Eli Trudged up the Hill, Grimly Examining His Paycheck. It Wasn't Big Enough. It Was Bigger

Eli trudged up the hill, grimly examining his paycheck. It wasn't big enough. It was bigger than he expected thanks to the hazard pay he got for handling the monster attack "well" but not big enough. With the arcade closed the next month for repairs, he needed to make this paycheck stretch out for about six weeks until the next paycheck came in.

He sighed and scratched his head. How was he going to make this work? At least he had room and board paid up to start the semester so food and shelter were already taken care of. This would just severely limit him as far as any snack food or entertainment was concerned. He supposed he could live on cafeteria food for the next six weeks but that thought did not appeal to him. Not that he had much of a choice.

One thing Eli was sure of though was he wouldn't be buying a new graphing calculator for his calculus class. He couldn't afford paying eighty or so dollars for a new one if he wanted any semblance of a social life for the next few weeks. As he tried to come up with a solution, he remembered that his sister, Mallory, probably still had his old one she "borrowed" from him when she left for college a year ago. She had justified it because he hadn't taken a math course his senior year and she needed one for her math class. Eli didn't think she had a math course this semester and her apartment happened to be between the arcade and the bank. Maybe he should pay her a visit.

A few short minutes later, Eli was walking down the hallway of a small apartment complex. The hallway was short and narrow, making Eli feel slightly claustrophobic. He wondered how Mallory, who was nearly six feet tall, could stand living here. "Eleven, nine, seven, here we are. Number five." He almost knocked on the door, but stopped when he heard voices on the other side.

"...just don't know. It's like he didn't seem bothered by it at all. He was almost completely dispassionate."

A bright voice giggled. "But isn't that part of being serene? I mean, that's kind of built into her--his--whatever's name."

"I think her--his--her name implies tranquility or peaceful. In the conversation he didn't come across that way at all. He just came across as... cold. I just don't get how that can be serenity."

"I think you're reading too much into it, Ang." Eli recognized his sister's voice. "Right now it's all academic for him. A curiosity. He has no stake in this yet. Things will change once he's more involved and gets to be around us." What the hell were they talking about?

Another girl's voice piped up, "Besides, Kunapipi already confirmed what we thought we knew. All that matters going forward is whether or not he is trustworthy enough to bring in."

What on earth were they talking about? A fifth female voice, this one with a slightly foreign accent, added, "And my research already confirms that you all can indeed trust him. He is one who keeps many secrets, keeps them well, and appreciates others who do the same. On that front there should be no concern."

Eli heard another door in the hallway open. Jerking back, he pulled his ear from the door, not realizing he had started leaning against it. He must have looked like quite the creep. He rapped on the door three times, trying to look like he had reason to be there. The door opened and a cute blonde narrowed her eyes at Eli. Did she know he had been eavesdropping?

"Hello?"

Eli cleared his throat. He stood tall and tried to look as innocent as possible. "Hello. My name's Eli Drake. I'm here to see my sister, Mallory."

"Oh." The blonde glanced back into the apartment. "Mallory, it's your brother." As the door hung open, the scent of delicious baked goods tickled his nose. Something delicious was happening in his sister's apartment, but Mallory was no cook so one of the other voices he heard must have been doing the baking.

A hand reached over the blonde and opened the door wider. Mallory looked down and smiled. "Elijah, what brings you to my humble abode."

Humble was an understatement. The hallway went straight into a living room so small that if Eli sat on the couch his feet would almost hit the TV. There was a steep staircase along the right side that led to the bedrooms upstairs. The kitchen was further in and Eli wasn't completely sure you could open the oven and fridge at the same time. The apartment somehow felt even more cramped than the hallway. "Hey Mallory. Sorry for popping in unannounced but I need to know if you still have my graphing calculator. I need it for my calc class."

"Oh. That." Mallory grinned guiltily. "Forgot I borrowed that."

Eli sighed. "Yeah, borrowed."

"I'm sure it's somewhere in my room. I'll go find it. In the meantime, Elijah, this is my roommate, Angela." Mallory gestured to the blonde girl who answered the door.

She smiled apologetically. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Elijah."

He nodded. "Likewise."

Eli recognized the short, raven haired girl sitting on the couch. "You already met Viv last night."

She waved and grinned from ear to ear. "So, we meet again! Where's Cory?"

Eli blinked. That was her first question? "Uh, Cory? I don't know. Probably at classes or something."

She lay back down on the couch, her hair splayed over the side and onto the floor. "Boring." Eli was impressed; Cory had left an impression on this girl and it appeared to be rather favorable. That was rather different.

Mallory chuckled and pointed to the table. "That's my other friend Noriko."

Eli turned and was quite surprised to see a short Asian girl with her hair tied up in a bun at the table. He could have sworn it was empty a second ago. "Greetings, Elijah."

He cleared his throat, trying not to act surprised. "H--hi."

Gesturing over to the kitchen, Mallory finished. "And last but not least, the girl baking is Kara."

Eli looked at the oven and practically nearly let his jaw hit the floor. She was on the shorter side with straight blue hair that came just past her chin. She wore a short skirt that exposed her legs. Legs he had stared at a lot as the stomped on the Hop Dance Mania pads back at Loose Change. "HDM Girl?"

She turned around, a quizzical expression on her face as she pulled cookies out of the oven. "I beg your pardon?"

"I mean, hello!" Eli winced. He couldn't believe his luck. He thought with the arcade closed he wouldn't see her for a long time, but she was somehow friends with his sister! The universe was not usually this kind to him. He couldn't blow this.

She squinted at him. "Wait, do I know you?"

He swallowed a lump in his throat the size of a baseball. "Uh, kind of. I think, maybe that is. Do do do you come to, uh, Loose Change at all? Play Hop Dance Mania maybe?"

She paused for a second, as if thinking how to react. Then her eyes went wide as she put the tray of cookies on top of the oven. "Oh my gummi! Yes! That's why I recognize you! You work at Loose Change, don't you?"

Oh my gummi? No! Eli wasn't going to let that derail his train of thought. He might not get this chance again. Eli pushed his shoulders back. "Yes, yes I do." This was great. He had the perfect angle he could work to keep the conversation going. "Or did." He held up his check. "My last paycheck for the next while."

Mallory smiled and rolled her eyes. "I'll go up to my room to check for that calculator, Elijah. Be right back." She strode up the stairs. He noted the blonde girl following. Wonder what that was about.

Kara took off her oven mitts and approached him. She was even prettier up close. God she had amazing legs, though he was doing his best to make sure he kept his eyes connected to hers. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I heard about the attack from Mallory. I actually was there right before the attack."

Eli nodded. "I thought I had seen you that day." He left out the part where he had rather openly complained to Cory and Robert that he didn't get to ogle her that day when she had been creeped out by the zombified kids.

Kara blushed. "I didn't realize when Mal said you were there that you were an employee. I thought she meant you had been there playing games or something. Had I known you were Mal's brother I would have been a lot more conversational."

She laughed and Eli laughed with her, trying to mask his nervousness. "Yeah, so, how do you know Mallory?"

"Oh," she idly chatted while scraping cookies off the sheet with her spatula, "Viv and I knew one another in high school. We both were on the Yearbook Staff and hung out from time to time. So when we went to college, we decided to room together. Noriko is our other roommate and, long story short, all five of us started hanging out."

"Oh, wow." Eli scratched his head. "What a small world."

"I know, right?"

"Yeah, so, you're baking?" Eli was desperate to keep the conversation going. "You bake in other people's apartments often?"

Vivian popped up off the couch, sending a wave down her knee-length hair. "Oh yeah! Kara's always got something in the oven or on the stove. Girl loves to cook and she's great at it!"

Kara chuckled. "I'm baking, not cooking, Viv."

"Oh, whatever. It's all foodstuffs and you cook as well as bake."

Kara shrugged, obviously trying to be modest. "I do like to cook and bake. My dad was quite the chef himself and always let me, even when I was a little girl, help and he'd ask for my opinion on things as he cooked them. Guess it just carried over. I just love seeing what kinds of flavor I can bring out."

"Ah, heh, I'm more of a boxed-pasta-with-canned-chicken kind of guy. I can't cook to save my life."

Kara frowned. "Well you'll need to improve that. You're missing out on a lot more delicious and healthy options than that."

Vivian chuckled. "She said as she just finished baking cookies."

Kara waved her spatula with mock-menace. "Oh hush you."

Noriko glanced down at her phone. "Vivian, it is nearly time for our Biology class."

Vivian groaned. "But I don't want to go to Biology. It's boooooooring."

Kara chuckled and tossed a cookie to Vivian. "Life can't be an adventure twenty-four seven, Viv."

Vivian caught the cookie and comically engulfed the whole thing in her mouth. "Idf fould be!" Vivian slung her bookbag over her shoulder.

"Would you like one as well, Noriko?"

"Yes, please." Kara tossed another cookie at Noriko. Only issue was Noriko wasn't looking. Eli was about to shout a warning when she snatched the cookie from the air. Eli blinked. Did his eyes deceive him? She had been looking away, right?

She took a bite and nodded. "Excellent, Kara. What is this flavor of cookie? I recognize chocolate but that is not the only flavor I detect. And I like the mixing in of butterscotch chips."

Kara nodded, obviously impressed. "Dark chocolate actually. And I'm pleased to see you tasted the espresso powder I mixed into the dough."

"Most excellent," Noriko said without any hint of actually being impressed. "Thank you for another delicious confection." If she liked it so much, why didn't she smile at all? Eli tried to read her but she was as stone-faced as the Sphinx itself.

Vivian swallowed. "Uh, yeah, I totally picked up on all those complex flavors as well, too. Also. As well." She not-so-stealthfully took another cookie before heading out the door. "See you later, Kara!"

Noriko was right behind her. Before stepping out, she gave Eli a slight bow. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Mr. Drake. I hope we meet again in the future."

Eli raised an eyebrow as she left. "Pleasure was all mine."

As the door shut, Mallory and Angela returned down the stairs. "They just leave?"

Kara nodded, scooping her cookies onto a plate. "Yes, they had Biology class."

Mallory casually snatched a cookie off the plate and took a bite. "Mmm! These are great!"

Kara giggled. "Help yourself, Mal."

Mallory smirked. "Oh, you were going to offer them to me anyway. You can't help but let everyone taste how savory your creations are."

Eli cleared his throat and leaned in, trying to look as polite as possible. "They smell great. May I try one, as well or is it a female only thing?"

Kara handed him a cookie. "Of course."

He took a bite and for a moment he forgot where he was and let out a small moan. "Wow. I mean, wow. Now I really regret that we never talked before. These are amazing!" He turned to his sister. "You've been hiding her from me so you can hog all the treats for yourself."

Mallory huffed and punched him in the shoulder lightly. "Yup, you got me. I'm secretly trying to plump myself up and make you thin and stringy."

Angela smiled as she took a cookie of her own. "Is this a bad time to mention we're out of milk, Mal?"

Mallory's eyes went wide. "Really? Donut, we're running low on a lot of stuff actually. Maybe we should go grocery shopping."

Eli squinted. "Donut?"

Mallory waved him off. "Did I say, 'donut?' Wow, that's weird. I meant to say, 'dang it.' Wonder what caused that."

"Uh, yeah."

Angela held in a giggle. "Well, I guess with everyone else gone maybe we should shop now before they get back from class since we have, uh, stuff to do afterward as a group."

"Good point." Mallory licked her fingers and then grabbed her keys. Eli made a mental note not to ask to borrow her car. "Sorry to leave in a rush and kick you two out."

Kara covered her plate in cellophane and shrugged. "Don't worry about it. I'll see you two tonight anyway."

Eli could feel the moment ending. He needed an excuse to hang out with HDM Girl a little longer. Maybe he could find a way to get her number if he just had a little more time. Though he hated doing it, he was going to pull a page from Cory's book. "Yeah, I'll see you later too Mallory. Nice to meet you Angela." Grabbing a plate of cookies, he practically plead, "Would you like some help taking this back to your dorm?"