Alliyah

As she confided in Blue, she walked around watering plants on a shelf in the corner of the apartment.

“She’s… I think of her as a Picasso masterpiece. Back in my high school, there was a recreation of a Picasso on a wall. Gigantic thing.” She stretched her arms wide for visual aid. “Black and white. I could gawk at it for ages. I did! It had so many elements, it intrigued me. It seduced me, in a way. But I didn’t understand it until we talked about it in history class.” She paused and looked at the plant she was watering - which was a lovely peace lily - lost in thought, then back at Blue. “It was actually about war.”

“So you don’t understand her, but you like her.” He strummed a few low chords on his guitar as they conversed.

“Yes, you don’t have to understand someone to wanna try and connect with them. I want to try to understand her, though. If she lets me…” Alliyah trailed off, looking down, her hair cascading partially over her eyes.

“Can I be honest?” Blue wrinkled his wide, freckled nose. “I wouldn’t get my hopes high.”

Alliyah slumped her shoulders as she filled her yellow watering jug:

“I know. And I’m so annoyed at myself for catching feelings for someone so unattainable. But if I’m being honest too, I think we’ve had a couple of moments when I felt like she was opening up?” She paused, biting the inside of her cheek, then shook her head, her hair bouncing from left to right. “I don’t know, maybe I’m a fool, but I felt she was different when she was alone with me, comparing to how she is around you guys.”

Blue didn’t respond, maybe because he had become distracted by Snow, who required his attentive petting or maybe because he just didn’t know what to say.

“In any case,” Alliyah spoke directly at the small blooming purple African violet that she was watering. “I’m glad to be her friend anyway. I’ll take it over never having met her. She still puts a smile on my face just… For existing.” She sighed.

“Oh, my God, you’re so smitten!” Blue laughed into a pillow on the couch, scaring the dog.

“Shut up or I’ll throw a vase at your face!”

Someone knocked on the door but used a key to enter, and Blue stifled his laughter.

“I could hear you in the hallway. What were you talking about?” Ocean walked in and opened her fridge.

“Just chatting about… Halloween.”

“It’s not for like over two months.”

“You know me, I’m Mr big costumes, always planning ahead.”

Alliyah awkwardly leaned against the plant’s shelf. In her head, she was acting very naturally.

“Last year you wore a t-shirt that said ‘Go cealing’ and said you were a ‘Ceiling fan.’ You didn’t even spell it properly!” He fumed.

“Yes, and I planned how I was gonna misspell it for 2 whole months! Everyone loved it. You’re just bitter because I beat you at the contest.”

“I went as Hannibal, The Cannibal, and talked like him the whole night!”

“Yes, you were creepy, we know.”

Grasping that she was getting on Ocean’s nerves, she sneaked a wink at Blue.

“Anyway, what did you come here for?” She asked.

“Right.” He composed himself. “You guys wanna go shopping?” Ocean closed the fridge without taking anything from it.

“You came to my house just ask that?”

“I did! Hurry up, I gotta go to bed after.”

“Fine, fine, let me just grab some coffee to go since no one drank it yesterday. Are you sure you don-”

“Very sure! Blue you coming with us?”

“No, I- I have plans…” He checked his expensive watch. “But I’ll walk out too.”