Someday, I'll Find My Way Home

Karl is on a sleepover!

If I was going to be completely honest, I lost all motivation to study after the Math exam. But Axel still pulled me, with his hand firm on my wrist, as we walk along Grove. He ordered a two-piece chicken in KFC, while I ordered a bucket of fries to cheer myself up.

"Oh c'mon, until when will you sulk?" Axel complained. He was walking faster against the tide of people coming in our direction. I was still thinking about the Math exam, for the most part. And that I just wanted to lay down and sleep.

"Shut up," I muttered under my breath. I didn't even had the energy to bicker.

He removed his hand when a group, probably friends  from an organization, walked against our direction and completely overwhelmed us.  

We stopped at the intersection of Demarses in front of Bonitos. 

"Do you still want to go over my apartment?" he asked. I looked up, and I appreciated his pure look of worry on his face. "I mean, I wouldn't force you to come if you don't feel like it."

"No, let's go to your apartment," I assured him. "Besides, I don't have an overnight permit. I would have a violation on my dorm if I went home after curfew."

"Are you sure?"

I nodded.

"Are you really sure?"

"How many times are you going to ask that question?"

"As long as I'm satisfied that you're completely on it," Axel answered. "C'mon, it'll be fun. I promise."

-

When we arrived at his apartment, my first impression was mixed with both amazement and disgust.

"I know it isn't clean," Axel defended, "so wait here for a while until I sort this out."

The room was almost big as my dormitory room, which means it could fit two double decks in one row. The room had hidden potential, if not for the disorganized clutters of papers on the ground, lots of shirts and shorts hanged in the cabinet and scattered on the bed, and the mess in the large table with opened junk food beside a desktop computer. 

The cream walls complimented the porcelain-like tiled floor. The right side of the room has the bed and the clothes cabinet, almost as high as the wall on its foot, while on the left is the wide table with the desktop computer beside the wall. He had an office chair in front of the computer and two monobloc chair under the table. A small corkboard and whiteboard hanged beside the monitor. Then, a book shelf hanged on top of the table which was filled of more clothes and papers.

On the right side of the door was a small kitchen, with the sink full of unwashed bowls and spoons. On top of it was a spacious cupboard, full of cereals, pancake mixes, chips, and biscuits. Under the sink was a space for a small refrigerator.

A shoe rack sits on the left of the door with three sneakers, two leather shoes, one sandals, and two pairs of slippers. 

Next to the kitchen was the bathroom. I could only imagine the horrors inside it. I decided to step in and take a look. But my intuition proved me wrong. It was the nicest, cleanest part of his room, with sparkling tiles and a clean toilet bowl, a full stack of shampoos, gels, soaps, and more beside the mirror. And it has a bidet!

"What are you doing in there?" Axel stepped in, while holding a bunch of laundry in his hands. "I told you to stay outside."

"I thought you would at least clean when you're expecting company," I said, trying to prove a point with a lot of sarcasm. "This is very clean."