Not Quite

‘Extra bright, want you to see everything, want you to see all of the lights’
My body pounded against the wooden stage floor, trying to choreograph the new dance for my oldest class. I’d been here for two hours, and, rightly, my body was drenched in sweat. I let my feet carry me absent mindedly through the end of the song and I went to the speakers to shut down the music and take a break. Panting and leaning against the stage left wall, I slunk down and put my head in my hands. I wished I had food. Something to fill my stomach that sent sounds rattling against my small rib cage. I sighed, grabbed my stolen duffle bag, and, throwing it over my shoulder, started toward the back door.

Light flooded my eye sight. Welcome to paradise. L.A. streets opened up in front of me, while the arts building, where I worked, branched out into different concrete buildings over a vast expanse of land. I moved quickly through alleyways, and hopped up to the fire escape, landing on my toes before climbing the three flights of stairs to my window. Unlocking it from the outside, I opened it and climbed in, throwing my bag down on the bed, and locking it behind me. I trudged to the shower, stripping off my clothes and letting the steaming water run down my back. I started pulling my long brown hair out of its braid, and felt the water pull it down to my waist, all curl washed out. I reached back, hearing my elbow pop, and moved my hand down my bony back to find the telling slit behind my shoulder. I coaxed my long, tawny right wing out of where it had been frantically hiding all day, then moved to the left. Genetic engineering has its disadvantages.

I finished my shower and dried my gaunt body, the muscle I had barely hiding any of my bones. I guess my lack of food money might contribute to that. I stole a towel from my roommate’s rack, and dried myself, tucking my wings back to their usual place, just a little bit more relaxed. I was home, or what barely counted as one, and no one should be here for about another hour. I paced to my suitcase in the corner of the room, pulling a huge t-shirt, and old jean shorts from it and onto my body, and then hopped onto my worn twin mattress in the corner of my room. I pulled my notebook from behind it, and looked over the new theory I'd started last weekend. Numbers normally came naturally to me, but I couldn't get these right.

"Hey, Erin, guess who's home early!" My roommate bounced through the door, her straight brown hair blown behind her face.

I slammed my notebook shut, and shoved it back to its hiding place. "My guess would be you."

"You're brilliant, you know." She smiled a flopped down on my bed while I crossed my legs, moved back toward the wall, and tucked my wings in a little tighter.

"A bit more than brilliant," I muttered under my breath. I think my almost 200 IQ score put me into that category.

"What'd you say?" My overeager roommate leaned toward me.

"Oh, um, why are you home so early?" I crossed my arms.

"I got the day off!" She squealed, obviously happy.

"Uhhuh, great. Well, listen Sam, I've got a lot of work to do, so if you could leave me alone to do it, that'd be sweet." I gave my best attempt of a smile at the girl, and a sarcastic thumbs up. And, of course, she never caught anything mean in any of my gestures. I guess that's one of the benefits of having such a self-focused roommate.

"Oh! What are you working on? New choreography? Oh, let me see!" She moved closer to me like an excited puppy.

"Aerospace engineering," I answered bluntly, looking at her with an expressionless mask.

"Isn't that a rock band?" She gave me a confused look.

I had to fight down the urge to make fun of her because I knew if I pushed it any farther, she'd get mad at me, and would definitely call me on the fact that I've been stealing her food for the past three months since my pay got cut. "Yes. And they really need me. So I'm going to get back to them, and you should go have fun on your day off." I actually succeed on a genuine smile, only because I thought her naivety was hilarious.

"Oh, are you like designing clothes for them?" She clasped her hands together. "I love clothes, maybe I could help?" She bounced up and down on my bed. "Are they in your super secret notebook you keep behind your bed?" She made a lunge, and grabbed it before I could stop her. "Why are they wearing numbers?"

"New trend. Straight from Milan." I gave a curt nod.

"Oh my god, are you serious?" She gave a shocked look. "Why didn't I hear about it?" I shrugged as she worked herself up. "I have to go call my girls!" She rushed out of my room, and I heard her bustle around our small apartment, yapping away on her phone about the new 'trend.'

I chuckled. I really don't understand stupid people. I went back to working away at the numbers to try and figure out how to make my flight more aerodynamic. I didn't handle my flight very well last week, probably because of my lack of nutrition and/or sustenance of any kind, and I couldn't stand another flight like that with all the carbs I was burning from dancing. I'm pretty sure my body had resorted to eating muscle by now. My left hand went up to feel my hollow, sunken cheek, and I sighed. And that was when I heard Sam come crashing through the apartment back to my room.

"You bitch!" She screamed, shoving her phone back into her back pocket. She moved toward me, and I stood up.

"What?" I gave her a questioning look.

"There is no numbers trend in Milan!" She threw her hands up. "I bet your not even designing for Aero-whatever." Crossing her arms, she moved back toward me.

"Are you being serious right now?" I raised my eyebrows. There was no end to this woman's stupidity.

"I am completely serious!" Sam screeched. "You lie to me all the time, you steal my food, you barely pay half your rent, and are completely mean to me! I don't understand, I'm trying to be nice to you!"

"This definitely wouldn't be a problem if you weren't so stupid." I ran a hand through my still unbraided hair, the tight curl on its way back now that it was drying.

"I am the smartest kid in my class!" She protested.

"At your community college that your dad had to pull strings for you to get into." I rolled my violet eyes, and sighed. "And it's not my fault you believe everything I say."

"I'm supposed to be able to trust my roommate! I shouldn't have to question everything they say!"

"That might the smartest thing you've said in months." I laughed meanly.

"You know what? That's it. I want you gone." She stood in front of my with the look of a child defying their parent. "Today."

"You've got to be kidding me." I put a hand on my hip. "How do you expect me to get all my stuff out of here?"

"Everything's mine except for your two bags!" She yelled. She walked over to my suitcase, slammed it shut, and, zipping it, threw it at my feet. She repeated the gesture with the duffle bag.

I grabbed my notebook off my bed, shoved it into my duffle that had already been put on my shoulder, and rolled my suitcase behind me. She followed me out the front door of the apartment.

"Yeah, and stay-" I slammed the door in her face before she could have the satisfaction of her small retort.

"Fuck you!" I yelled back at the door. I made my way down the yellowing hallway of out old apartment building, and took the elevator for once in my life. Once downstairs, I realized that the sun was about to set, which meant I needed to get to some place safe to sleep fast. I may be trained in general combat, but my limbs would break like twigs if I went up against anyone in this neighborhood. I quickened my pace and started toward the art building where I worked, the key already pulled out my bag and in my hand. I made it to the theater in five minutes with the world drenched in an orange.

Opening the side door I'd left from earlier today, I searched for one of the couches that were kept back here without turning on the light. Finally finding one, I curled up on my side and went over the equations I'd been working on earlier in my head until I fell asleep.