said as she looked back to her friend before glancing towards the nearby window, it was still early morning, but she could hear the bustle of the outside even now. "I did hear her leave the room last night, though she fell asleep atop the covers when she returned. It wasn't like her to do that, so I at least made sure she was sleeping properly before heading back to bed myself."

"Huh, she did that too during the first night we arrived in Tokyo," Stephanie added as she rested her chin into the palm of her hand. "If I'm honest, she looked like she hadn't slept well for a long time. But I guess that goes to show the effect of what happened to her brother still hits her. I can relate to that..."

Rachael merely looked at the blonde woman who brushed from Taryn's hair away from her face before standing up.

"Why not let her sleep in? I'm sure her body would appreciate it immensely."

"Sure," Rachael agreed as she stood up, grabbed her shoulder bag and followed her. To where she saw Robert waiting in the hallway as a faint frown creased his brow.

"Where's Taryn?"

Stephanie answered his question. "Still sleeping."

"The hell? Why?"

"She's exhausted," Rachael spoke in response. "So, we're letting her sleep in." it was a partial lie; Taryn wouldn't wake up no matter what she tried, but she wasn't about to go to extremes to get her friend to wake up.

"Her exhaustion finally got the better of her, huh?" Robert muttered as he glanced away from Rachael.

This caused Rachael to give him a disapproving look. "What's that supped to mean?"

He frowned at her. "What?"

"What you just said," Rachael clarified. "What was that supposed to mean exactly? Because it sounds like you mocking her for being exhausted."

"She wouldn't be exhausted if she actually went and slept like a normal person."

"Yeah? You think she doesn't know that?" her grey eyes then formed into a glare. "You already know what she's been through. Not everyone can bounce back when a family member is murdered, so don't be an ass."

Robert fell silent as Rachael walked past him. "You know you don't have to say it like that." He said before she reached the stairs causing her to stop.

She looked back at him with narrowed eyes, like a disapproving mother. "I'll say it however I want. I know that things have become complicated, but I'm still free to be angry. And I'm still angry at you."

He balked at her words. "Why me? You're not even involved in this, you know."

"No, I'm not. At least not completely." She said truthfully. "But do you honestly think I'd just stand by and do nothing after what's happened to her? What kind of friend would I be if I did that?" she then turned and headed down the stairs before he had the chance to get another word in. And quickly went to the front entrance, nearly bumping into someone who wore an orange-red kimono as she did so, giving a soft apology in Japanese before moving past.