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15. Density

I woke up at the loud singing of birds right outside the apartment. Right outside my balcony, there is a fairly large tree that is the home of various animals, though mostly birds. There's been so many times when I'd wake up just to scream at the birds to be quiet. I'm like the opposite of Snow White. It's not that I hate birds, even though they like to target me sometimes when they would do a number two, especially when I was a child. Birds, sometimes, just need to shut the fuck up because people are trying to sleep for the rest of their lives. I don't care if they're singing to find mates. It's not going to last, anyway, Big Bird.

I was planning on giving them a piece of my mind and telling them about the shitty day I had yesterday and to give me a break, but I found myself unable to stand up. It was then that I realized I'm not on my bed. I'm laying on the couch, in the living room, with a mess on me and all around me. Zander is sleeping right on top of me, with his head on my chest, arms tightly on my waist, and legs tangled with mine. The two of us are covered in blankets, while all pillows are on the carpeted floor, mixed with the pool made out of popcorn and chocolate wrappers.

The two of us watched movies last night and fell asleep in the middle of The Goonies. I have sinned and I'm going to hell. Still, I have to admit that it was nice. I was able to forget about the whole thing with Virgo even just for a few hours and get some sleep, rather than thinking about the suspension all night and wallowing in self-pity. And the witch is right. Being suspended isn't the end of the world. I wasn't fired. Though, there's still a chance that I could get fired. I don't have any explanation for why I stole a sample of solution 15. What am I supposed to say? It's for magic? That I'm going to test it out with a witch to see if it breaks curses? They'd just laugh at me and send me home. I didn't really think things through when I sneaked some of the liquid in my bag, and now I regret it so much. For now, I can only hope that Virgo captures the real thief. Then again, if they're dealing with someone so unnaturally strong and fast, it's improbable. The thief could steal everything in the building and they still won't catch him.

The incoherent mumbling from the witch called out for my attention. He is still sleeping, but he is saying things under his breath that I can't hear nor understand. Though, I could feel his heartbeat and it's quite fast. I better wake him up, just in case he's having a nightmare. "Zander." I put a hand on his hair to give it a small ruffle. "Loki." He moved his head, but only to bury his face deeper in my chest. "Wake up." I sang, pinching his nose for a second. He let out a loud hiss before slapping my hand off his face. "Get up, you little shit." I attempted to sit up and throw him off me, but his weight forced me back down. "Zander!"

"What?" A groggy answer.

"I need to pee."

"What am I supposed to do about it?"

I grunted. "Move so I can move and go to the bathroom!"

"Tch." He lifted his head up for a second and rested his chin on my chest to glare at me. "What are you so loud in the morning for? You're like those birds who are so annoying, chirping and singing like everything is fine!" He then sat up and gestured for me to move. I got up, unsure of what to say. As soon as I was out of his way, he flopped back down on the couch and shut his eyes.

Sighing, I left him alone and proceeded to the bathroom. I passed by a clock and saw that it is actually 9:35, which is definitely later than my usual waking up time. It's Friday, which means I don't have school, and as of today, I also do not have work. By now, Orion, Miko, and Nox are at Virgo and know about my situation. Vega will inform them. I don't even want to check my phone. I don't want to answer anything because I don't know what to say.

The tears returned just as I reached the bathroom and locked the door. I sank to the cold, tiled floor and rested my back against the door, letting out the emotions that I ignored for the past several hours. What is everyone going to say and think of me? What will Orion think? And Nox. She trusted me. She was kind enough to make me her assistant, despite only being a student. When she finds out what I stole something, she wouldn't let me go back and work for her. Miko will probably stop talking to me also. All because I was an idiot who couldn't just do what she was supposed to do. I was finally doing something right, but even that didn't last long. My dad will laugh at my face and tell me, 'I told you so' since he believes that me having a career in science would never get me anywhere in life. Maybe he's right, after all.