An Hour the Freezer

minutes until freedom: 59

"So..."

Her breath sends goosebumps crawling up my arms, prickles the tiny hairs at the back of my neck.

"About this weather."

Her voice lilts at the end.

"Aren't you gonna say anything," she huffs, crawls away from me, disgust marring her pleasant face.

My body already misses her warmth.

My arm gets cold.

I'd rub the spot she was just leaning on if I had any control of my hands.

They spasm.

"Things must be easy for you."

Her voice is small.

I let the silence draw out.

"Y-you crazy?"

I smile a little inside, glad I manage to maintain my composure.

She glances at me.

"Yea. I mean. No, but you have a perfect life cocooned in obscurity.

At school, at least."

She glances at me again and blows the flyaways from in front of her face.

"Walk in, sit down, write down whatever, skip a few classes."

"I-isn't that what ev-veryone does?"

She blushes but shakes her head.

"You don't get it. What about friends?"

I think of Mr. Salmonella, the fly that always 'ruins' my dinner.

And his cousins.

"And parties?"

I blink.

My mind wanders off to last Friday when I jumped on the couch in an oversized t-shirt and listened to music from upstairs whilst trying to watch Supernatural, dancing in front of the mirror and eating pizza.

"Everyone knows school was invented so teenagers could drag their depressed friends to parties."

She's probably hinting at me. But then again I don't really have friends.

That are human.

"And what about doing crazy things like sick pranks and just...having fun."

Her tone softens at the end.

"Don't you do any of that," she asks, scooting closer.

"Yeah, b-but n-not in the ways you'd-d-d expect."

I clamp my mouth shut.

"What do you m-mean?"

Her face flushes.

"D-damn it's cold in here," she murmurs, crawling the distance that separates us.

"You don't mind, do you," she asks, curling into a fetal position and plopping her head on my lap.

I chuckle, thankful the sound that comes out of me sounds like one.

"M-maybe th-th-that's because we're in a f-f-f-freezer.