Running On Empty

Chapter 4~Jaylin

              SONG: When can I see you again?                ARTISIT: Owl City

Silya had on shorts that went down straight to her knees and a shirt that said The Beatles. I had no clue why someone would want a shirt with four random guys on the front, you might as well have a portrait of yourself if you wanted a picture of anyone.

"What's up?" She said it so casually like we didn't meet just yesterday night.

"Um, the sky? At least that's what Madeline taught me when I was little."

She only looked at me in an odd way, I think she was trying hard to come up with a response.

"You look...cleaner, She said, eyeing my clothes.

"Yeah, my maid came in here and cleaned me up....Um, you look.... you?"

I heard a little sound came out of her mouth. She looked happy though and it was like she was trying hard to hide it.

"This is called a compliment. It's what people do when they see something they like about you today. For example, the way you dress." She had set her backpack down and walked over to the front of my bed.

She looked at me and tiled her head a little. "I like the color of your eyes, they make you look so full of mystery."

"Ok, I'll give it a try," I said and then I got on my hands and looked at her.

"I like the people on your shirt." I had lied, I didn't actually get the whole idea behind them.

"Oh, you know them? They are one of my favorite bands!" Her eyes seem to light up a bit.

"Um, yeah...they're great." I could feel myself start to form words that I didn't ever normally use.

She could see straight through my lie though, "You have no idea who they are, do you?"

I nodded and then pulled my feet out as I sat on the edge of my bed, my feet dangling a foot off the ground.

"They're a fantastic band from the 70's and their music was phenomenal! I think I should bring a CD player because I have a couple of their albums that we could listen to."

I nodded again, wondering why the heck I was having a talk like this with her. I guess this is what people called "chatting." Silya walked over to her bag and sat down as she crossed her legs. "I wanna stay here, I hope you don't mind."

"Sure, but my mom is coming to see me at 4:00." I looked at my wheelchair, wanting to get in it, but I couldn't reach for it since it was far out.

"It's only 1:23 pm right now, so we have loads of time to kill off", she said looking at a rectangular object in her hand.

"Right, of course I knew that," I kept looking at my chair because I wanted to get off the bed.

The two of us sat in silence for a couple of minutes, but it felt like more than that by a long shot. This was quite strange to me, even though I was so used to quiet. It hadn't seemed alright with me now. I heard the sound of the wooden stick on her paper making up letters that would form something called a "word." Madeline had told me that when you make multiple words, you could make something called a "sentence."

I looked around at my room, taking in the fact that it was way to plain. It was so bare and the only light was from the little circular window and some candles that were lit up on my dresser. Why was Silya here of all places? I know that my place wasn't exactly the place of what people called, "welcoming." Silya looked over at me one moment and looked straight back at her paper as soon as our eyes met.

I took a breath and then kind of asked loudly, "So, why are you here anyways? You must want something from me. Money, right? My parents have piles of that green paper things around the mansion!"

She only continued writing like she hadn't heard me utter a single word.

I continued on only to fill the silence, "You know, my maid Madeline said that breaking into someone's home is illegal. It means that it's against the rules."

"Like I care, I'm bored anyways." She sounded like she didn't care to listen to anything I was saying to her. I secretly wanted her to stay because I was finally getting used to the sound of my own voice and the way I said things to talk to someone besides my maid.

We said nothing again and then about five minutes later, she glanced over my way again.

"Are you done babbling idiotically for the heck of it now?" She closed her book and tucked her wooden stick in her backpack and stood up.

I nodded slightly, feeling embarrassed that she saw that.

"Good, I brought something over today that might be useful to you." She unzipped a different part of her backpack and pulled out a white board and Dry Erase Markers. I put my eyebrow up in the air.

"What's that for?"

"For whatever you want." She walked over to my wheelchair and grabbed the handles and rolled it over to me. I looked at her, shocked at what she was doing.

"You're being a bag of bones," she held out her arm and stretched out her hand. "Come on, you don't want to be here all day, I know that I don't." I reached out my hand and then she suddenly just pulled me in that chair with a great force that it started to tip over a little.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to let you fall." I sat up straight in my seat and she snapped a belt over my stomach.

"Alright, here we come sunlight and fresh air!" I looked up at her, seeing a big smile on her face. She flung her backpack over her shoulder and shoved the white board and markers into my arms. She went over to the door and held it in place with random stick that I hadn't even noticed before. She backed up a little and then with a sudden burst of energy, ran forward towards the big opening to the other side of this small world of mine.

It was like the first time I rode that bike, I was a bird. Not because I felt like I was flying faster than I had in a long time, but because I finally got a chance to soar out beyond my boundaries for the first time.