The Great Unknown

All the Kids are Depressed - Jeremy Zucker

*

Charlotte stood in the hall carrying two to-go cups of coffee along with two donuts. Her black ankle boots shifted against the hardwood floor as she stood outside Vanya's door. She was covered head to toe in black. An oversized black sweater and black jeans hung losely on her body, and the only black jacket she had was a leather jacket that would hopefully keep her from the chilled air that waited for the pair outside. A few moments after she knocked Vanya opened to the door wearing a dark grey button up and black jeans, her outfit wasn't odd if you never seen her but Charlotte had enough passive conversations with the woman to know how uncomfortable she was.

"Ready?" She asked offering a coffee and donut by holding them out a bit. Vanya gave a small smile and took one of each. Charlotte returned the smile and held her own pair.

"Not even a little," Vanya said before turning off her lights and locking her door behind her. Charlotte smiled again at the girl as they walked down the hall and to the outside where Charlotte hailed a taxi for the pair. The ride wasn't long but the silence that stood between the two made it drag along. 

"Thank you for coming with me," Vanya said finally breaking the silence.

"Of course Vanya," Charlotte said with a small smile before looking out of the window and biting her lower lip, she had never expected that the small friendship the two were forming would blossom so quickly but she knew today out of all days was not the time to question it. 

The two climbed out of the taxi and Vanya walked ahead of Charlotte already used to her home but to Charlotte, the building in front of her was so much more. She shook the feelings she held and quickly walked up to Vanya as the woman pushed open the doors with an umbrella emblem on it. The foyer was enormous, the ceilings were incredibly high allowing for the second floor and the first floor to seem one. Arches seemed to tease at the different rooms to either side of the entryway and a grand staircase lead towards the other mysteries the house held. Charlotte's attention was soon grabbed by a tall woman walking towards the pair.

"Vanya!" Her smile was warm and her white teeth were bright against her dark skin, her ombre hair twirled perfectly down past her shoulders. "I'm so glad you came." She said hugging the much smaller girl.

"What's she doing here." A young man asked roughly coming out of one of the side rooms, he didn't stop walking to get a response. "You don't belong here." He commented before making his way up the stairs. "And neither does your friend." He called from one of the second-floor balconies.

"Don't listen to him." The tall woman said brushing off the rude man's comments. "I'm so sorry I haven't introduced myself, I'm Allison." She said with a smile. Charlotte returned with a small, tight smile.

"Charlotte." She said simply before looking to Vanya to know what to do next. Vanya nodded towards a side room and started to make her way there. "Vanya and I are neighbors and friends." Charlotte continued hoping that their newly grown friendship would be a good enough reason for her presence in the house. Allison nodded and looked from Vanya and back to Charlotte.

"Well, welcome to our home." She gave another award winning smile, it wasn't that her smile was obviously fake but just too perfect. Charlotte smiled and then followed after Vanya into a formal living room and bar.

There was a large oak bar the held hundreds of bottles behind it, all of them filled to different levels. The rest of the room was filled with couches and books, it felt warm and inviting although Vanya's body language told a completely different story. This room similar to the entrance had tall ceilings that allowed the second floor to access the same space.

"This was a mistake," Vanya said sitting on the couch putting her hands on her forehead. Charlotte sat next to her and placed a hand on her back.

"Don't say that." She said softly. "You deserve to be here just as much as your siblings." She continued not truly knowing what to say.