Halfway dead, I dragged myself to the tub and ran a bath, knowing I desperately needed to soak. Melting into the water, I sighed so deep I thought one of my lungs would collapse. Finally, relaxing for the day, I sunk lower into the tub and drew little circles on the water's surface until my phone rang.
Layla: "Hello." I said, hanging halfway out of the tub.
Crystal: "Hey." A familiar voice answered.
Layla: "Crystal? Hey, how are you?" I said, shocked she was on the other end of the call.
Crystal: "I'm alright. You?" She replied.
Layla: "Well, I'm still breathing, so that has to count for something." I said, thinking about the day I had.
Crystal: "Yeah, it does. Um, what are you doing tonight?" She asked.
Layla: "That depends. Why do you ask?" I said curiously.
Crystal: "I was wondering if you wanted to come over to my place so we can talk more." She asked.
Layla: "I would love that." I said excitedly.
Crystal: "Great. Where should I pick you up?" She asked.
Layla: "I'll text it to you." I replied.
Crystal: "Ok, bye." She said.
Layla: "Bye-bye." I said, ending the call.
Maybe it was the excitement of going to talk to Crystal that had me floating around, but all my tiredness dispersed, and I dressed lightning fast. Leaving my room, I noticed Naoto's door was still closed. When I came home from EXPG, I was so tired I had forgotten that I hadn't seen Naoto all day. As I looked at his closed door, the same feeling I had this morning came over me again. Knowing Crystal would be outside soon, I decided to leave a note for him.
Hey, Naoto I hope you're ok. I couldn't tell if you were in your room, or if you left early this morning. I'm worried about you. I wasn't too sure if you ate today, so I left over some of my lunch on the counter in case you hadn't. If possible, could you send me a text letting me know you're ok? I'm heading out for a while and will be back soon.
Layla
Putting the note on the counter next to my leftovers, I headed to the door to meet Crystal. Before I could close the door, Mochi's whimpers stopped me in my tracks.
Layla: "Oh, sugar, don't cry. I got to go." I said in a baby voice.
No matter how much I pleaded and tried to distract him with toys, Mochi wasn't happy. He continued to whimper until I broke down and asked my sister if I could bring him with us. After seeing his sweet little face, she agreed.
The drive to Crystal's place wasn't too long. We pulled in and parked outside a beautifully renovated, old Japanese style house. It wasn't as big as Naoto's, but it sure as hell wasn't small. I couldn't lie the amount of time someone has taken me to another beautiful and big house in Japan, you would think I would stop being starstruck, but nope I guess not.
Layla: "I love your house. It's gorgeous!" I said, putting Mochi down to run around once I entered. "How long have you lived here?" I asked.
Crystal: "Three years." She said, picking up a few cat toys off the floor.
Layla: "Did you have to sell an organ on the black market to afford it?" I said, looking around the place.
Crystal: "No." She chuckled. "The house belonged to a dear friend of mine. He left it to me when he passed away."
Layla: "Oh my, I'm sorry to hear about your friend."
Crystal: "It's ok. He passed away peacefully and on his own terms, and that's a lot more than most people get." She said, looking slightly melancholy. "Can I get you something to drink?" She said, walking into her kitchen.
Layla: "Yes, water, please," I said, following her, occupying one of her kitchen stools.
She nodded and proceeded to grab a glass from the cupboard. While she was distracted, a ginger cat hopped up on the counter to greet me before it began to groom itself.
Crystal: "Hey, hey, you know better." She said, putting down the glass to pick up her cat. "Not in front of the guest. At least introduce yourself before flashing them." She said, cradling her cat in her arms.
Layla: "It's ok." I giggled. "He greeted me," I said, enjoy how happy she seemed, holding him.
Crystal: "Good job." She whispered, kissing him before letting him go.
Layla: "What's his name?" I asked.
Crystal: "Elmo." She said, pouring me some water.
Layla: "Aw, what a cute name." I said, looking at him as he rubbed up against Mochi.
She smiled before handing me the glass.
Layla: "Thanks." I said, taking a sip before getting up. 'Oh, that was a bad idea." I said when my muscles reminded me of why I was at EXPG for 7 hours.
Crystal: "What's wrong?" She asked worriedly.
Layla: "Yeah, sort off. I'm just really sore." I answered.
Crystal: "From what?" She asked.
Layla: "Oh, that's a whole long story." I said, not wanting to bother her with the details.
Crystal: "Ok, shoot, I have time." She said, helping me to the couch.
Layla: "You sure, it's pretty long." I precursored.
Crystal: "Yes, I'm sure. Let me get you some pain killers first." She said, walking back to the kitchen.
After taking the pills she gave me, I began my grand tale. She was a great listener. I ran through my experiences in Japan since I landed until tonight.
Crystal: "Honestly, you should write a book about this. I'd buy it."
Layla: "Thanks." I giggled. "I would, but sex sells, and I haven't gotten any. So unless I make this a sci-fi/thriller/romance/young adult, the only ones who will buy it are you, and maybe Takanori." I joked.
Crystal chuckled a bit, but her expression was lacking. Every time Takanori was mentioned in my story, her demeanor would change. I was curious as to why, but I was more curious about why she ran out yesterday.
Layla: "Hey, on a more serious note. Yesterday when I left you with Takanori, you stormed out. Why?" I asked. "It seemed like you knew him."
Crystal: "Oh, that. Yeah, umm, I met him before a couple of years ago. It's nothing you should worry your head over". She said, trying to dismiss the topic. "We just can't seem to be in the same book, on the same page, you know what I mean?"
Layla: "Uh, not really." I said.
Crystal chuckled to herself.
Crystal: " Don't worry about it, that's old news now. I won't be running into him again anyways.
Layla: "Is that purpose work?" I asked, wondering If she wanted to avoid him.
Crystal looked at me for a moment before speaking again.
Crystal: "Who knows." She said, resting back on to the couch, looking up at the ceiling.
After significantly bringing down the mood of the room, I worked at repairing the atmosphere. Even though I was curious about Crystal and Takanori's past, I let it go for now. I came here to know more about my sister, and that's what I planned to do.
Layla: "So tell me what you do know." I said.
Crystal: "Like what?" She questioned.
Layla:" I don't know. What's your favorite color or ice cream flavour. Maybe we have somethings in common." I said, trying to get her talking again.
Taking my bait to liven up the room, she opened back up, and we shared favorites and dislikes with each other. Even though we had drastically different upbringings, it was comforting to know she had good taste. We liked a few of the same things, and most importantly, she ate her Wendy's fries the same way I did, dipped in a chocolate frosty. I also found out she used to dance. She heavily insisted that she wasn't on my level, but she never proved it. We stumbled on to the topic of Chris and Zach, and she told me they were now on her hit list, which for some reason, made me happy to know that I had someone who even cared enough to get upset.
We talked until we started to get delirious from tiredness, and our sentences were no longer making any sense. Opting for an impromptu sleepover, we were out cold, sprawled out on the bed, in seconds.