Maybe In Another Life

Chapter 15

(Draft)

It was a cold Monday morning. The sky outside was painted grey, sun lost somewhere among the silver fluff.

The windows were foggy, muting the autumn hues of withering trees and paling grass.

Persephone leaned against the wall, chatting away about her weekend whereabouts as Mavis locked the door to their room.

"Just imagine the smell once I walked in there! All those old records lining the shelves and dusty vintage guitars! Man it was the dream..."

The blue eyed girl finally picked herself off the wall, spotting her best friend navigating towards them, a skeptical look on his face whilst he spun in semi-circles.

Mavis eyed him suspiciously, raising an inquisitive eyebrow.

"Why is Masalis ogling you?" Dileini half whispered.

Mavis pivoted, fixing her bag onto her shoulder.

"I don't know what you're talking about." She dismissed, the pair on either her sides.

"Well you just missed it! He pulled a double take when you walked out of that room and has been glancing in your direction ever since."

"Anything you'd like to share?" Posed Persephone suggestively.

"No. He must be shooting daggers at me for annoying him as usual." Mavis ran her fingers through her bangs as they walked passed the subject of their conversation.

After a few more minutes of being questioned, the trio parted ways before reaching the cafeteria.

Mavis walked down to the main hall, going all the way to the end then rounding the corner.

The classes she walked past were empty, everyone having breakfast or still in bed.

She propped her elbows on the dusty windowsill, opening the window only to be slapped by the glacial gale.

After almost two months, she had finally gotten her hands on a pack of cigarettes during their little trip on the weekend.

She lit a coffin nail between her gentle fingers, taking slow and sensual drags out of it.

•                                       •                                        •

Soren dragged his body away from the cafeteria, his head pounding from the everlasting hangover pestering him. He had grabbed a sandwich and steered away from the clatter, grumbling lowly under his breath.

Even with the faintness of light, his eyes still managed to tear, and the circles underneath them almost screamed for attention.

He rubbed his face, running his hands through his hair, disheveling it along the way.

He hauled the jacket higher onto his neck, melting into the warm fabric.

Once he reached the bottom of the stairs he took a seat, unwrapping the sandwich he had brought along.

On the other end of the corridor, Mavis put out the cigarette in the soil of a wilting house plant sitting on the sill, then closed the windows.

She enjoyed the silence, something rare in a place full of angsty teenagers and mad professors, but unfortunately the scrunching of a plastic wrapper disrupted her peace.

She took a few steps back, peeking from behind the corner, searching for a source.

Parallel to her, Soren sat at the foot of the stairs, leaning against the railing as he lazily bit at his breakfast.

He must have felt her prying eyes, as he twisted his head idly, noting her presence.

They stared at each other. Awkwardly. For a good few minutes before Mavis cautiously made her way towards him.

His eyes followed her movement all the way up until she stood over him, leering probingly at his figure.

"Your shirt is untucked." She pointed out, both of them looking down at the light blue blouse, indeed untucked and revealing the black turtleneck he wore underneath.

He blinked at her and she sat down across from him, her leg brushing against his as she did so.

"You usually like everything to be proper. Like how you line your pencils in class according to length and color." Mavis remarks. "Hung over I assume?"

He nodded slowly, slightly narrowing his eyes by habit. He then took note of the cigarette pack in her hand, and her sunken in cheeks.

He pulled the sandwich halfway out of the wrapper, then tore it in half, stretching the untouched part out to Mavis.

She hesitantly glared at the piece, furrowing her eyebrows so that a tiny crease formed between them and her nose scrunched.

Soren rolled his eyes, lifting from his half lying position and dropping the sandwich in her lap, before taking his previous pose.

Mavis's eyes lifted from the bread and cheese, only to be met by Soren's green ones. Her expression softened and she sighed, picking up the piece and taking a bite out of it.

Soren's lips twitched before he too proceeded to eat, and the two sat in silence, sharing a sandwich whilst their legs brushed against each other.