Cup of Tea
"Rei!" Minako called, loud enough for most of the neighbors
to hear. The tea in Rei's cup rippled.
"Huh?" was all Rei managed for a moment. Then she coughed,
wiped that look off her face and said: "What is it?"
Minako smiled, she knew she was one of very few people who
knew that look. The look of someone caught totally off guard,
something Rei would never allow herself in public. The only
thing she treasured more was Rei's look waking up from a
dream. Supposedly she has very vivid dreams - Yeah, right,
Minako thought.
"You were off somewhere," Minako told her.
Rei looked down at the low table and held on to her cup of
tea. The dark liquid gave no reflection. "I... was thinking,"
she said slowly.
"No! Really?" Minako said, exaggerating with her acting
capabilities. She couldn't help it when Rei was being so
over-dramatic. She would get back at her anyway. "What were
you thinking of?" Minako asked as Rei wasn't responding.
"Just this and that. What were you saying before?"
"Oooh! Suspicious! Tell me, what were you thinking! Tell me,
tell me!" Minako began enthusiastically. "Was it something
naughty? Was it something bad? Was it something really, really
kinky?"
"It was nothing, okay!" Rei snapped back, surprising the
blonde. "Look, Minako, I'm sorry but I have to go. There are
some things I have to take care of at the Temple." She began
getting up but Minako caught her wrist from across the table
and held her tight. The cup of tea shook from all the movement
around.
"Sorry, I apologize," Minako said, serious suddenly, and not
letting go. But Rei didn't seem to give up on her idea of
going. "Weren't you going to stay over tonight?"
"No," Rei began, the checked herself. "I mean, I was going
to, but I remembered I have to do something. It's...
important. I can't stay over again tonight."
Minako still held her. "What came up suddenly?" she asked,
waiting.
Rei was still, looking down at the table again. Somewhere in
the background they could hear music coming from another room.
The walls of the apartment block were thin and the rooms were
small but that didn't stop Minako from having Rei sleeping
over any chance she got.
Rei wasn't responding.
Minako let go of her wrist, got up from the table and walked
to the kitchenette, Leaving Rei alone with her cup of tea.
"I was thinking about you and me," the blonde heard from the
other room.
"You mean 'us'?" she answered, leaning on the counter,
purposefully using the pronoun Rei avoided. She took a drink
of juice from the bottle then put it back in the fridge. The
sun was about to set on the other side of the building and the
kitchen was dark. "What about us?"
It was quiet some time. "Where are we heading?"
"I don't know," she answered truthfully.
Again it was quiet. Dark and quiet. "But I need to know."
Rei's voice was sharp against the darkness, sharp and curt.
Minako couldn't see her and stayed quiet. A draught picked up
through the kitchen.
"I don't know." She tried again. "Wouldn't it be great if we
knew from the start who we'll hit it off with and who're we
just wasting time with - is what you're thinking, isn't it? Or
meeting someone and realizing it's your soul mate from a
previous lifetime. But it just doesn't work that way - not for
us. Even if you stare every night into your fire you won't
know what's the future like. Just-" Minako stopped as she
realized her mouth started going off on its own again. "Just
stay here and find out." She took a deep breath. "Rei, I -"
"Minako, stop." That's it, Minako thought. She began cursing
inwardly. "If you say something stupid now I won't be able to
say anything back. So, don't say it."
She smiled and stopped calling herself whatnot. "So you mean
'don't say it yet'."
Rei was quiet again, this time from defiance. "Tomorrow, I
really have to go to the Temple," She announced.
Minako had to bite her tongue to keep from blurting something
that would make Rei leave just to prove her wrong. She
rummaged through the clean dishes, took a kettle out and
called to the living room: "Could you close the window there,
there's a draught in here."
Rei closed the door again and walked back to the low table,
sat down and took a sip of tea that had gotten cold meanwhile.
That, she thought, was a bad sign.
"The water's about to boil, you want some more green tea?"
Minako called from the kitchen.
The END
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