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Being met by a locked door up to your flat not usually a bad thing, it signaled one of the most private and safest places for a person remained so.
Unless a locked door actively worked against that safety and warmth a home should bring, literally.
Shit, fudge, fuck! The door firmly locked, it might as well have been barricaded.
“No, please no!” Her pleas unanswered, any help just as far away as her house key attached to her keychain inside.
The only good news was her phone tucked in her waistband of her lace underwear. Which wasn’t that great considering the things it would unearth if she called for help.
She shivered hugging her bare shoulders. Cursing her choice in not wearing more regular boy-shorts and sports bra. The fancy bralette and underwear she chose for the night not cutting it against the chill seeping up the stairs from the mudroom. Freezing her ass off.
The cold chilled the small landing enough her breath hung in the air. Herself, her best friend Nora and their downstairs flatmate didn’t heat this part of the house, the frugal reason why didn’t make much sense to her at this moment.
Why me. She laid her head against the door. Why did I do this. Every single thing leading up this to she cursed, for the desire to wear these clothes, to getting her trail mix from the mudroom down the stairs. Stupid trail mix. Her offending snack of choice at her thin sock covered feet. Better taste good. She broke her rules to get the snack, broke them before this too. Something like this never happened before either.
A shiver and the present cold snapped her out of her self loathing. Enough moping, have to get inside.
The how currently eluded her.
Ask Ashley, no somehow worse than Nora. Her and Nora’s friend and downstairs flatmate not really a option. Nora her roommate and best friend the better choice, one she hoped not to have to choose anyway.
I could find a window maybe, the back porch should be unlocked? She thought about it, braving the weather. Yet the deluge of weather alerts earlier had been warnings about the snowstorms going on. Won’t work.
That plan wouldn’t work for a few reasons. To start it would mean going back downstairs to the mudroom, avoiding Ashley, from there making it outside and around back. In a bad winter snowstorm, in zero degree weather, in what only could barely be called underwear and a bra.
Oh and break into her home, without waking her best and slightly crazed friend. The only positive to the plan was if she did wake up Nora she wouldn’t be shot, as Nora had much more effective and concerning ways of dealing with intruders.
The going around and outside plan quickly shelved away. Being found as a ice statue in her undies in a snowstorm would be the worst idea ever.
Well only in front of being being found like this.
It left one, horrible, insane and unfortunately the only scenario that didn’t end up with her sleeping on the stairs and probably freezing to death.
This sucks. She opened her phone and went to her message chat with Nora. Small lie, easy to get around. Hopefully if she played this right Nora wouldn’t ask any questions.
Barley; 11:46, My sister is at the door, could you open the door.
Barley; 11:48, Nora
Barely; 11:50, Nora please!
The unseen text tag taunting her.
Fudge, I’m going to have to call. She took a breath, thumbed Nora’s contact tile met by the ringing buzz of a phone.
It took two calls to get past Nora’s voicemail. “Hello?” Nora’s voice full of sleep. The early mornings classes she took this week meant she conked out earlier.
Nora’s dead sleep being the only reason she considered streaking in her lingerie. Something she would never do again. Which was a lie as the whole thing would continue the cycle of happiness and then sadness, until she started it all again.
“Hello?”
Oh, I have to answer. Another deep breath, hoping Nora didn’t fall back asleep. “Nora?”
“Ya.” She sounded half asleep still, and seemed to be quickly heading back to fully asleep.
Be quick.
“Could you open the door.”
“Why?” Nora asked, the sound of some shuffling echoed through the speaker.
“I’m outside.” She paused weighing what lies should could sneak past Nora in this state. “It’s Aurora.”
“What?” Nora drawled, the phone silent as she tested the lie told to her in her sleepy state. “No, no, Aurora isn’t in New York, she’s in California…”
Fuck! Every curse she could think of flew through her mind at Nora making the connection. This is what she got for trying to pull a fast one. “Please open the door.”
“Why, and if you are Aurora why are you calling with…” Nora cut off.
“Don’t, don’t say the name,” she snapped. A rage built in her, one that simmered down at what she just said to Nora. Gods no, that’s bad. She hadn’t meant to snap, meant to reveal the dislike of the name.
“I’ll be right there.“
“Okay.”
Oh gods, oh gods, oh gods. Seconds away from this all coming to a end. The secrecy, the terror, the panic, some relief.
Breathe, breathe. She didn’t need to pass out and topple down the stairs, it would make this worse. Just slide past Nora, back into my room, use the spell and run away from this forever. A lie to herself yet again.
Fingers white with the hold on her phone in hand, she fiddled with her bralette and tried to not lose her mind. Did she fall asleep, did she forget, does she not want to let me in?
A creak of the floor alerted her, every fear, worry, hope moot now.
She’s opening it.
The door lock jingled and swung open, Nora looking way more awake than asleep behind it. Which was super bad.
Nora pulled her robe’s belt tie close, trying to shield herself from the chill seeping up the stairwell of the mudroom. All while her friend looked her over head to foot, eyes lingering with alighted interest on her skimpy bra and lacy underwear.
Is she attracted? A warm glow took root in her at meeting the approval of her friend, a warmth down below attested to her own interest as well. Stop being interested, this won’t happen again. With the sobering thought of never doing this again she pushed herself to move forward.
“Ok, thanks!” She tried to dart past Nora, thwarted by her friend taking a step to the side. While she towered over Nora the movement enough to send her back into the staircase.
“Nope, answers first or I close this and you can chill out for a bit more,” Nora said, while not vindictive she did get woken up in the middle of the night and fed a cruddy lie. Feeling well within her right to get some answers.
“Nora please.”
“You woke me up, and it’s cold out of my bed. So answers first, and your name, or I close this door,” Nora said, unwilling to take anything but the truth, the whole truth.
Why does she have to be so stubborn. It was both awesome and frustrating at the same time all the time. Ok, the truth.
“Hi I’m, I’m…Dawn, I’m me,” she said, hoping she inflected enough. Please, please be gentle. Nora ranked in Dawn’s most important people near the top of the list, a teeny smidge behind Dawn’s sisters and moms.
“Hello Dawn, nice to meet you, now can I go back to bed, or are you going to lock yourself out anywhere else tonight ,” Nora said she took a step back, pulling her heavy robe closer. Dawn’s silence apparently the answer she sought. “Goodnight.” Nora turned and went back in the flat. Dawn chased after her once she grabbed her trail mix, mainly so she wasn’t freezing her tushy off. A small not frozen part of her quaked in fear at what she just said.
Still there were priorities. Mainly making a beeline for one of the radiators set low on the wall, trail mix forgotten on the coffee table. The heat increase in getting closer to the vent minor, the thought counted at least.
Warmth, glorious warmth! The heat of the room helped defrost her frigid body. Dawn jumped in surprise when a blanket placed over her shoulder. From the couch? She pulled it tight around her shoulders turning to who gave it to her, the person of course Nora.
“Don’t want you getting hypothermia, you weren’t dressed for the weather,” Nora said softly. Looking up at Dawn, The distance between them close enough for Dawn to see Nora’s hazel eyes bright and awake, contrary to her tired movements.
“We’ll talk in the morning, but know I’ll always love you,” Nora said. She wrapped Dawn in a tight reassuring hug. “Goodnight.” She took a step back and smiled, then she left. Nora disappeared down the hall, her door eased shut behind her.
Dawn left alone in the living room, gazing down the hall both to her room and to her friend’s room.
Thank you.