Moments of Collapse

Chapter 4 - A friend

"Benvenido a mi caso." She smiled, arms in the air. "What?"
"Welcome to my house. In spanish." She giggled.
"You mean, bienvenida a mi casa?" I corrected her, the blood rushing to her cheeks. "Urm, yeah."

I followed her up the stairs and down the hall into a room about the size of a hotel room. Her bed was pushed in the corner, unmade. Books and papers scattered everywhere. Clothing littered on the floor. On the wall opposite of her bed was a door to a closet which was open, revealing the many clothes she owns.

"Sorry about the mess." She said as she climbed onto the bed, a black and white composition notebook in her small hands. "Honestly, I find it comfortable."
"Alright, weirdo." She giggled as she crossed her legs and flipped throught the pages.

She sensed the tension I felt and looked up from her notebook. "Oh, um, sorry. Just put your backpack down anywhere." I slid it off my shoulders and grabbed the materials needed for the project. "Come here," she patted the spot on the bed next to her, her eyes still scanning the paper. I couldn't help but smile as I crawled onto the bed and sat beside her.

"Have you found anything for me to read?" I asked, watching her eyes dart back and forth as she read the words on the paper. "Have I found anything? Yes. For you to read? Well, no." She slammed the notebook closed and threw it across the room. The quick movement and loud band caused me to jump. She just fell back on her bed, staring at the wall, her arms crossed, one leg straight and the other bent so that her knee was in the air.

I avoided her eyes, looking around the room. A particular painting caught my eye. Well, partial painting. It wasn't finished. I picked it up off the table and examined the beauty of it. It was of the ocean, a large moon casting it's light on the water with black islands in the distance. I knew she painted this. She had such amazing talent.

"This is beautiful." I muttered to myself, hoping she'd hear me. She straightened her other leg, the bed shaking a little. I turned to face her, her hands covering her face, her chin trembling. I put the painting down and crawled closer to her. I hovered over her shaking face, "Are you okay?"

She burst into quick breaths and sobs, her hands still covering her face. "Oh god Marina, please don't cry." I brushed her hair behind her ear. "Shh, it's okay." I don't really know why she's crying but it hurts to see her like this. I just want it to stop.

I wrapped my arms around her trembling body and lifted her up so I could hug her. She pressed her face in my shoulder and I let her shake in my warmth. "I'm here for you."