Reorganizing Broken Tiles cont.

James shot his eyes towards the door, which made me follow.
I saw two pairs of eyes staring through a gap.
Oh no. It can’t be.
It's those two.

Alice was the first one go through the door, with George following close behind her.
    “Sorry for the intrusion.”
    “I’m back, John.”
I looked over to James, and awaited an explanation.
    “Sorry to play the two of you like this. I needed a strong entrance that might win this poor soul over. You guys played your part expertly.”
    “Did Amelia and Franklin know of this plan?”
Alice spoke up with mild frustration.
    “Franklin did, however, we left Amelia in the dark. We figured this was the best course of action, considering her circumstances. Now then, John.”

James stood up and started preparing to leave.
    “We truly do care about you. Despite what others might say, you do have some allies. I’ll now go back and report your condition to the principal and Amelia. Don’t worry about attending classes for now, just focus on getting your footing back for now. Have Alice and George help you out with that. More heads are better than one.”
Lastly, he put on his signature pristine lab cat on and headed for the door.
    “And if you decide to ignore everything that left my mouth, then please, at the very least, please pay attention to these last few words of mine. If you’re really thinking about doing it, come visit me one last time. That’s all I'll seriously request of you. Thank you for your time, John, and I hope to see you in better spirits soon.”
And with that, James walked past the two standing at the doorway and closed the door behind him. George automatically locked the door behind him.

Now I’m stuck in a room with the two people that might have made use of me. A fact that does make me feel nauseous. I even felt a bit of vomit go up, but I managed to hold it back for now. The fact that my stomach is churning does not help me feel better.
    “John, have you eaten anything yet?”
I shoot a glance at the clock on the wall, showing the time to be 17:45. Considering that I wake up at 05:55, and the fact that I haven’t eaten since the morning, then-
    “George, can you cook?”
    “Well, only-”
    “Doesn’t matter. We’re going to the kitchen.”
    “Yes Ma’am.”
George followed Alice into the kitchen with a terrified look on his face. Is she going to make food for me? No. Anything but that.
I can hear some of her muttering.
    “Who leaves a packet of opened rice in the fridge? Whatever. George, please go fetch this list of items.”
    “Am I being reduced down to the errand boy?”
    “Remember who’s second place?”
    “Ouch. Okay then, leader. I’ll be off then.”
George passed through the main room again, winked at me, and left the room.
This just leaves me and Alice, alone in this apartment room of mine.

I can hear the clanking of pots and pans ringing out from the kitchen. I would go to the kitchen to see if she was breaking anything, but my current state leaves much to be desired. All I can do is lay down on the bed and suffer, as pathetic as that is. It's incredibly pathetic. The me two days ago would have looked down at me in disgust and quite possibly even disowned me.

Oh, how far I have fallen.

Despite my justified reservations towards Alice, and then name Bedwyn in general, I find that I cannot the scent of food coming from the kitchen. I'd want to write this off as another psychological manipulation tactic played by Alice in order to further manipulate me, but at this point I do not care. I admit it.
    “I am hungry.”
    “WELL of course you’d be hungry if you did not eat for over TWELVE HOURS.”
She shouted parts of her reply to emphasise how annoyed she was. Wait.
    “Why are you annoyed?”
    “Don’t even bother asking me that question right now. Just focus on the food smell.”
    “Whatever.”
If she doesn’t want to answer, then I don’t care. I don’t care for much anyway.
I let the ambiance of a used kitchen put me to temporary rest.

...
Once I was awoken, I was greeted by the sight of a dish I have never created before. It was a bowl of rice mixed with a pasta sauce with some meat and vegetable chunks thrown in. Hell, this is a combination that I’ve never seen before, let alone even had the idea to cook.
I found myself hovering up this meal immediately upon seeing it.
    “Slow down there cowboy, you’re gonna get sick if you eat that fast.”
In pursuit of my hunger fueled quest for food, I failed to notice the two people sitting on either side of me. On my left was George, who let out that snarky comment. On my right sat Alice, who was slowly eating her own serving. She nodded along to George’s comment as her mouth was unable to be used as a vocal device due to it being filled with her own made food.
The normal thing to do in this situation is-

    “Thank you, the two of you, for this.”
George replied first.
    “Any time buddy.”
He even patted me on the back as he said this.
    “Yeah.”
That’s all Alice could come up with.
Those were the only words spoken during that meal. I indulged in this life recovering dish as the others peacefully ate along. My evening time was filled with the faint echoes of a meal that wasn’t eaten alone for once.

This reminds me of a time where eating a meal together was a part of normal life.
Just how long have I lived life without having this?

...
Too long.
It’s been too long.

I can’t help but get swept up in this foreign emotion that came from just a simple thrown together meal with two other people. This feeling, I’d call it relief more than sadness. These are tears of relief.

The others do not comment on my sudden burst of tears flowing down across my face. To them, such a reaction probably seems normal. After all, I’ve never been emotional around them. I know Alice has been by far the most emotionally honest one with how clearly she shows her anger, and George is also capable of being emotionally open with others.

With this in mind, I try to remember a time in the past few months, past few years where I’ve been this open to emotion.

…
I cannot remember any.
Understandably so. I always had to keep my guard up around these elites. It’s understandable that I walked this path alone, with no one to support me.
This leads me to another question. This judgement may be clouded by my current spiraling emotions, but I choose to think about this problem now.
Are the two people beside me really my enemies?

    “John. I am staying over for the next few nights.”
Excuse me?
This sudden comment made my head shoot towards Alice in utter shock.
    “I said that I’ll be staying over for the next few nights. I do not trust you being by yourself, considering the state you ended up in.”
    “Thank you Alice. Sorry John, but I won’t be able to help you out as often as her.”
George butted in with his own comment on the matter.
    “Hey. I never said Alice could stay over. Where is my say in this?”
    “Considering your position, you don’t have one right now.”
    “Oh, so I work under you now, is that it?”
    “John. Please.’
That light jab at the current situation seemed to hurt Alice more than I intended it to.
    “Thank you for the meal! Unfortunately, I need to leave now. I will leave John in your very capable hands, Alice.”
    “I won’t let you down. Have a safe trip.”
    “Haha, thanks honey!”
    “Call me that one more time and your next meal will be your last.”
    “Haha, thanks Alice!”
And with that, George practically ran out the door, leaving me once again with Alice.
Once she finished eating, she first cleaned up all of the dishes left on the table, then she moved over to her bag.
    “Just to let you know, looking over you is not the only reason why I’m here.”
She began to take out a large screen. That’s most likely a drawing tablet.
    “Unfortunately, my editor has forced me into sourcing your mysterious knowledge. She likes your ideas and won’t let me get away with mine.”
I blinked at her twice.
    “What I’m saying is, well, I need you as a co-writer on this comic I am making! There! I said it.”
She continued this bickering as I continued to stare at her, dumbfounded.

Eventually, a question flowed out of me.
    “You’re drawing… a comic?”
    “Yes! Based of some myth that ties into the experiences of my life leading up till now! Have you got a problem with that?!”
    “No? Why are you shouting?”
    “Well- um- it’s a secret of mine, okay? No one else but you and my assistant knows about this profession.”
This does change a lot of things, now that I think about it. She’s opening herself up more than I am, maybe to compensate for the lack of openness on my part. Considering what I heard about her father, if she’s willing to tell me such a secret, then maybe she isn’t after me.

Wait.

It could all be a ruse. I cannot be sure she’s just bluffing. I’ll need to learn more about her to see if her story sticks.
Yeah. That’s what I’ll stick with for now. I’ll air on the side of caution.
    “Okay, sure. I’ll help you out a little. You can also sleep on the couch.”
    “That’s perfect. Let’s shake on it.”

She shot out her hand.

This reminds me of the last time I turned down a handshake. Last time, it was an offer by a Bedwyn representative that I rejected. This time, an actual Bedwyn stood before me with what seems like no ulterior motives.

For the first time in my life, I made an agreement with a member of the elite.