Claws

Chapter Two

      I wake up sometime before lunch, I don't know exactly when. I stay still a moment before sitting up. I can't hear anything. Well, that's a lie. I can hear the people in other rooms wandering around, and the kids three floors down are making a quite the racket running and jumping. There is a mouse in the wall of the apartment two rooms over, and the tv is on in the apartment above us. But I can't hear anything in our apartment. Which means I am alone.

Taking the liberty to do so, I take off all of the little things that cover up my more catlike features. The gloves. Off. The pants. Off. Replaced with my normal jeans. The mask and the hat. Off. I shake my head, freeing my dirty blond curls and velvety black ears. Going over to the window, I smiled into the mid-morning sun. Contrary to popular belief among the guards back at the asylum, I am not nocturnal.

Something moves outside. Pricking my ears, I transfer my attention all outside the window, searching for what had moved. Soon I realize that it had only been a bird flying by, and that being near the window was risky anyway. Quickly stepping back, I jerk the curtains shut.

I turn on the tv, and the rest of the day passed in a blur. When I got tired Adrian still wasn't home, so I put back on my gear and passed out on the couch.

"Did you get up at all today? Geez, I've never seen a girl who sleeps so much."

I sit up. "Well, you still haven't, because I was awake most of the day." Judging by the light in the window, only about half an hour had passed since I went to sleep. "I just went to sleep. Now, tomorrow I have to start my job search like you said, so could you please wake me up when you get up?"

"Yeah, sure, whatever. But let me warn you, I'm not much of a morning person!" Adrian teases. I laugh.

"Maybe I can help you get on track. As far as I can tell, I am a morning person!" This time he laughs.

"Well, don't expect much. Goodnight, Alexis."

"Goodnight, Adrian." And with that, I roll over and nestle back into the warm embrace of sleep.

"Wakey wakey eggs and bakey!" I hear from above me. Squinting into the face looming right above mine, I asked a simple question.

"What the heck is a bakey?" Adrian straightens up as if offended.

"Aww, man! It's like, slang for bacon. You've never had bacon before?" I shake my head no. "Man, you don't know what you're missing out on. Come on, it's time to get up." I look him over.

"I thought you said you aren't a morning person."

"I decided that would be torture to put you through and got dressed quietly. Then I made eggs for breakfast. Now you're awake, so I figured you could get dressed and then join me for breakfast? Uh, you can use the bathroom to get changed." Seeing how I shrink back into the couch, he gives me a pointed look. "You've been wearing those for two days now. You need to change. You do have other clothes, right? Maybe a dress?"

"I have other clothes. But what about the mask? I can't take off the mask."

"We can explain the mask to whoever you talk to. But what's with the hat? In the middle of summer like this, it's a little out of place."

"Fine, the hat can go. But do you have something like a wide ribbon or headband

I could use? There is something on my head I want to cover."

"I know you're not bald. Your hair reaches your shoulders."

"I'm not bald, I just had an accident with a razor a few days ago so I have two little bald patches that are kinda in a line but not really, and no matter how I part my hair it never stays, so I need something to cover it up, because it looks really weird." I explain. Adrian sighs.