I open the window, taking in a deep breath of fresh air. It feels amazing... Just to be in a car, open the window, and watch the streets as we pass by. We are not in a crowded area, but it's still pretty lively. I can't help but stare at all the shops, the restaurants, the buildings. I wish we could stop to check everything out. I feel like I just stepped into a new world and I want to discover it all.
Bonnie chuckles next to me. We are in the backseat of the taxi that’s driving us back to my apartment, my bag which was packed in a hurry between us. It's a short ride, but I don't miss one second of it. My heart is thumping like crazy, I'm excited beyond words.
To my surprise, the car finally stops in front of a big modern building. Is this the right place? It looks a bit fancy... Bonnie and I leave the taxi and walk in. I look for my name and ring the intercom for Kelsi to open up. I forgot to let her know I was coming back, so she's overexcited. She's not the only one...
For some reason, I'm nervous in the elevator. I keep fidgeting and twiddling my hair with my fingers until it stops at the seventh floor. Bonnie chuckles when I hesitate, and gently pushes me out.
"Come on, Mara, you were so excited to come home!"
I nod and finally get to the door.
Kelsi opens up right away and literally jumps on me.
"My gosh, Mara! I didn't know you were coming back, you should have told me! I would have gotten you a cake or something! Oh, no, wait, we gotta order pizza!"
I laugh and hug her back, amused. Kelsi's even more excited than I am! When she finally lets go of me, I can see she is wearing horrible, cringey, pink overalls with a gray turtleneck, and her black hair is held in two cute macaron buns behind her ears. With her big glasses, she has the complete cute geek look. Kelsi takes my backpack off my shoulder while I explain my short discussion with my older sister, and how I managed to convince her to let me out.
"This is awesome, I'm so excited! I love this place, but it's a bit lonely all by myself..."
I can totally see what she means. I actually have a hard time believing this is our apartment...
I follow Kelsi inside after taking off my shoes. I had somewhat imagined a cute but cozy or colorful place that fit Kelsi's quirky personality, but it’s nothing like that. This apartment is big, brand new, and very... bland. I'm standing in a large, open living room, and though there isn't a speck of dust, there also isn't much decoration at all, except for the big photographs in black and white on the walls. The furniture is all white or wood, and I'm standing on a cold marble floor. There are two beige sofas with brown throw pillows, a large TV, and an old rocking chair. We also have one desk on the side, and Kelsi's computer is still open on it, displaying some video game she was probably playing before we arrived. Aside from the packets of snacks on the table and the books on the two shelves, there aren't any touches of color. It's full of natural light from the two large windows. I take a few more steps in, and Kelsi runs to gather the snacks.
"Sorry, I would have put these back in the cupboards if I had known you were coming... The cleaning lady came this morning, though, so everything else is neat."
"We have a cleaning lady?"
Kelsi nods.
"Yup. She's rather nice, she comes once a week."
"Wow... I can't believe this is our place... It looks... expensive. We are renting this?" I ask, still a bit intimidated.
Kelsi scoffs.
"Renting? I'm renting, you're the owner!"
"Wait, what?"
I turn to her, but Kelsi chuckles and gestures at the whole apartment with her open arms.
"Yup, this is all yours. I think your sister bought it when you said you wanted to come study here. You had an extra bedroom, so you looked for someone to rent it a couple of months after our classes started, that's how I came here..."
I don't know what to say. I knew my family was rich, but I didn't think Amy had bought an apartment for me out of the blue... I'll need a while to get used to all of this. More importantly, I supposedly lived here for several months, but nothing feels familiar at all.
Kelsi takes me to the kitchen, showing me the poor plant she was trying to take care of, the grocery list on the fridge, and our arrangement in the cupboards, but none of it rings a bell. I like the kitchen a bit better than the living room, though. I can see we tried to make it a bit warmer, with the random assortments of spices on the side, a waffle maker, and the colored towels.
"Do you want to see your bedroom...?" Kelsi asks gently.
I nod and she leads the way to the next room, but the door is closed and she lets me go in first. I take a deep breath and slowly open it. It's a square room, with only one large window and a wooden floor. I'm almost shaking. This is my bedroom. I have been imagining it so many times, it feels strange to finally be standing in it now. This is Clarissa's bedroom, the one I lived in.
On my right, there's a desk pushed against the wall, with a couple of books on it. Right after the desk, there is one big bookshelf, filled with books, some even piled on top of others, almost overflowing. On my left, there's a standing mirror, a bedside table, and a large bed. I walk up to it, feeling like I'm in some strange dream. The furniture is made of the same dark oak wood, but my room's colors are more vivid than I thought. There's a large, multicolored carpet on the floor, the bedsheets are all dark pink, and there are a few throw pillows , all in shades of white and brown. To my surprise, there's nothing but an alarm clock on the bedside table, but a giant dreamcatcher is hung above the bed. I like it. It's full of black feathers and beads, a bit too many...
"You made it," says Kelsi.
"I made this?" I repeat, a bit surprised.
Kelsi nods and walks to the large wardrobe on the side, kneeling down to open the first drawer on the bottom for me to see. I didn't expect this... It's full of little crafting accessories. Feathers, beads, but also paint, chalk, and paper. There are also little ropes and several different materials, even little stones of all colors. It's very organized, though. Everything is in little containers or boxes, all carefully tagged. It looks like an art student's dream.
