Half of a Whole

Chatterbox

NELOFER

After showering and changing into her pyjamas, Nelofer sat on her small bed facing the window. The thick forest, just a couple of yards away from her window, looked even more alive and eerie at night than during the day. All the shadows, rustling of the wind and sounds of animals seemed to be amplified in the silence of the night.

Picking up her phone, she texted her sister.

Nelofer: Can I call you?

Nayera: Sorry. Busy studying for a test. I'll call you tomorrow when I'm free.

Nelofer sighed. She was slightly hurt. But she understood. Being in medical school wasn't easy, it came with sacrifices. Nayera often complained about her non-existing social life as a result of always being holed up in the library studying. Nelofer didn't want to make her sister feel guilty for not being there for her. She would've said something before, but now Nayera was all the family Nelofer had left.

Nelofer: It's ok. Good luck with your test! Call me when you have time :)

The phone chimed with an incoming message as Nelofer switched off the light in her room and went to bed. She thought it was from her sister, but it was from Carson. 

Carson: Are you asleep?

Nelofer immediately blushed thinking of how she had gone out of her mind and kissed him that evening. Most wanton thing she had done her entire life. Just thinking about it made her want to crawl into her closet and never come out. Yet, he had been a total gentleman about it. 

She hadn't had time to process everything that had happened with Carson though. She wasn't even sure she understood her own feelings, let alone his. Everything happened in the moment. That's why she had hoped to have a chat with her big sister, to get some advice and clarity on the situation.  

Nelofer: Still wide awake.

Carson: Can I call you?

Nelofer's heart started to beat loudly against her rib cage. Did he want to talk about what happened between them, now that he'd had a couple of hours to think? She felt mortified again.

Nelofer: Sure.

The sudden ringing of her phone startled her. Was the ringtone always this deafening?

Carson: Hey.

Nelofer swallowed nervously: Hi.

Carson: Did you have dinner?

Nelofer replied all in one breath: Yeah, I had dinner. Then I showered. And now I'm in bed.

Carson chuckled softly: Same.

Nelofer: Ok. Cool.

Carson: What are you doing tomorrow?

Nelofer: Mmm...It's my day off, but I'll be busy moving a few of my paintings to the café. 

The next day was one of Nelofer's usual days off. She had asked Cynthia to help her move the canvases with her car.

Carson: You paint? You didn't tell me you were an artist.

Nelofer: You didn't ask.

Carson: True. What made you choose art?

Nelofer: I'd like to say it's because I have a little bit of talent and a lot of passion for it. 

Carson: But?

Nelofer: But, it's probably because when I was growing up, art was the one thing I did better than my near-perfect siblings.