Unchanged

Chapter 4

Sander

I woke up to the smell of eggs on toast, my favourite. Ashalia was cooking the two of us breakfast in the kitchen which made my mouth water. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and crawled of bed quietly. I felt the rough carpet on my feet as I tiptoed behind Ashalia. I put my hands on her hips, taking in the warmth of her chocolate skin. She span around suddenly, relaxing when her glittering blue eyes met mine.

"You startled me." She said with a smirk. She ran her hands down my chest and put her head on my shoulder. "Gross," she took a step back from me, "You smell. Go have a shower."

"But I have to eat my breakfast, don't I?" I asked with puppy eyes.

"Go have a shower, your eggs will still be egg-cellent when you get back."

I laughed at her awful joke and placed a kiss on her forehead.

While I shampooed my hair in the shower, I remembered that I had to show Rina around the city today. When I went to eat breakfast, Ashalia already left for work. As I quickly ate and got dressed, an image popped into my head of Rina in her hospital gown. She probably had nothing else to wear so I got a tank top and jeans out of Ashalia's wardrobe. I headed out the door, not bothering to do the dishes that sat in our tiny sink.

When I walked into Rina's hospital room, she sat up watching the TV. When she saw me walk in, Rina cocked her head to the side, "Hello," she greeted.

"I have come to rescue you." I said in the manliest voice I could pull off

"Thankyou. This room is filled with boredom. There's nothing to do but watch the cooking channel and look out that window." Her head turned towards the small, glossy window. It showed a view of the city that not even someone who lived here a lifetime could tire of.

"I'm taking you for a walk around the neighbourhood." I declared. A sharp smell of disinfectant hung in the air, making me wince. I still felt guilty she suffered more than I had a few nights ago.

"Looking like this?" she asked in doubt. She tried to look casual but fear leaked out onto her face.

"Of course not, after you put these on, you might feel better." I placed the clothes on her lap and held out my hand, "Well? What are you waiting for?" I said as gently as I could. I didn't want her to be scared around me.

Rina relaxed and gripped my hand, reminding me of when I pulled her up onto my electrike. I helped her up and led her to the bathroom. She nodded at me in thanks as she shut the door.

When she came back out she asked, "Where did you even get these from?" I decided to not tell her about Ashalia so I told her that I went out and bought them for her, not knowing if they would fit or not. Rina didn't entirely pay attention as we stepped outside of the hospital lobby, she was too entranced by Obertron's appearance. Her eyes lit up in wonder, awe and fascination. When I first came here, I guess I was filled with the same emotions as I imagine Rina was feeling then.

After a few minutes of the two of us standing outside I nudged her lightly that we needed to move. "There's a lot you need to see."

She turned towards me and smiled, her sightly imperfect teeth glowing, "Well then show me."

First I showed Rina the main city building. It was a circular, nine story high building, not including the four underground parking floors. I took her to the ground floor which was the food court. The next three stories on top of that were shopping levels. There were bright blue business banners that shone in every direction. The two stories after that we couldn't go to because they were corporate buildings and couldn't be accessed by the public. The three remaining stories were hotel rooms.

"I hate to break your high, but I'm afraid you'll need to find a part time job." I said as soon as we took an elevator down to the ground floor.

"Oh?"

"Yeah, you need money to pay for your apartment."

"I have my own apartment?" Rina remarked, "Where?"

"I'll show you." Without saying another word.

When we arrived outside her apartment, she took in her surroundings. The apartment building was across the road from an optometrist practice that I knew all too well. The outside of the flat building was painted peach pink, decorated with palm trees to suit a vintage theme. Funny that, we lived in a futuristic dimension but some things still don't fit in. When we walked in the lobby, Rina's eyes scanned the room. The carpet beneath us was a plain deep red and chandeliers hung from the ceiling. The front desk was dark mahogany wood and the room smelled with wax. We walked up to the front desk to check in. Rina looked at me with an anxious look.

Smiling, I greeted the lady sitting at the front desk, who happened to be Ashalia working her first shift. "Hello."

She looked up and when she saw me, her eyes widened. "How can I help you?"

"Just checking in my uh, friend, Rina." I gestured to her and she smiled at the desk lady. "She's new here, moving in to-"

"Floor 2, apartment D. Yes, I have her paperwork here. Miss Pearlwood needs to sign some things." Ashalia handed Rina the papers and a pen and she signed them with a quick, light signature. She handed the papers back nervously to Ashalia.

"Thank-you." Ashalia said sweetly. Out from a draw under the lobby desk, she grabbed the key to Rina's apartment, which was an electronic card. It seemed so out of place in a building that was so vintage. As Ashalia handed the card to Rina, I noticed her ruby red nails. Rina started to walk towards the elevator but before I followed, I complimented Ashalia, "Nice nails," and followed after Rina.