Loveless Ages

Chapter Six

The environment at Josh’s house is a lot different than that of mine. For one, his walls are white rather than being a whole bunch of different colors. Eggshell white specifically. I know this because it took his mother a whole week to decide whether she wanted to paint the walls ivory or eggshell white. Personally, I don’t care which shade of white an object is. White is white. Simple. I can barely even tell the difference between the two. Josh’s mother is a stay at home mom, and now that Josh is in his teenage years, I’m guessing the biggest decisions of her days must be whether to pain the walls ivory or eggshell. Or maybe, whether to cook chicken or fish for dinner. His father works eight hour days in a cubicle as an accountant, which is a respectable job I guess, but it must be ridiculously boring. If I were an account, I would either have to gauge my eyes out or compensate by doing dangerous activities like sky diving or something like that. He makes good money though. Josh’s father is the quiet type. He doesn’t talk much unless prompted and even then he still never has much to say. His mother can be described as neurotic. Her vibrant blonde hair is always sleek and curled outward at the end. She keeps the house spotless. There is never a shoe out of place or a dirty dish sitting in the sink. Mrs. Blackwell is the very definition of a perfectionist, which I guess is where Josh gets it from. I hate to say this, because she is a very nice woman, but I don’t think I would be able to put up with her if I were her family.

 I meet Josh at his house to tell him about my weekend spent with Xander. His house smells of freshly baked sugar cookies. I can honestly say that his mother has perfected the art of baking. She’s had plenty of time for it.

“Hello Malinda. How are you?” Mrs. Blackwell says to me with a large smile plastered on her face. She wears a light blue sweater and tan slacks.

“I’m okay. How are you? ” I say with a polite smile. It is only four thirty so Mr. Blackwell isn’t home yet.

“Oh, I’m alright.” She says quietly.

“That’s good.” I nod.

“Josh, is upstairs so you can go on up. I’ve baked some cookies, so I’ll bring those to you guys when they cool.” She tells me.

 When I enter Josh’s room I see that he is painting an intricately designed bowl. It is blue with these tiny black flowers. He sits at his desk with steady hands and great concentration etched into his features. His door is wide open, so he doesn’t notice me there until I speak.

“Hey Josh.” I say.

“…One second.” His voice is low. With a flick of the wrist, he finishes his design. “What’s up?” I step into his room and close the door behind me. And then I tell him everything. He listens carefully as I recount my story of my trip to the NSN. At first he thinks I am joking around with him. Then, he is shocked. He is very much intrigued by the entire thing. He is a bit upset that he wasn’t included but he gets over it quickly. He is more interested in what is to happen next. I tell him everything I know, except for what I found out about Xander. I decide that it isn’t my secret to tell. After I tell him everything there is to tell, it becomes extremely quiet.

“Leaving is a big risk, you know?” I say carefully. I look at him to see his reaction.

“I know Malinda, believe me.” He says with a slight laugh.

“We could get caught. Or maybe, maybe we wont make it back even if we do get out. Maybe we wont even find what we’re looking for.” I say.

“Yes. All of those are possibilities.” He agrees. “Are you having second thoughts?”

“And thirds, and fourths.” I say. “But it’s something that I have to do.”

“Okay.” He says.