That Abercrombie Model

NINETEEN

At some point I fall asleep too. Noise from the television doesn't make me stir a fraction. I sleep deeply from exhaustion for three hours before I am startled by someone moving beside me. I open my eyes and see Liza getting under my arm. I scoot farther into the sofa to make space for her, all the time wondering what is going on.

Rather than lying down though, she starts fumbling for something. I am utterly confused. She gets the remote controller, and presses buttons shiftlessly. I assume she wants to watch TV, so I sit up too. In her haste she turns it off instead. Suddenly, she chucks the remote away and gets up. I would have gone back to bed without thinking much about it, had I not seen how out of balance she is walking like she is not fully in coordination of her body.

I get up and follow after her. Before she bumps into a stool in front of her, I catch her shoulders to hold her steady. Her head is drooping.

I turn her around and I am shocked at what is going on. With her eyes shut she tries to get out of my grip but I do not budge. She mumbles a few incomprehensible sentences before falling onto me fatigued. Her sleepwalking episode over.

I lift her into my arm and carry her back to bed as quietly as I can, to avoid waking her up. As I am retreating, I bump into a futon and the boxes which were on it fall down creating a lot of noise. I wince, wishing she doesn't hear that ruckus. She is already waking up when I look back.

We meet eyes and hers are full of questions. For a second as her mind clears she smiles at me, happy to see me, but then a frown takes over and she sits up with a fear I regret seeing in her eyes.

"Sorry." I say as I make my way to the door.

"Wait." I notice the cute Star Wars pajamas she was wearing the first time we met, in the hallway. "What are you doing in my room?"

"Um... I think you were wandering around so I led you back to bed." I answer cautiously, I've got no business accusing her of sleepwalking, I know nothing for sure.

She looks horrified. From her expression, I conclude that I was right. "Sorry." She looks like she can read my mind. says from underneath. I approach her bed and sit on the edge.

"Don't apologise. Has this happened before?" I ask with concern. Instead of speaking she nods and burrows into the duvet. She is ashamed. "Hey, look at me." I demand. I can't have a conversation with her if I can't gauge her expression.

She pulls the duvet away but doesn't meet my eye. I put a finger on her chin and lift her gaze up to meet mine. "Is it serious?" I entreat her gently.

"Sometimes." She is uncomfortable talking about it, but I have one more question to ask her.

"Were you sleepwalking that time in the hallway?" She winces at the memory, for some reason she chuckles. At the sound the mood lightens, I presume she finds that memory funny.

"Yup." She says hastily. "Let's not talk about this." I get up to let her sleep again, I am tired too anyway. She holds onto my wrist before I reach far. "May you stay for a while?" Her eyes look fearful, and it worries me.

I sit back down. She doesn't say anything for some time. "What should we do now?" I ask.

"Let's play twenty questions." She says with excitement back in her eyes. Such a childish game. "I don't know much about you." She says as an afterthought.

"Okay. You start." I answer anyway. I scoot back until my back is against the headboard. Liza sits up too and faces me.

She puts a finger on her chin as she thinks, such a novel character. "What is your favorite color?"