Will to Way, Wilt Away

Chapter 5

After grabbing two water bottles from his fridge, Julius sat beside me at the kitchen island. I could tell he had a lot to say, but he didn't know where to start.

"How are you doing? Feeling a bit better, I hope," I said since there were clearly too many thoughts scrambling through his brain.

"Oh, yea, I'm doing okay," he replied. I didn't know if I should believe him. My face must have reflected this because he went on, "No really. I'm actually feeling a lot better."

"Good. I'm glad. You gave me quite the scare out there," I said, giggling nervously. I wanted to ease into the topic of how he ended up in that situation, but before I could open my mouth, Julius began talking again.

"So, your name is Aspen," he said. I could feel the curiosity growing inside of him. "And you live in 9C," he added.

"Mhm," I said with a forced smile, wondering why this information was so profound to him.

He sat silent for a few seconds. He looked back at me and could see I was confused. "I'm really sorry. I don't mean to be awkward. This is all just so bizarre."

"No, No! You're totally good," I said to reassure him, but this whole interaction was definitely awkward and bizarre to me. "Is there a reason why my name and apartment are so interesting to you?"

Julius took a deep breath and gathered himself. "Man, where to start," he said. "Well, my parents actually met in Aspen, Colorado. They were both on ski vacations with their families, and they ran into each other at the resort they were both staying in."

"Aww, that's so sweet," I replied.

Julius nodded and a blissful smile came across his face. "Yea, they've never admitted it, but I think that's where they fell in love." He brushed a strand of hair from his eye and continued, "When they got married a couple years after that, they went back to that same ski resort for the wedding. And ever since I was born we would take an annual winter vacation to Aspen."

We both looked at each other with a common understanding of something I couldn't pinpoint. Possibly pain, sadness, or loneliness. Or maybe it was optimism, certainty, and contentment. "So, my name reminded you of that," I said, stating the obvious.

"Yea, Aspen's just a really special place to me. It's my favorite place on earth actually. And my family and I didn't get to go on our trip last winter, so the past few months have been a bit difficult for me to accept." He paused. "To say the least."

"Oh, I'm so sorry to hear that." I changed the subject to avoid triggering any sadness in him. "So, what about apartment 9C? You seemed very intrigued when I told you that."

"Oh, umm." His facial expression changed in an instant, a deep disturbance overpowering his previous smile. That must have been a taboo topic for him. Panic coursed beneath my skin. The curly strand of hair fell back into his eyes, and he left it there in an attempt to hide his face from me. I desperately searched for something to say.

Ding Dong, the doorbell rang. I turned around toward the front door. OH thank god! The pizza was here.

Julius seemed to have that same inner reaction to the door as me, as he popped out of his chair and briskly walked to the door.

He opened the door to Shiloh who was holding a large white pizza box. "Pizza delivery for Mr. Esprit," he said in a loud, enthusiastic voice.

I froze. Esprit. Holy shi—

"Oh hey, Aspen! Nice to see that you've already made a new friend!" Shiloh hollered from outside. He softly punched Julius on the arm. "So what have you guys been up to?"