Entrance to the Song (completed)

Chapter 7 - Home of Hearts

The depth of a person reaches beyond the bounds of earth

The sun shone on my face when I awoke. I sat upright and wiped the dribble from my mouth. "I guess I was more tired than I realized."

A knock on the door startled me.

I tried to straighten my curls to the best of my ability and untwist my school dress. Wrinkles lay thick in the material.

"Come in," I said.

Benin peeked his head in. "I heard you speak, so I wanted to see if everything was okay."

"You heard me talking just now?"

"Oh, yeah," he said rubbing the back of his neck. "I happened to be passing by your room."

"How convenient."

I smoothed down my dress a few more times before swinging my legs over.

He shrugged. "Yeah."

"Well, I'm fine, how about you?"

He shuffled his feet. He seemed shyer than he was before looking in every direction but hers. "Er, I'm fine... and so is everyone else." He added in a rush.

"How long have I been asleep?"

"A day."

"Oh, wow." I jumped out of bed and slipped on my shoes. My little bag sat on the white chair in the corner. "Where can I freshen up?"

"Oh, there's a bathroom down the hall to your right." He pointed toward the entrance.

I grabbed the bag and headed out, but his tall, thin frame blocked the exit. He drew in a deep breath when I moved closer; the strange soft song of nature resonated from him. His whole being was like a never-ending garden.

I cleared my throat after what seemed an eternity. "Are you going to let me pass?"

"Oh," he said. His cheeks turned pink. Though his face was expressionless, I didn't have a hard time reading him. Every note of his soft song expressed deep emotion. "Sorry."

He slid out of my way.

I smiled. "It's okay." I reached out a hand to touch his shoulder.

He tensed. "Is that a good idea?"

"How will we ever learn if we never touch?"

"I have a theory." He moved away from my outstretched hand.

"Which is?"

"Wouldn't you rather freshen up before we get into it?" He shoved his hands in the pockets of his denim pants.

My curiosity made me think twice about his question, but I already danced from the need to use the restroom. "Okay, but it won't take long."

He nodded, and I turned to exit.

After a thorough scrubbing in their antique looking bathroom, I headed back to the bedroom and found it empty. Where did Benin go?

I dropped the bag in the chair and followed the aroma of bacon to the kitchen. My stomach grumbled.

Dad and Benin sat at the wooden square table talking while Shiah bustled around the kitchen setting out heaping trays of food. I followed her as she set a tray full of breakfast potatoes on the table next to a stack of bacon. I licked my lips and rubbed my hands together. The grass still flourished on the kitchen floor under our feet.