𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐀𝐘, k.jacobs²

IV

Vera and I tiptoe into the kitchen, throwing away all the access plastic bags and other junk we got, including our now empty cups. We had some coffee as well, but my brother doesn't have to know that since we didn't buy one for him. How would he ever know? Unless he checks the garbage bin... Whatever.

I walk up the stairs, Vera trailing behind me busy with something on her phone. Pushing the door open to Sapnap's room, I hold out the salad. "Here you go. Breakfast," I say, face slack.

He looks at the salad, then at me. Then at the salad and back at me again. "There's no way you did that," He says calmly. "There is no way that you just bought me a salad," His voice rises during 'no way' and he looks like he's about to murder me if I so much as breathe the wrong way.

"I did. Enjoy," I smile at him and his mouth falls open.

"There's no way that I'm eating that. That's actually disgusting," He says and actually looks disgusted. I know that he has eaten salad before, it's just that he doesn't like it.

"Oh, come on you giant baby. It tastes good, try it," I lightly shake the box and gags. I scoff and roll my eyes at him. "I'm joking, here, take this," I hold my hand out to Vera and she hands me Sapnap's box. I continue to hand it over to my brother and he opens it finding a subway sandwich in there.

"Oh, that's actually pretty good," He seems surprised as he looks down at the sandwich and I roll my eyes at him.

"You didn't actually think I got you a salad, right?" I arch one of my eyebrows and cross my chest, a bit clumsily as I'm still holding the box with the salad in my right hand.

"He so did," Dreams faint voice can be heard from Nicks headphones, but I can tell by how it sounds that he is screaming at the top of his lunges. Poor neighbors.

"Ow! Dude, do you want me to become deaf or something?" Nick says and puts his hand over one side of the headphones. I take that as my queue to leave and swiftly close his door behind me.

"Can we like eat now?" Vera asks and I chuckle. How she manages to always be hungry is insane. I mean, I love to eat, all the time, but not even I want to eat as much as her. Food is bae and nobody can change my mind. And in all honesty, I think that's her mindset too.

My phone buzzes just as we sit down on the floor in my room. I take it out of my back pocket to see what it is. It's Karl who is calling me on FaceTime. I accept his call with a smile.

"Hi handsome" I greet him and he smiles. "Hello pretty girl, what are you doing?" Karl asks and I look over at Vera. She nods eagerly with big eyes. My smile grows wider and I turn my attention back to Karl.

"I'm having breakfast with Vera, what about you?" I ask and plop a spoonful of salad into my mouth. It is a bit darker where he is and I notice the room as his bedroom, but he's at his setup, not his bed.

"I was just about to stream actually," He says and I nod and swallow my food.

"Then why'd you call me?" I ask with a smile and furrowed eyebrows. It doesn't make sense, honestly. It will only create more conspiracy theories and my brother will become suspicious. But I can't bear to tell Karl that if that is what he has in mind.

"I just wanted to see your face before stream. Is that so weird? That I wanted to see my beautiful girlfriend?" He riddles and I blush. Vera 'oh's in front of me and I kick her, making her quiet down.

"I- I mean, no, but-" I sigh and he giggles with his hand over his mouth. He has a new nail polish design. Interesting. It's a pattern with sage green, dark green and black over and over again on both of his hands. It looks pretty. "Hey, you could have looked at a picture. That's a good idea," I point out and raise my eyebrows.

"Hm. I could, but then I wouldn't have an excuse to talk to you," He shrugs and it's all done so casually that I think I am about to inflate. I have never in my whole life had to deal with this sort of affection and now Karl is here, showering me with it. I think I'm drowning.

"S'true," I admit. "And then I wouldn't have an excuse to talk to you either. I've discovered you're a pretty busy man," I say and Vera has turned her attention back to her food. The closest thing I will get to privacy until she has to leave. Not that I'm complaining though, it feels like I have been alone for way too long. She coming over was kind of a lifesaver.

"See? I'm such a nice person," Karl compliments himself and I shake my head at him.

"Don't get ahead of yourself pretty boy," I smile and he knits his eyebrows together. "What's that supposed to mean? Huh? You don't think I'm nice?" He asks with a saddened voice and I pinch my nose. Oh gods.

"You know what I mean," I say and he giggles again. "I know, I know, it's just so fun to mess with you," He says, still giggling, which makes it kind of hard to hear what he is saying.

"Okay, whatever," I roll my eyes at him, but it is with a smile. "Wanna say hi to Vera?" I ask him with a great amount of energy. I think maybe it's the coffee.

"Yeah, of course I want to. Your friends are my friends and all that stuff," He grins and I smile back at him, turning the phone around so Vera comes into view. She drops her fork and quickly swallows whatever she had in her mouth.

"Oh. Hi Y/n's boyfriend. It's nice to meet you" She wears an unsure smile as she says that and her eyes flicker around. I don't think I've ever seen her this nervous or stressed. Maybe I should have given her a heads up a bit earlier so she would have had time to swallow her food before she got on camera.

"Hi Vera. Y/n never told my you had red hair," Karl notes and I frown.

"What? Surely I've told you. I must have," I say and think back to all my conversations with Karl, but he's right. I can't remember a single one where I mention Vera's hair color. Huh. But there's also the possibility that I have just forgot that I said it and he is trying to fool me. Or he has forgotten it as well. I don't know which one is worse.

"No, I don't think so," He chuckles nervously and I turn my phone back towards my face so he sees me again. "Oh, there you are," Karl says and looks a bit shocked by my sudden appearance, but he's still smiling widely.

"Are you sure I've never told you?" I ask him just to make sure and now he isn't giggling anymore. "One hindered precent, you haven't said it even once," He sounds so convincing that I believe him to the bottom of my heart.

"Wow. Okay then, I'm sorry Karl for accusing you of having a bad memory or lying, and I'm sorry Vera for forgetting about your most noticeable feature" I have no idea why I am apologizing but I am and I feel good doing so.

"It's fine love, don't worry," Karl assures me and I smile softly at him. Vera nods. "Yeah, it's no biggie," She agrees with him. I feel relieved but also a bit ridiculous. I mean come on. Apologizing because I forgot to tell my boyfriend what color my friends hair is? That's laughable. I am laughing at it. Literally.

"Uh, Y/n? What are you laughing at?" Karl asks me and I have a really hard time trying to contain my laughter as I catch a tear with my finger out of the corner of my eye. It's a tear of joy, the best kind.

"How stupid this whole thing is," I wheeze and a smile plays at the corners of Vera's lips. Karl is grinning as well.

"I suppose it is quite funny," Karl says and Vera nods in agreement. "Yeah, I was just waiting for someone to say it," She admits and sends me and Karl into a fit of laughter. She soon joins in, chuckling.

A moment of pure joy. Oh how I wish I could trap this moment in a jar and just relive it every time I feel down and need something to make me happier. But that's impossible so I will just have to enjoy it while it lasts.