Lilah Tov (NaNoWriMo)

fifteen

fifteen

           “William Brooks, I have a very important question for you,” Lilah Tov said, walking right into my room without any introductions. Her barging in would’ve been fine if it weren’t for the fact that it was 11:49 at night (and this was, actually night), on a Tuesday. But since it was just eleven minutes from midnight in the middle of the week, her appearance in my bedroom was a bit odd. But Lilah had a tendency for showing up at the oddest times, so at least she was consistent.

           I slid a scrap of paper that was serving as my bookmark into my book and then shut it close, placing it on my bedside table. Then I stood up from my bed and went over to my dresser for a T-shirt, because it just didn’t feel right to have a girl (well, Lilah) in my bedroom at night without a shirt on. So I put on the shirt, and only then was I fully ready to deal with whatever dilemma Lilah currently possessed. “What do you want to know?” I sighed.

           “Do you have ice cream in your fridge?” she asked the pressing issue.

           I blinked for a moment, not being able to comprehend that she had knowingly come over to my house at this time just to ask if there was ice cream in my fridge. It was kind of ridiculous. But then again, that was kind of the whole point of Lilah Tov. She wasn’t the type of girl who would be content for a trip to the mall. Or maybe she would be—most girls tended to like trips to the mall, regardless of their demeanor. Whatever. The point was, that there wasn’t a single girl I knew other than Lilah who would do something so absurd as sneak into a person’s house just to ask if they had ice cream. But that essentially summed up Lilah in a single act. Okay, so maybe it didn’t. Lilah couldn’t really be summed up in anything. A summary couldn’t be given to the girl, because a condensed synopsis simply couldn’t do her justice.

           “No,” I said, “but we have some in our freezer.”

           Upon my answering, Lilah Tov then rushed out of my room and flew down the stairs. Thankfully, my parents weren’t up to hear this, because they had soundproof doors and always retired to their room at eleven o’clock, sharp. So because Lilah had descended to the main floor at a rapid pace, I felt it my obligation to go after her, which was exactly what I did. I, too, sprinted down the staircase (as fast as I could without risking a twisted ankle), drifted through the front corridor, and slid into the kitchen, only to find Lilah Tov raiding our freezer.

           “What type do you want?” I inquired, watching as she haplessly sorted through frozen bags of peas and some fish that Charlie caught a year ago that would never actually be digested by a human being.

           “Well, I want cookie dough, but I know that you’re not going to have that, so I’ll settle for chocolate,” she said, continuing to sift through the machine that kept stuff cold and occasionally generated some ice or whatever.

           “Why would you assume that we don’t have cookie dough?”

           “Do you have cookie dough?”

           I rubbed the back of my neck, feeling a little bad for even bringing up the possibility. “No.”

           “That’s what I thought.” She continued her search until she came across a box and withdrew it delicately. “Chocolate, my friend, how I have missed you so!” Lilah then closed the freezer door and brought the box over to the kitchen counter. She opened the container, a vigorous smile gracing her face, but then it turned upside down, which, like, wasn’t good.

           So I asked, “Uh, what’s wrong, Lilah?”

           “I need a spoon,” she declared.