CHAPTER - 6
Her hair fell in fiery waves over her shoulders and down her back while she smiled at him, her pink lips revealing her straight, white teeth. His lips mimicked hers. Their eyes locked and he got lost in the murky green chasm.
Her skin shimmered like a sandy desert beneath the bright rays of light above. She was glorious. Even in her rainbow spotted pink pajamas.
She inhaled deeply as she looked towards the sky while holding a steaming cup of coffee in her left
hand. It smelled like Starbucks and Christmas in one.
She wrapped her hands around the mug and took a quick sip while looking down from the heavens; back
at him.
She waved him inside and said, "Come on in."
However, before he reached the door frame, she held
However, before he reached the doorframe, she held
out a hand and halted him, shoving him away from
the door. The smile vanished from her face as she
rolled her eyes.
"Hey, you were the one that told me to come in," Joseph said, an awkward laugh escaped from his lips.
With a pinched face, Prerna explained, "I know. I forgot.
But you almost set off a whole butt-load of alarms..
Whoops."
She raised her eyebrows and arms and feigned innocence while flashing her perfect white teeth again. She gestured to Joseph's body. "I forgot to tell you to take off anything metal or anything that could look like a weapon. Slide it through the mailbox next to the door. Oh, yeah, your shoes, too.. sorry."
Astonished, Joseph stood motionless, eyebrows raised.
She gestured to him to hurry.
"You're screwing with me, right?" he asked.
The security two years ago had been top-notch, and he understood it then. There were so many people coming and going it at least made sense. But this?
"I've told you he's pAranoid, right? Well, this is just the beginning. You'll get all your stuff as soon as it registers in the scanner."
Prerna glanced at the ground, pushing loose hair behind her ear. Could she be pulling a prank? He tilted his head to the side. No, this was Prerna. She didn't pull
pranks.
"It seems crazy, but he has a good reason. I promise."
Her eyes met his again. "That's why I wanted you here. This is what I wanted to talk to you about. So please, just do this and you can come inside, and we
can talk."
Joseph's eyes narrowed while he let out a sigh. "Fine, but this is insane. When I see him, I'm telling him that myself."
"That's fine. Now, come on."
Joseph peeked beyond the door, observing the entryway as he removed his shoes, one at a time, kicking them off his feet. The entryway consisted of fine marble flooring and white walls adorned with eerie art pieces. Not to mention it was the size of his living room. About ten feet beyond the door was a red oak-paneled hall. With the sunlight as the only source of light, it was too dark to see what lay at the end, but he already knew.
Pulling his attention back to the task at hand, he picked up his shoes and shoved them through the large mailbox. He emptied his pockets and stuffed the miscellaneous objects into the mailbox.
Once finished, Prerna gestured for him to come in again.
He cautiously, half expecting the sirens to go off anyway. Once inside, she pointed him to the left. Sure enough, a machine was buzzing away as it slowly
X-rayed his belongings. The monitor highlighted anything that could be a possible threat in dark red.
After a few minutes of beeping and pushing the items through, it spit out everything except for his pocket knife.
"You can get it when you leave," Prerna said as Joseph put his shoes on and refilled his pockets.
Joseph nodded, his attention elsewhere once again. A bright light beamed through cracks of the door at the
end of the hall.
Ready to move on with the morning, he said, "Alright, the insanely thorough search is done. Can we go
somewhere and talk?"
"It wasn't that thorough... if you know what I mean."
Prerna raised an eyebrow at him while passing by laughing.
He followed behind her and asked, "What exactly is
Jenn so afraid of?"
"Well, that's actually what I wanted to talk to you about."
Prerna led them through the hall and to a set of intricately carved wooden double doors. She opened them to reveal the insanely spacious living room.
Joseph turned in a circle, admiring the area. The
last time he'd been here, he hadn't taken in the
architecture. The vaulted ceilings were three stories high, opening up the already vast space before them.
A fireplace sat on either side of the room and along the back wall were four sets of French glass doors surrounded by countless floor-to-ceiling windows. A visible hallway on the second floor overlooked the living room. On the main floor, the hallways extended down both sides of the living room. Facing the back of the house, he peered down each hallway. A door sat at the end of the right hall and a table rested at the end of the left one. Both sides had a few doors along the way.
Prerna went down the right hallway, gesturing for him to follow her once more. Halfway down she stopped.
Pulling a skeleton key from her pocket, she unlocked
the door. The house had been built a little over two
years ago, so this was just one of the many things that made Jenn eccentric and strange.
Prerna guided Joseph into the room, signaling for him to pass her as she locked the door behind them.
While walking by her, he caught the scent of her fruity, but delicate, perfume. It reminded him of the strawberry-rhubarb pie his mother would make on rare occasions when the desire hit. Normally, he avoided thinking about the good times as much as possible, because somehow it seemed to discredit the bad ones. Yet Prerna always had the ability to make him think of his past. And his future.
Beside her nightstand, Joseph's eyes drifted over the carpet littered with clothes, papers, and other random
items. None of it Prerna's.
"Prerna, why did you ask me to come here?" he asked, not