Knife's Edge

Chapter 6 ◈ Carbonara

[06 // Carbonara]

-Hey Aiden, I think you left your pen in the back of Nala's car. I'll just bring it over the weekend if that's okay?

I typed, the fingers of my right hand swiftly tapping the screen as I examined the black metal stick on my left. Aiden's always had the habit of fiddling with anything and everything they could grab when they had nothing else to do, and usually, the only things within their reach include their favorite pen, which lived in his pocket, and his fingers, which were chipped from their frequent mannerisms.

-Oh damn, so that's where it was. I've been looking all over for it. I really should stop carrying it around and leaving it anywhere now should I

-Yeah no shit. Anyways, I gotta go. Let me know if you need anything! ;-)

For something so expensive, they sure do forget about that pen a lot.

Nala pulled over in my designated parking spot underneath the building before turning the engine off and looking at me from over her seat. "So, would you mind explaining what the hell happened earlier?"

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I keyed the door open and left my shoes by the bottom compartment of the accent cabinet, where a handful of clutter and trinkets lay scattered in what I call an "artful mess". I added Aiden's pen as a temporary addition to that mini ecosystem and placed it with the pens and pencils who haven't seen the light of day ever since I dumped them in one metal container.

And just to make sure that I don't accidentally steal their pen by forgetting to return it until three years later, I even wrote a note and stuck it on the rectangular mirror hanging above the cabinet. During busy days and weeks or exam seasons, this mirror barely even serves as a place for me to check if I look human enough for the day but rather acts more like a memo board, with yellow post-it notes neatly aligned to remind me of just about everything, like what it's doing right now.

Shoot, I forgot about watering the plants, again.

"Nyx? Are you home? Do you have pasta?" What on earth is going o—

"Keith? What are you doing in my kitchen?" Nala shut the door, locking it with her copy of my apartment key card. I suppose this is one of the consequences of giving your friends a duplicate of your key card – they'll raid your house for pasta and invade your kitchen. It was a security measure. The four of us each have copies of keys or cards to each other's houses so that, in the unfortunate event of an emergency, we could all barge in without any unnecessary struggle. It's also a crucial factor to a handful of contingency and escape plans that Pyre and I formulated way back when we were just starting to figure out how to live in secrecy. "I called him to come over, plus, it's been a while since we hung out." She made her way to the right side of the room, where Keith was making a racket with my pots and pans just by the kitchen island, but before she could take another step, I pulled her by her knapsack, causing her to retrace her steps until she stood beside me. I cleared my throat and eyed her faded blue sneakers with its yellowing cream soles. She needn't to be told twice.

I made her shampoo my carpet once after running in with muddy rubber shoes. I'd imagine it was a pain, literally, since her back wasn't exactly in its healthiest state. Regardless, she likely took it as a testament to how much I care about leaving shoes by the damn door and that I'll certainly make her do it again the next time she decides to mess up my floors.

After pushing her sneaks off of her and throwing her bag on the couch, she headed for the fridge and rummaged for something that I couldn't be bothered to figure out what.

"Hey—" Pyre emerged from the bathroom, hands halfway from drying. "How's the fashionista doing?" He pulled me in for a hug, making sure to touch my upper arm with his disgustingly wet hand. "Ugh gross!" In an instant, I pushed him away and squirmed at his laughing face. Even I don't know why I still fall for his shenanigans – he does this every single time. At one point, I remember Nala describing him as "a man whose life's mission is to annoy and prank the three of us 'til the day we die" and if I were to be honest, I'd say that's a pretty accurate depiction of Pyre. "You're so disgusting!"