Clara and Nolan exist, more or less, in two separate planes, but the rooftop is where these planes intersect. That's what Clara decides when she brings Nolan up there and shows him where she often sleeps. Her logic isn't sound, but it doesn't matter to her. Up here on the roof, it isn't just Clara anymore; it's Clara and Nolan. It is a world in which only they belong, created just for them so that they have a place to be happy.
Nolan does seem happy up here. He smiles more. He's less shy, less preoccupied by his misery. He likes the rooftop world that she has agreed to share with him and this, to Clara's thinking, transfers over into him liking her.
"Why don't you just keep the keys?" Nolan asks after a long period of silence, which somehow manages to be free of awkwardness.
"I like taking things. It gives me something to do, and no one gets hurt."
Nolan nods like he understands, but Clara needs to explain further. "I'm not a thief. I wouldn't take anything if I was actually stealing. No one misses what I take—you saw that yourself."
"So you take the keys, and then, what, you put them back in the morning?"
"No, there's no putting things back, or if there is a way, I haven't figured it out yet." Clara walks over to one of the storage crates she keeps on the roof. "Here, let me show you."
She opens the crate and Nolan peers inside. It's filled, nearly to the top, with identical sets of keys.
"They add up after a while." Clara bites her lip and wait for a response from Nolan, uncertain how he will react.
Nolan doesn't say anything for a moment, then he tips his head back, opens his mouth and laughs. He laughs until tears stream from his eyes.
It is such a wonderful turn of events to have Nolan this happy that Clara decides to join in. She opens her mouth and pinches her nose and holds her hand to her belly just like Nolan does. What she is doing, the soundless, airless gestures of mouth and nose and hand, cannot truly be called laughter. She tries though, and in the euphoria of the moment, trying is very much like doing.
Author's Note: Congratulations on making it halfway through the story! I hope that if you've read this far, you're truly enjoying it. I'm very grateful to you for taking the time to read. Votes are like candy to Wattpad authors, so if you do like Unseen, please consider giving the chapters your vote. I appreciate every read, vote and comment! Thank you!