Natalie glared at the strand of hair that kept disturbing her vision. Shoving it into her messy bun, she quickly pulled on her coat and left the room.
Isaac's house was big for an apartment but it was extremely quiet and as she entered the empty dining room, she started to feel uneasy. Where were they? She sauntered into the living room, which was spotless and empty. What the hell? It was already nine and she had to leave by nine thirty.
She stood in the living room for a while longer, looking at the bare walls and finally decided on waking Isaac up. She went and stood in front of his room, not knowing what to say. She knocked once, then twice and then thrice, but there was no answer. She pushed the door forward and saw that it was open.
Peering inside, she saw Isaac sleeping, his glasses on his bedside table, his hair ruffled and his face peaceful. He had his hands wrapped around his pillow and his bare feet were tangled amongst the blanket. She hated interrupting his slumber, but she had to leave and she couldn't leave his house without telling him.
"Isaac," she whispered. She slowly walked inside and stood next to his bed awkwardly. His hair was all in his face and she resisted the urge to move it away. "Isaac," she said a second time, louder and clearer. He stirred awake, confused at first then realizing the situation.
"Natalie?" He asked his voice slurred.
"Sorry to wake you but it's 9 and I have to leave. My mom has already left from home."
"Oh, shit. So sorry. I had set an alarm. I think I overslept. Sorry!" He quickly scrambled to put his glasses on and jumped out of bed. "Did you have breakfast?"
"Well, no..I mean. Your mom isn't outside. I don't...know."
Isaac scowled. "She left. I can't believe her."
"N-no. I don't think she left..."
"No, trust me. She probably left." He grabbed her wrist and pulled her out of his room towards the room at the end. The door was open and everything inside was neat. The bed didn't even look like anyone had sat in it, let alone sleep. "See? She left."
"Oh...er....I...well...the game. I need to..."
"Yeah, yeah. Let me just freshen up and I'll come with you." Running a hand through his hair he went back inside his room and shut the door, leaving Natalie to stand awkwardly.
"Natalie?"
She turned around and faced the woman who looked so much like Isaac. "Oh...hello."
"I'm sorry. I was in the balcony attending a call and I didn't hear you waking up."
Natalie gave a warm smile, feeling bad that Isaac doubted his mother so much. "It's okay. I didn't see you so I woke up Isaac."
She nodded slowly and smiled. "Well, I made breakfast for you. Nothing special, really. Just coffee and eggs. I hope you don't mind it."
Natalie shook her head. "Of course not. Thank you so much, Mrs. Collins."
His mother opened her mouth then closed it. Mumbling, she said, "Ms. Collins, please."
Natalie's cheeks coloured and she mentally scolded herself for not being thoughtful. "Right, sorry."
His mother led her to the dining room and told her to sit while she quickly set the table. She noticed how quick the woman was on her toes and was impressed by her speed.
"Ms. Collins, I hope you don't mind me asking...but did you play a sport?"
Her face lit up as she cocked her to the side and studied Natalie. "Yes. In fact, I still do. I play tennis everyday in the mornings. How did...you?"
"Well, you're quite quick on your feet and I play basketball, so...," she trailed off, not knowing how to explain.
"Wow, that's wonderful. I have always told Isaac to play a sport, but he's never been interested in it. He likes to get A's all the time."
That comment made Natalie burst out laughing and she immediately stopped when Isaac ambled into the room. "Huh," he said as he sat down with a huff. "Talking about me, are we?"
"Totally," Natalie smirked. "She even showed me your baby pictures."
"What?!" He asked, exclaiming. He looked to and fro between the two females, slowly narrowing his eyes. His mother shook her head and served them breakfast.
"I thought you'd left." That one remark from Isaac caused his mother to breathe in sharply.
"Well, I didn't." She didn't elaborate more and the rest of the breakfast was finished in silence. Natalie got up, the chair scraping on the floor and jerking his mother from her daydream.
"You don't want more?" She asked as Natalie reached for her plate.
"No, thank you. It was tasty but I'm full and I need to go now."
"Already?"
"Yes, sorry."
Ms. Collins beamed. "It's alright. Please do visit us again! It's nice to have a little company once in a while." She turned to Isaac and her mask faded away. An authoritative tone took over her as she sent Isaac a cold look. "Go and drop her off."
"I am going," Isaac said through gritted teeth. He got up and stomped out of the room angrily while Natalie gave his mother a tight smile and left.
The lift downstairs was awkward and quiet until Natalie decided that the silence was too loud for her. "You have a very nice home. Very...clean and neat."
He glanced up at her and nodded, his eyes sad. "My mother has a problem with disorganized things but she doesn't have OCD."
"Oh. I don't see why you hate her. She seems alright."
"She seems alright. She isn't alright. She doesn't know how to raise a child. She doesn't what to do without my father. She's just a person in my life that I do not want to talk about right now."
"Is this related to Taylor in any way?"
Isaac snapped his head in Natalie's direction, boring his eyes into her. "What exactly did she tell you?"
"Nothing. I'm just asking."
"Well...it does."
When he didn't add anything more to his sentence, she shrugged and got out of the lift, Isaac following. They made it to her car and Natalie's mother waved at Isaac and made small talk while Natalie shot him accusing glares. So small talk with older people was allowed?
"Hey, send me a text when you reach home."
The ghost of a smile appeared on her lips. He cared about her and that caused her heart to skip a beat. She leaned in close to him and whispered. "I will. Thanks for...everything."
He pulled back and winked. "No problemo."
