Chapter 4

As we walked the buildings became more lavish. Andrew directed me as we went, and we eventually arrived at a large apartment building. 

“So how do we enter the building?” I asked Andrew.

Andrew looked up at me in fear and yelled,“I just realised that I left all of my belongings in the alleyway!” 

“Well, we can just sleep outside.”

A man smoking a cigarette walked up to the door and unlocked it with a key fob. 

“Ya locked out?” Asked the man with a flushed appearance.

Andrew and I lit up with joy.

“Yes, well, not exactly. You see, my friend Andrew Amery lives here, and I have not heard from him in a while. I am quite worried about him, so I came here to check up on him.” I said to the man, lying through my teeth.

“Ah, you're one of Andrew's friends? He's a good guy, he takes care of all the old folk here, though I am sure you already knew that. Come on in.” 

I jogged up the stairs while carrying Andrew, and he directed me to his door.

Andrew directed. “The password is 1959.” 

I unlocked the door, and I let Andrew down. His room was an open space, and there were plenty of plants everywhere. The walls were covered with space-themed posters. Papers were scattered around the house, and this sight made me want to clean up. I immediately sped towards the papers while Andrew hopped on his desk. He looked down at the two furry, long creatures in the cage.

“My children, your father is home!” Andrew cried.

The creatures charged at the cage, causing Andrew to fly off his desk. I saw the poor little red rabbit fly off the desk at an alarming rate. I dropped the papers and ran to catch him. 

           I asked Andrew, “What are those animals called?”

Andrew leapt out of my arms and hopped towards the cage. 

            “They’re my pet ferrets. My babies. I don’t know why, but they seem agitated. I wonder if I left them alone for too long.” Andrew whined.

Andrew put his paw on the cage, and a ferret bit it. Andrew pulled away from the cage and wobbled to a corner. He stayed there for a minute without saying anything.

I asked him, “Are you okay?”

His ears drooped even farther, and he turned his little bunny head towards me.

“They want to eat me.” Andrew whined. 

I picked up the papers and sorted them into piles. I was unsure of the importance of each paper, so I did not throw any of them out. I stood in the open living room, and I thought to myself, “How am I supposed to make Andrew’s curse worse? It is far less potent than my own, maybe there is a curse amplifier lying around somewhere. Tomorrow I shall go look for it.”

“Get out of that corner, stupid rabbit, and tell me where I can make some food. I am famished.” I demanded with annoyance.

Andrew stayed in the corner, and I felt my face fume.

I was outraged, so I yelled, “Don’t ignore me! My stomach is going to eat me alive!”

I lifted the rabbit and was astonished to see that he had fallen asleep. I looked outside and saw the pinky-blue sky return once again. It had become morning without me realising. I placed Andrew on the couch, and I wandered towards a kitchen I could not recognise. Everything was different from my memories, and I was extremely worried about my cooking abilities. 

“If I do not give cooking a shot, I will be failing my ancestors!” I announced loudly.

Andrew awoke to a pungent smell that stung his nostrils. His eyes widened when he saw a plethora of unknown lumps of burned meals on the table. He climbed on top of the table and saw me dead asleep. I was so peaceful that it hurt Andrew’s self-esteem.

“Mother, you lied to me. You said everyone looked ugly as they slept.” Andrew whined with frustration.

Andrew looked towards his kitchen and was startled to see that not a single crumb could be seen. 

He thought, “This guy made such a horrifying meal but managed to not make a mess. How is that even possible? Fucking strange…”

The doorbell chimed multiple times, and the door was pounded relentlessly. I sprung out of my chair and guarded Andrew.

“Who is there?!” I yelled at the person behind the door.

Andrew hopped in front of me with a confused expression.

“What’s gotten you so riled up? It’s just my friend Will, that’s his special knock.”

“How can you be so sure? What if it’s someone else?!” I asked with horror.

“Just go open it up and see for yourself. He wears cardigans, and he has curly brown hair.” Andrew assured me.

I opened the door a smidge, and I peered with caution only to see the person Andrew described. I opened the door wide, and the room turned into ice. Will wore a face full of anxiety, and he held Andrew’s clothes and bag in his arms. Andrew saw his friend's distressed expression.

“Vita, tell him you’re my friend.” Andrew directed.

I put a thumbs up behind my back where only Andrew could see. 

           “Hey, your name is Will, right? Andrew told me about you. Andrew told me that I could stay in his house for a few weeks while mine went under renovation.”

Will peaked behind me and saw a red rabbit sitting on the kitchen table. His face lit up with joy, and he dropped Andrew’s belongings at my feet. 

           “You have a pet bunny!? She’s so cute!”

Andrew scowled at me, expecting me to say that he was actually a male, but I did not say a word. I smiled in response instead. 

“Why you…” Andrew threatened.

Will picked Andrew up and spun around.

             “So where is Andrew now? He’s not working, and he didn’t call in an excuse for his absence. Where’s this rabbit's food, water, and litter box? What’s her name?” Will asked, question after question.

I was overwhelmed by the endless questions, so I stood silently until I could come up with excuses.

             “Andrew went to the store to get the rabbit’s stuff since I had to stay here with her to make sure that she could get used to the surroundings. Her name is Flower. I had to get new stuff for Flower because I just adopted them.”

Will nodded his head, and it seemed as though my excuses worked. 

I put Andrew’s clothes on the couch and turned to see Will looking at me.

              “Well, I’m going to head to work. Just tell Andrew I’m worried about him and to be more responsible with his drinking. I’m off then.” Will said as he shut the door behind him.

I almost forgot that drinking was a huge problem for humans. It used to be necessary for everyone in my country to consume a bottle of wine every day, because of its supposed health benefits. I learned that this was not the case when I arrived in the Underworld. 

             “It’s not like I drink a life-threatening amount, so don’t look at me like that.” Andrew assured me. 

I put on my boots and grabbed Andrew.