Shred of dry leaves flattered around the street, a large some of it shielded a being that happened to be sleeping on a bench by the road.
She stretched her body softly as she woke up to behold the morning. She felt a sharp pain in her shoulders, which made her rotate and fell while twisting her body in the pain.
Emily had only realized on that she was on the road. She stood up, frightened of her sudden appearance on the street. She only recalled fainting after seeing dead bodies on the floor at the previous night, nothing else appeared in there but flashes of a swift fight.
Emily quickly got up and headed to her home, she was very lucky her things were intact. Normally, stray kids roam the streets at night. That was how the rumors had it.
She walked like a hungry zombie on the road, and indeed she was hungry.
As soon as she got home, she reached for the regular spot she always hid her keys, under a stone. She could not find her key there and got upset.
Emily was certain that she left her apartment's key there. Could someone be in the house?
There is only one person that knew where she kept her key, and that must certainly be Charity, her only friend.
Emily was not used to keeping friends, besides who would ever want to be her friend?
She was often called a weirdo in high school.
Emily paced towards her window to have a clue of the unexpected. She saw nothing fishy, for her curtains were not drawn.
She took a stone in her hand and opened her door slowly.
The cleanliness of her room attracted her as immediately that she let go of the stone in her hand, she pinched her face to see if it was a dream, but no, it wasn't.
"Charity is definitely here" Emily signed happily.
Indeed, the name "charity" followed its bearer for she was full of kindness, who would have thought that her dead room would ever come to life.
Her bed, that was always occupied with magazines, was neat and had bed covering on it for the first time.
This was the third time Charity was visiting her, yet she had done even more that her visit.
The sweet aroma coming from the kitchen gave the room a lively scent.
Emily danced on her toes to her little kitchen to see what was cooking.
There came loud screams from the kitchen as the two friends were happy to see each other. Neighbors that shared the same wall with Emily begged for silence, due to their noise, which rose a serious tension for them.
Emily couldn't control her mouth, this was complete two years of not seeing Charity, she screamed aloud again and apologized to the wall.
"You are still as good as old" Charity graded Emily as she grated tomatoes. "What of the blender I gave to you, I can't find it anywhere in this small house" Charity mocked, knowing well that Emily most have destroyed it.
"Am sorry" Emily pleaded. She was fond of apologizing whenever she destroyed Charities gifts, yet Charity never gets tired of getting new things for her.
"So what are you preparing" Emily questioned after Charity nodded her head twice, showing that Emily was forgiven.
Emily deepened a spoon into the porridge in the pot and had a taste of it.
"Hmm!!! She signed with great pleasure, finally, she was going to eat a good meal. She had always ordered for food since her lazy habits couldn't lead her to the kitchen. And when she lost her job? She had her father send money to her always.
One would think Emily was a pampered child, being the only child her parents had. She was thought all the possible ways to look after herself as a lady, but no, Emily abandoned those teachings for a celebrity she only heard about.
Once the meal was ready, Charity dished it out. E
Even Emily's neighbors got their share of the meal.
Everyone knew Charity, she was popularly referred to as, "The mother of all" for she was used to cooking enormous meals for the neighborhood, that was her way to show she was around.
Anytime she was around, unexpected visitors were sure to come around. It made Emily uncomfortable as men too showed up.
Emily ate until her stomach could take. She had always wished Charity was her sister, oh! How joyous that would be for her.
"I hope you will stay for long this time" Emily asked Charity, to be certain of her stay.
"Of course!"
Emily wasn't sure of Charity's answer, for her gaze said a different thing.
As soon as everyone was done with their meals, They praised Charity and graded the food a superb, then they took their leave.
***
Soon enough, evening came, the girls already spent the entire day chatting about their life and putting things together in the house. Parts of their gist was how life played dirty tricks on them.
Emily talked about her interview, while Charity talked about her fiance who cheated on their relationship.
Both girls were able to laugh over it for a moment, but soon both started to shed tears as they were the victims.
Charity picked a lot more interest in the story of Emily being a journalist, she was concerned about Emily's previous encounter with the gangs that almost took advantage of her. She was shocked how the killer had Emily dropped on the street, moreover, why wasn't the incident on the news?
"There's got to be a greater explanation for that" she thought.
Their chat got more interesting at night as both, dressed in their night gowns after taking a shower.
It was a beautiful moment indeed for Emily. Charity sure knew how to visit at the right time. If not for her, Emily wouldn't have been able to get over her pain of not being hired in Evan's company.
She hugged Charity tight, anytime she thought of her unemployment, to say she was happy for her being home for her.
Both The girls directed their conversations to Evan's latest magazines, Emily was used to collecting the celebrity's magazines for free, due to her high level of purchase, at times the magazines were left at her doorstep if she wasn't around.
Charity also became a fan of Evan, but only due to Emily's lure. Even at that, Emily had warned her not to cross the line by snatching her crush away because she couldn't share her idol with anyone.
In the magazine, they got caught by Evan's upcoming show the following day.
The girls shouted at the top of their voices.
"Evan was having a live concert the next night" they read the lines together and giggled in excitement.
The girls made an ordered for tickets immediately. Although the money was high but still, both girls were determined to be in the front seat.
They also heard that the idol was going to give a golden ticket. On this ticket, a person is liable to make a wish from him.
Emily grabs the magazine and kissed it severally and claimed the ticket. Charity laughed at her, she saw the determined eyes of Emily and wished her well.
The two friends couldn't sleep, after seeing each other for a long time, there wanted to share that longtime experience.
The neighbors were unable to sleep either, every opportunity to close their eyes made the girls scream loudly. They were tired of asking them to keep shut, so they had their pillows over their head.
Emily couldn't just wait for the next day, what would she wear this time? She wished they were informed on time so they would have bought the front seat since it was occupied already.
She took the magazine from Charity's hand and placed it on her breast as she closed her eyes.