10. Heat
10. Heat
{Naya}
It came as no surprise to me that Uri had a BMW parked in the apartment building's garage. When we arrived at the car, he handed me the keys and gave one of his annoying smiles.
"No more taxis."
I rolled my eyes and took the keys. As soon as we got in the car, I had to swat him away from my purse. It was obvious what he was after.
"Am I still on Angry Birds probation?" Uri asked.
I cranked the engine, noticing the newness of the car's interior.
Where the hell did Uri get this?
Shaking my head, I said, "It's rude to go through a woman's purse without asking, Uri. And besides you need to pay attention to what I'm doing right now because pretty soon you'll be driving."
Just as the last words were leaving my mouth, a realization of oh shit passed through my mind.
He nudged my elbow. "You're right. I need to be paying attention to you right now."
He shifted towards me so he could easily watch my movements. I tried to ignore the path of his eyes as I showed how to start the ignition. I went over the different mirrors and what they were used for.
Of course he could not resist making eye contact with me in the reflection of the rearview mirror. For a brief moment, I held his gaze, but only because I noticed something odd. His irises seemed to appear more maroon than brown.
"Naya?"
I blinked. "Huh?"
"How do you get the car to move?"
I tore my eyes away from the mirror and looked at the gear shift.
"Right."
I explained the different gears as best as I could. When I finally went to put the car in drive, Uri had the nerve to put his hand on top of mine. His skin was warm. Really warm.
"Are you running a fever or something?" I said as I put both hands on the steering wheel and pulled the car out of the parking spot.
Uri peered down at his hands in curiosity. He asked me, "Did you feel something unusual just now?"
I narrowed my eyes as we rolled out of the shady deck and into the sunlight.
"Your hand is really warm. Almost hot."
I glanced out of the corner of my eye and saw some concern in Uri's expression. He never gave me a response and he spent the rest of the car ride wrapped up in his thoughts. To be honest, I didn't mind the silence. It had also been a while since I drove a car, so this was a treat for me. I followed the familiar road signs until we reached the nearest shopping plaza. This one was equipped with a bank, a Walmart, and a Starbucks.
I tucked in my septum ring and pulled my top down as much as I could before we entered the bank. I couldn't represent Uri looking like his weed dealer.
Uri decided to play the role of a foreign investor who wasn't fluent in English. I pulled off an Emmy-winning performance myself as his personal consultant and translator. We told the bank clerk that he was a business owner new to the Atlanta area and he needed to open a savings account.
The banker was a woman in her forties, who I noticed did a rather thorough observation of both Uri and me as we sat down at her desk. When she casually asked the kind of business we were involved in, I informed her that Uri was an up and coming distributor of hair extensions. The lady gave a sweet smile and didn't ask any other questions after that – not even after Uri produced a large deposit.
We hit Walmart next. Since neither Uri and I needed to eat, we just made the necessary purchases for Ritsu and bought whatever other foods caught our eye. Uri was still set on preparing breakfast one of these days so I made sure to get the essentials: pancake mix, eggs, milk, bacon. Uri raided the seasoning aisle. He dumped his findings in our cart along with bottles of varying sauces and marinades.
"And what is it that you plan to do with all of this, Uri?"
He shrugged again. "There were so many things to choose from." He stared in awe at the basic department store aisles. "This place is so big. I could spend all day exploring."
Mortified at the idea of letting this shopping trip drag on for any longer, I took him by the wrist and jerked him away from the food aisles.
"Come on, weirdo."
I guided Uri towards the entertainment section. The wall of flat tv screens made his eyes grow wider than normal. I wandered over to the nearest basket full of five dollar movies and began to rummage through them.
"As much as I love to read, we should really make use of your entertainment system at the apartment. I noticed that you have a bluray player and, well, such things shouldn't go to waste."
I grabbed a few kids movies, figuring they were a good way to immerse him in culture. I figured if toddlers can sit around and watch the same movie all day, why couldn't a djinni?
Ting! Ting! Ting!
I dug my vibrating phone out of my purse and looked at the caller ID.
Calling you: Dad
I stared at the phone until it stopped buzzing. Then I carefully put it back in my bag. What did the reverend want now, I wondered.
"Why didn't you answer your phone?" Uri probed. Evidently he had stopped gawking at flat screens. I masked my uneasiness with a smile and pressed a copy of Ratatouille against his chest.
"I hope you don't mind a movie about rats."
I was grateful that he didn't press any further about the phone call. We picked up a few more unnecessary knick-knacks and paid for everything at the register. After we left and loaded the car, I asked Uri if he was up for an iced coffee before we had to go home to the trolling demon.
I expected him to reply with some slick comment about this being like a date, but he just extended his elbow out to me and said, "Yes, I'd really like to try that."
As we ordered and took our seats inside the Starbucks, I couldn't help but notice all the stares we were getting. Or rather, Uri was getting stares. I was getting glares.
When the barista shamelessly butchered both of our names, Uri volunteered to retrieve the drinks. Meanwhile, I addressed the haters with my own comeback glares.
Uri approached our table. "They spelled my name Y-E-R-Y. Hey, is something wrong?"
I unraveled the tension from my face and said, "I think some of the women in here have mistaken you for a rock star that I apparently don't deserve to be sharing a cup of coffee with."
While I took the first few sips of my hazelnut frap, Uri looked around as if he were noticing the other people for the first time. Most of the girls looked away, but it was obvious that they had been staring.
Turning back to me, he said, "Well I guess we just need to make clear the nature of our relationship."
Then he leaned over the table and sipped from my straw.
Stop blushing, Naya!
He pulled back and touched his fingers to his temple. "Ah. That is cold."
"Uri! Slow down."
He recovered from the brain freeze and winked at me. "What? We're cousins, remember?"
I couldn't keep from smiling. Especially when Uri broke his charming facade and whimpered, "Oh, that was really cold."
I let him play Angry Birds during the car ride home. I couldn't really explain why, but I felt more relaxed than I had all week. I turned on the radio and let the music fill the inside of the car. We were about a mile away from the apartment when some familiar lyrics wafted from the speakers – TLC's "Unpretty".
Before I knew it, I was singing along, completely forgetting that Uri was next to me. It wasn't until the song reached the chorus that I noticed him looking at me. I clamped my mouth shut and turned down the volume.
"What is it, Uri?"
"I was just listening to you," he said softly. "When did you learn this song?"
I huffed and fell silent for a moment. Then I blurted, "It's . . . I used to play this on guitar. Just for fun, but . . . yeah. You can go back to playing your game now."
Uri grinned. "I'm getting better, but the levels are getting harder." He turned his attention back to the smartphone. I focused on the road, thinking of when my dad called earlier that day. My uneasiness settled in deeper and I had to fight to keep it from making me sick.
By the time we walked into the apartment, I felt faint. I ignored the nausea and handed my jittery monkey a grip of bananas. I helped Uri carry in the rest of the groceries and unpacked them while he played Angry Birds.
Ting! Ting! Ting!
"Hello?" Uri answered.
I nearly dropped the milk. It was my dad. It had to be.
"Uri, no!"
I leapfrogged over the kitchen island and stumbled into the living room. Uri was leaning on the armrest of the couch, back to playing Angry Birds. He looked up at me and said, "That was Portia. She said that your dad wants you to call."
For a moment, Uri's face looked fuzzy.
"So, it wasn't my dad who called just now?"
Uri shook his head. At least, I think he did.
"Naya, you okay?"
"Mistress!"
"Naomi!"
The relief that Uri hadn't spoken to my father came on so fast and so strong, that it pushed me to the edge.
The last thing I remember was the feeling of weightlessness.
Bạn đang đọc truyện trên: AzTruyen.Top