The Interview

Chapter Seven

The melodious tune of her alarm woke Glinda an hour earlier than usual. Blindly, she searched for her phone on the nightstand and pushed the first button she could find. She didn't want to leave the cosy bed, didn't want to take the first step into a new day when the previous one had been so cruel and exhausting. It had ended on a far gentler note than she'd dared to hope, that much was true. Still, she could hardly expect Elphaba to continuously save her from her own demons and insecurities.

They had not talked about any of it after leaving the Corn Exchange. Instead, they had discussed Animals, politics and some titbits of their youth. They had even talked about Elphaba's job when all other topics had seemingly been exhausted for the time being. Glinda had clandestinely enjoyed that part more than should be expected. The last few hours of the evening they had spent on the couch, munching on Vinkun takeout and sipping wine while watching various documentaries on WizzFlickz. She'd felt safe and, most of all, distracted from those nagging thoughts that had plagued her the past two days. Leaving the sanctuary of the bed and, ultimately, of Elphaba's house was a daunting prospect by comparison.

Having very little choice in the matter though, she finally flung back the blanket when the alarm recurred. She wrapped herself in one of the guest bathrobes and grabbed her small makeup bag from her purse. Opening the door, no more than an inch, she checked for unexpected visitors or inhabitants. Once she was finally convinced that the coast was clear, she quietly slipped into the bathroom next door.

Her clothes were already waiting for her, hanging from the curtain rail of the shower. She wrinkled her nose at the idea of wearing the same outfit twice in a row, but all items were freshly laundered, thanks to Elphaba's help. It felt odd as she pulled her camisole over her face, taking in the crisp, clean scent of Elphaba's detergent, so different from Glinda's usual flowery fragrances. Odd indeed, but by no means unpleasant.

When she finally descended the stairs to make her way to the kitchen, she found the house deserted. It was unlikely that Shell would have returned after they had gone to bed, but if so, he was seemingly not up yet. For that at least she was grateful. What pleased her far less, was the fact that Elphaba had already left. If the empty kitchen was not evidence enough, the note she found on the table quickly abated any hope Glinda might have had.

'Apologies for leaving without seeing you first,' it read, and Glinda smilingly shook her head. The rest of the note were instructions – an order to help herself to anything she could find in fridge, freezer or pantry; a brief manual on how to use the gas stove; and lastly, directions concerning the whereabouts of the house key and a request that she take it with her and keep it until their next meeting. Glinda raised an eyebrow at that. Simply popping it into the letter box might have been the more common solution, but perhaps Elphaba didn't deem it safe enough.

Following Elphaba's first instruction without any inhibitions, Glinda grabbed a pack of organic pancake mix. As a side, she chose a few berries, accompanied by some clotted cream. She had a coffee with that and considered making herself a smoothie, when her gaze fell on her phone on the counter. It was already twelve past seven. If she didn't want to be horrendously late for work, she'd have to leave this very moment and pray for the tram to not be overcrowded.

As it turned out, forgoing her smoothie was not enough to save her from the disgrace of tardiness. After initially turning her back on the small mess in the kitchen, she was quickly overcome by a sense of guilt. The knowledge that a professional cleaner would most certainly arrive before Elphaba would even return home did not negate Glinda's ingrained conviction that it was incredibly rude and ungrateful of any guest to not restore order where their activity had caused disarray. She neatly sorted her used dishes and utensils into the dishwasher, wiped the table and counter and emptied the capsule bin of the coffee machine. Her conscious thus appeased, she grabbed her bag and run towards the hall. She found the spare key on the side table by the door, as promised, and with it another piece of paper.