Encounter

Four

Four

“Watch your step, it gets everyone.” Kyan warned Emmix. They had parked outside his Aunt and Uncle’s house; the small home was lined with natural stones and trees. It couldn’t compare to Abscan. The street carried houses of all shapes and sizes, the colors created a rainbow neighborhood. Kyan instinctively searched his pockets for the key, then realized Emmix had summoned him new clothes. He remembered the spare on top of the front door frame, reached up, and flicked it off. He picked it up off the ground and opened the glass door to slide it into the deadbolt.

The house smelt of spices and vanilla, wafting out of the door. The AC’s cool air hit him in the face, still not phasing his body temperature. He could hear the familiar commercials on the TV. Jim must be home. He led Emmix through the Better Homes style house. Each room was painted with different neutral colors paired with matching furniture and little decorations that worked as focal points. Each room was painted with a signature accent wall. They passed through the office and to the living room where his uncle sat reclined in a burgundy chair, eyes closed and fast asleep. He also reminded him of Dailen and his dad. They could all be brothers if no one knew them. “We need to be super quiet.” He whispered silently to Emmix who was skimming through the small selection of books on the shelf in the formal living space.

“Kyan is that you?” Relia walked around the corner, and crossed her arms over her chest. “Explanation please, now.” She pushed. Kyan walked past her to his room, pulling her with him. It wasn’t abnormal for her to be in his house without him, she practically lived there anyway.

“Keep quiet, Jim’s sleeping. I need to make this quick…I’m moving out.” Kyan pulled Relia in, with Emmix behind them and quickly shut the door. He searched for a duffle bag and started packing up his clothes. Emmix rolled her eyes at him; he knew she didn’t like his clothing choices, hence summoning new ones. He emptied drawers into the bags, spilling them over onto the floor and over the bed.

“You’re doing what?!” Relia snorted, “Where are you going? Wait, who’s that?” she shifted her gaze to Emmix who was walking around the room rummaging through Kyan’s things. He watched Relia turn red, as if she was the only one who had the right to be nosey with him.

“Relia this is Emmix, Emmix this is my best friend Relia Alexins. I’m moving somewhere I can’t tell you about but you need to trust that if it were safe to tell you, I would.” Kyan desperately hoped he was saying all the right things not to upset his best friend. He knew she would be hurt that he was leaving, but he had to convince her it was okay and that he wasn’t going very far.

“I don’t know what to say…” Relia trudged over to his bed and sat down, staring at the floor. “Will you still go to school? Am I still going to see you?” she inquired, playing with her thumbs, not moving her eyes. “Why is she here?” Emmix looked over at Relia, surprised.

“Oh, he’s coming with me.” She mentioned politely. Something in her voice set Relia off and she straightened up and narrowed her eyes. Kyan had never seen her so lit up, he was curious as to why Emmix changed that fact.

“Who are you?” She snapped. He whipped around to face her, surprised by the sharpness in her voice. She sounded harsh and bitter, something Kyan knew was strange and uncommon.

“He already introduced us, did you forget that quickly?” Emmix narrowed her eyes back. He could tell Relia wasn’t about to let him go, she looked like she was going to put up a fight. He couldn’t figure out what exactly was crawling under her skin, she was acting weird. He noticed the two had positioned themselves on opposite sides of the room, avoiding any close contact.

“Do you want to cut the sarcasm out of your voice before I slap it out of you?” Relia’s eyebrows pulled together, rage took over her stature. Kyan watched the two and stopped packing. He hoped a girl fight wasn’t about to break out. He knew he would try to back up Relia but he also knew Emmix could do horrible damaging things to Relia, and he’d have to stop Emmix first.