Honeycomb Hearts

The Ebb and Flow of the Mind

Though Blake was usually a morning person, she groaned when the sun shone right into her eyes. She tossed and turned, trying to find a comfortable position where she couldn't see the light, but gave up within a minute. With a yawn, she slipped out of bed and sipped the last bit of water from the bottle that nearly never left her bedside table.

Quickly dipping into the bathroom so as to avoid the just-woken-up conversation with her father, who most likely hadn't had his coffee yet, she shut the door behind her before turning off the lights. She slapped the wall several times, flailing her arm until she found the light switch. When she turned it on and looked in the mirror, she nearly turned the lights right back off. Her hair was knotted and messy, and the bags under her eyes looked like even a bodybuilder couldn't carry them. A product of a not only sleepless, but stressful night.

"Nothing a shower can't fix..." She thought to herself. After tossing her clothes into a crumpled pile in the corner, she started the shower and let the cool water flow over her. She'd been told that taking cold showers was weird, but nothing else woke her up quite like a cool, refreshing stream of water. Plus, it helped keep her focused. Hot showers tended to be when she wanted to think and let her mind wander, often about ideas for her future short stories or novel chapters.

She opted for a quick, five-minute shower, like she was taught as a kid at summer camp. She stepped out and toweled off, wrapping it around her like a cheap dress. She let her hair flow down freely, however, as the towel hat her old friends made often hurt her ears. She looked in the mirror again. Her hair was less messy, but her eyes still looked quite dead. She dried off her hands and rubbed her eyes, then took another look. It was blurrier this time.

She grabbed a container out of the cabinet behind the mirror and opened it up, revealing two contact lenses floating in some sort of liquid. She took one out and shook it around a bit, then very carefully put it in, then the other followed suit. One last look in the mirror just revealed that yes, the bags were still there, but she could see them more clearly.

After re-dressing and stepping out of the bathroom, she went right for the kitchen, grabbing the kettle on the stove. The familiar scent of black tea had filled the house by then, allowing her to know what exactly she was drinking before she tasted it. Black tea usually meant her parents had a busy day ahead of them.

"Blake, there you are! We were worried you'd never wake up!" Her father chuckled, lowering the newspaper that he always read. While he often knew everything that was happening in town thanks to idle chatter with townsfolk, he liked to stay as up-to-date as possible. "Usually you're out here before me."

Blake walked to the table and sat down across from her dad, setting her cup on a coaster that was themed after her mother's favorite brand of tea – Kipton Brews. She sipped it slowly, careful not to burn her tongue, before she allowed herself to speak even a word. "I feel like death." Nope, the caffeine hadn't kicked in yet.

"Rough night?" Her mother asked. She appeared in the doorway with a tray of scones, fresh from Ren's shop. Another sign the two were having a busy day, buying breakfast instead of preparing it.

Blake shrugged, "You could say that. I think I got maybe two, three hours of sleep?" She sipped her tea again, "I was feeling a bit stressed I guess."

"Well it's a good thing naps exist, right?" Kali smiled and offered the tray to Blake, who took a blueberry scone. Blueberry wasn't her favorite, but she'd be caught dead before eating anything with raspberries in it. "This probably isn't the best time to ask, dear, but have we thought of anything for the festival coming up?"

Ghira folded his newspaper and set it down, also accepting a blueberry scone. "You mean for the pot luck, right?" He took a bite and inhaled deeply, apparently the scone was much too hot still. Blake looked at her own and silently thanked her father for the warning. "You know I'm not too good at cooking, Kali. But if there's anything I can do to help you two just let me know."

Blake's ears drooped slightly. She bit her scone tenderly, allowing it to cool slightly before chewing it. "Actually, that was something I wanted to talk to you two about." She sighed, preparing herself for the worst, most ridiculous response she could think of. "I was thinking... maybe I could do something on my own this year?"

Silence filled the room, and the three of them just looked at each other. Her parents exchanged glances, before Kali let a smile slip. "Well Blake, this isn't exactly surprising. We've noticed you're becoming more independent lately."

"I mean living with your parents at age twenty-three isn't exactly normal most places." Blake said, her voice trailing off near the end.

"What I mean," Kali said, "Is that we've been expecting this for about ten years."

"You never did have a rebellious phase when you were a teenager." Ghira said, letting out a chuckle. "But I wouldn't call this rebellious either. You're your own person, Blake, and..." He glanced at his wife.

Kali picked up where he left off. "We've noticed we've been a bit... over bearing. And we're sorry, but you're our only daughter, and we care a lot about you."

Behind her cup, Blake smiled. "So you're not mad?"

"Not a bit." Kali said.

"Not upset?"

"Nope."

"You're not going to kick me out and leave me on the streets?"

"We would never." Kali stood up and walked around the table, bringing Blake into a one-sided hug. "Blake, is this what you were so worried about last night?"

Blake sighed, taking another bite of her scone. "Among other things, yes. I wanted to show you guys that I was ready to be independent, but since I don't really have an income or a job, I wasn't sure how."

"Blake, just because you don't have a job doesn't mean you can't be independent." Ghira said, "I actually lived here with my father until he passed away, and then became the mayor then. I was jobless, technically, just helping him with what he needed. Like an intern, so to speak."

Kali let go of Blake, who had since brought her arms around her mother too. "If you don't mind me asking, what are the other things you were thinking about?"

"I'm not sure if I'm ready to talk about those yet. I'm already nearly at my limit for the day with asking you about the pot luck." Blake said, "But thanks. I know I can tell you when I'm comfortable, though."

"Though I'm not so sure your daughter having a crush on a big-city girl who just moved into town is something they'd take nearly as well." She thought to herself. That had been the second-largest thing that kept her awake the night prior. Amongst the thoughts of being kicked out for becoming too independent, then being alone with no job, she couldn't help but be calmed, yet unnerved by how amicable she found Yang to be. Despite her backstory, she usually found ways to stay positive and joke about everything.

"You seem lost in thought. We'll leave you be, if you'd like." Ghira said, "Your mother and I will be out most of the day, we need to convince the nearby city to keep water and electricity coming here. Even though we're paying for everything perfectly on-time, they don't like having their utilities so far out."

"So that's why you made black tea." Blake said. "At least it's not as bad as when you needed to convince Nora that the Earth wasn't flat."

"Just remembering that gives me a headache. Well Kali, we should probably go. We'll be back later, Blake. Call us if you need anything."

"You know I will. Thanks, dad." Blake smiled, and she could feel a large weight being taken off her chest, though the bags under her eyes didn't show it. When her parents left and closed the door behind them, she was able to finish off her cup of black tea. She rinsed it out and set it to dry on the counter, before she headed back into her room. As it turns out, she didn't have much to worry about in terms of her parents. But Yang, however, could be another story altogether.