Tap... tap...

My hand rasped on the door before me; afraid of everything that had been said; unsaid as I left before Nikki came back from her late walk watch and disposing of the mummified like corpse.

I stood there at the end of the long hall in Hindon Hall across campus from the apartment. With a disheveled bag at my feet I waited for the slender plywood door, sitting in front of me, to open.

I felt as though the light wood was forever going to mock my willingness to give so much of my trust to another. I was an immense fool – I would have to admit – never to another soul would hear the word 'trust' come flowing from my lips, but – I could acknowledge that fact on the inside.

Finally, after an eternity squeezed into one or two minutes, the door cracked open.

"Hello...?"

His voice hoarse sounding; given what time it was – I couldn't ignore the fact that I must have woken him from a decent sleep.

"Danni.... What's wrong?" He asked forgetting that I was the one intruding.

I could've busted into a million gallons of tears from the authentic sincerity; but I fought every motion to let it go.

"You were right." I managed to grapple out. "You can never truly know anyone." I added in a quick breath.

His eyes grew from sleepiness to understanding in matter of seconds, as he comprehended the hidden meaning underneath my lack of clarification.

He did nothing but condense his breathing as he moved away from the open doorway; his gesture suggesting that I come in with no further explanation needed.

I gave the best slight of smile that I could muster from the sustained frown twisted on my face.

I stood standing just beyond the end of the kitchen tile, before reaching the carpet of the living room. I was – for the most part – lost as to what to do; or even how to act. I suppose this could be considered a reasonable act of shock.

Locking the door behind him; his bare feet clapping against the stone tile. "Thirsty?"

I found his puppy eyes cautiously waiting for an answer as I glanced to him. "I'm ok." I finally spoke.

"Go take a seat.... stay as long as you want." He generously offered.

I was touched from his generosity – as I pointed towards the inviting leather couch. He nodded in agreement to my inadvertently unspoken inquiry.

I sat down to what felt like a weight had collapsed from my shoulders. I instantly relaxed from the ton that had given way from my body.

"It's unbelievable how easy we are disposable." He began; sitting directly across from me in an equally inviting recliner. "I'm sorry... err... I never fathomed that you may not know that I was her cover on campus." He pleaded. "I just assumed that you both shared everything." He added.

I quickly drew my own sympathy for Ben, as to what he must've gone through; having to pretend to be someone or something that he wasn't.

"I'm so sorry Ben – I didn't know." I confided, suddenly contemplating everything from when Nik and I first met.

"It's okay – how could you?" He brushed it off with a tine laugh. "She's very good at being...."

A pompous traitor of a friend... a bitch of epic proportions.

".... a believable liar." He finished.

He's so polite, he can't seem to grasp a bit of hate for the crap she must've fed to him to keep him at her polished feet.

I agreed with a spec of a nod. "Just comes to show – that you may never fully know anyone, no matter how much time you may spend together." I suggested.

A sound of water dropping slung through the air – as Ben picked up his phone to the notification lighting up his soft Italian-rich appearance.

As quick as the sound had gone off, a huge grin splattered his symmetrically proportioned face.

With a flash of movement – he had sprung onto the couch beside me.

"You know, they say... the best medicine for a broken spirit – is having another splatter you with his." He remarked as if it were an old saying everyone grew up hearing.

I stuttered to answer; as I heavily contemplated the meaning from his oddly chosen words.

"From how you just said that, I can tell you think I know what you mean by that, but... I've never heard that before."

"There is a minor party going on tomorrow evening..." He announced. ".... and we are going to get out of this crap-tacular mood we've managed to drown ourselves in!"

"You cannot... be serious?" I grumbled. I wasn't particularly in the mood for drunken shenanigans of the idiotic kind.

Although – I do enjoy their fails at attempting to flying over.... well – any and everything that is around them.

"Serious as ball strung tenors soaring for squeaky high notes." He warned just shy of sarcastic.

For fear of knowing entirely how to interpret the spectacularly peculiar words that were just uttered – I will agree to going, so to never bare witnessing to tenors tied balls.