Chapter Five

Sunny coaxes Remy into taking her to breakfast and drawing her a picture.

Fly me to the moon…

Sunny was smiling at me, half out of the window as she reached out a hand for me to take.

Puzzled, but content, I took her hand, and together we rose out of the window and up towards the glistening starry skies above, Sunny smiling all the way.

“Remy?” I heard her say.

My eyes fluttered open and I was back in my bed next to Sunny, who was smiling the very same smile while the Evangelion ending song issued from the small television.

There was a light blue glow around the edges of my window. Sunrise.

“What time is it?” I asked, rubbing my eyes.

Sunny leaned over the edge of the bed and tinkered with something in the pile of clothes that were never fully replaced on our bodies.

“About a quarter to six,” she said. “And I have to work at ten.”

I sat up abruptly, gazing at her in alarm. Sunny just smiled.

“It’s alright,” she said. “I still have plenty of time before I have to be there, you know.”

“Yeah, but… Don’t you need to get some sleep before you work?”

Sunny pulled my face in close and planted a quick, soft kiss on my lips.

“Life is too short to sleep,” she said. “I’ll be fine, I promise. What about you?”

“I don’t have to work today,” I murmured, stifling a yawn.

“Good,” Sunny said, standing up and seizing her dress. “Then we have time to get some breakfast still. Where would you like to go?”

I rolled over, hugging the blankets to my chest.

“Sunny…”

“Yeah?”

“I… I don’t really have any money until Friday. That’s when I get paid. So… You know…” I bit my lip. “I can’t really afford to go to breakfast today.”

“Don’t worry about it,” she said. “I’d love to buy you breakfast.”

I groaned, burying my face in the pillow.

“I can’t keep letting you pay for everything,” I said. “I’ve only known you for a day… This�"everything, this is just… Crazy.”

“It’s just breakfast,” she said. “You gave me your virginity, the least I can do is give you nutrition.”

I buried my face again, hoping to hide the shade of red that I knew it was turning.

“You bought me coffee,” I muttered into the pillow.

“What was that?”

I slid my mouth out of the pillow just enough to speak.

“I said you bought me coffee.”

Sunny laughed.

“Is that all you’re worth?” she asked. “A cup of coffee and a cookie? Come on, now. It’s just breakfast.”

I shook my head.

“You’re enough,” I told her.

Sunny sat down on the bed next to me and put her arm around my naked back, kissing my shoulder.

“You’re cute,” she said. “But I really wanna go to breakfast with you. Let me take you out, come on.”

I sighed.

“Why don’t you just take me back to your place and cook me breakfast for free?” I asked.

Sunny shook her head, hugging me tightly.

“Not till after the second date,” she said.

“That could be the second date,” I argued. “We don’t have to go out to have a date…”

“Ah, but I said after the second date, didn’t I?” She kissed my shoulder again. “Get up and get dressed. I’m starving.”

Sunny picked up my pants and laid them down next to me.

I shook my head again, trying to figure out the best way to be assertive without hurting her feelings.

“I… really don’t want you to have to pay for anything,” I told her.

Sunny sighed, shoving her hand into the pocket of my pants and pulling out my wallet.

“What are you doing?” I asked, craning my neck to see. Out of thin air, Sunny seized two twenty-dollar bills from my wallet and dangled them in my face.

“Is this what you call not having money?” she asked with a fierce burning in her eyes.

I felt my jaw turn to liquid again and trickle down onto the bed.

“That…” My voice was in and out, and I couldn’t tell if I was dreaming or not. “I don’t know where that came from,” I said honestly. “I probably had about four bucks in my wallet the last time I checked, so unless you put it there…”

“Of course I didn’t,” she said. “You watched me. It was there.”

I blinked a few times, mopping up my jaw from the bed sheets.

“There’s no way…” I said. “I mean… If I’d had that money before, I would’ve brought you flowers or something.”

“It’s easy to forget,” said Sunny, “especially when money is involved. But look! Now you have enough to cover breakfast and buy me flowers if you want to.”

I shook my head in disbelief, taking the wallet and bills from Sunny’s hands.

“Get up, get up, get up!! I’m hungry!”

I nodded, sliding my legs into my pants. Had I really had an extra forty bucks in my wallet the whole time? I couldn’t recall completely, but I was fairly certain that it was nearly empty before. All I had was the change that Sunny had told me to keep…

Oh, s**t.

I stood up suddenly, throwing my shirt on and rushing out to the living room where my phone was. Seizing it, I punched in the number of New Grounds, and waited impatiently as the line rang and rang.

“New Grounds,” came the voice of my manager at last.

“Steven,” I said, breathlessly. “This is Remy.”

“Oh, hey, what’s up, Rem? You’re up early this morning.”

“Yeah,” I told him. “Something just came to my attention and I wanted to ask you a question…”

“Shoot,” he said.

“Well…” I caught my breath, thinking of the best way to ask what I wanted to ask. “The other day when I left… was all the money accounted for in the register?”

“Far as I know,” he said. “Why?”

I sighed a breath of relief.

“I don’t know,” I said. “I found forty bucks in my wallet that I didn’t think was there before, and I wondered if I’d accidentally taken the wrong bills from the register.”

“Why were you taking money out of the register in the first place?” he asked.

“A customer handed me some money and told me to keep the change,” I confessed.

Steven laughed.

“Well, everything’s accounted for, so you can go back to bed with a peaceful mind.”

I nodded to myself, rubbing my eyes.

“Okay,” I said. “Thank you.”

“No problem, buddy. Take care.”

I hung up the phone and turned to head back to my room, only to find Sunny standing just inches away from me.

I yelped, stumbling backwards and falling into my arm chair.

“Sorry,” she said. “Didn’t mean to sneak up on you like that.”

“You must have a really light step,” I breathed. “Nothing happens in this little apartment without people a mile away hearing it.”

“That’s why teleportation is such a wonderful thing,” Sunny said with a smile.

I blinked, searching her face.

“Remy, lighten up!” she cried. “Learn to take a joke! Jeez!”

I smiled half heartedly, avoiding her gaze as I rubbed my eyes for the umpteenth time.

“Your shirt’s inside out,” she said. “You didn’t even button it yet. Here.”

Gently, she slid my shirt off and replaced it on my body gingerly.

“Are you alright?” she asked, working the buttons through their holes. “You seem like you’re on another planet.”

I frowned down at the top of her head.

“I’m fine,” I told her, though I wasn’t quite sure. “I guess I’m just having some trouble processing everything that’s been going on since we met… I’ve been having really… vivid dreams, and… a lot of weird things have been happening. I’m just confused, or something.”

“Is it my fault?” she asked, buttoning the final button before standing up.

I shrugged.

“I think I just need a good, long rest.”

Sunny nodded, extending a hand which I took, hoisting myself up out of the chair.

“Let’s go get you something to eat first,” she said. “From the looks of your kitchen, you’re going hungry, and that can’t be good on you. You need to get some glucose to your brain. Now where would you like to eat?”

I shook my head, hoping it would somehow wake up my mind.

“Where would you like to eat?” I repeated stupidly.

“Well… There’s a pancake house not too far from here,” said Sunny. “They’re twenty-four hours, so there’s no chance of them not being open this early. Sound okay?”

“Sure,” I said. “Whatever you like.”

Sunny nodded again, taking my hand and leading me toward the door, which I opened and ushered her through before stepping out and locking it behind me.

Together we made our way down the many flights of stairs and into the parking lot where our cars sat parked side-by-side.

“We’ll take mine,” Sunny announced, pressing the button on her keyless entry device. The car chirped, lights flashing and Sunny strode over to the passenger door, opening it for me.

I threw myself inside without arguing and fastened my seatbelt as Sunny closed the door and marched around to the driver’s side where she got in and stuck the keys in the ignition, winking at me as she did.

As she turned them, the car sprang to life and Sunny backed carefully out of the parking lot.

I gazed out the window as she drove, taking in the scenery for once. When you’re the only one who ever does the driving, you don’t get a chance to take a good look at your surroundings and notice all the details you don’t normally see.

I noted the colors of the houses we passed, intrigued by a bright purple house that I somehow never noticed. I counted cars in driveways and waste bins on curbs.

Resting my head against the window, I counted pieces of trash on the side of the road, wishing I could get out and pick them up. A sign on the median said “Keep our streets clean!” with a waste basket below it and trash on the ground all around.

I shook my head, rolling my eyes at the laziness of people in the world.

“What’s on your mind?” asked Sunny, abruptly.

I jumped a bit, turning to look at her, my eyelids heavy.

“What,” I said, “you’re not going to read it?”

Sunny let her jaw fall open, eyes widening in an only slightly offensive mimic of myself. Then she smiled.

“Good one,” she said. “You’re learning the majestic ways of humor!”

I smiled lightly, letting my head fall back onto the seat.

“But seriously, though,” said Sunny. “What’s on your mind?”

I exhaled, looking out the window again.

“Nothing much,” I said blankly.

“You were shaking your head a minute ago, weren’t you?”

I shook it again at the suggestion.

“I just think it’s ironic how they put those ‘keep our city clean’ trash cans all around town, but you always see trash on the ground near it. People are so lazy.”

“Maybe they think it’s funny,” she said, turning a corner onto a slightly busier street. “But I agree with you. What’s the point of throwing trash on the ground if there’s a waste basket just feet away? I hate how people treat our planet.”

Between elegant locks of crimson hair, I could see that Sunny’s face was contorted into a look of disgust, her fingers gripping the wheel so tightly her knuckles were white.

I studied her for a moment.

“You don’t eat meat, do you?” I asked, finally.

The expression of distaste melted off her face and was replaced with a look of shock as she turned her gaze to me.

“What was that?” she asked, swerving to avoid colliding with a mailbox.

“I was just asking if you’re a vegetarian.”

Sunny straightened up, focusing on the road.

“I am,” she said with a strange tone in her voice. “But how did you know that?”

“I finally mastered reading minds,” I joked, hoping to make her smile.

“Seriously, though. Was it something I said?”

“Well, I just… are you embarrassed or something?”

“Not at all,” said Sunny, a smile finally spreading across her face. “I’m just curious what gave it away, is all.”

“Oh, I’m just being a stereotypical b*****d, but… Something about the way you dress… And I noticed that you order soy lattes instead of regular ones. Plus just something about how tense you got on the subject of littering. You seem like the nature type, I guess.”

“You mean hippie,” she said. “Go on, say it. I don’t mind.”

“Well… I didn’t know if… I mean, I thought that was an offensive term?”

“To some it is,” she said. “But I know who I am, and I’m proud of that person. It’s only as much of an insult as calling a homosexual person gay, or calling an African American black. It is what it is, but people are always so nervous about using those terms, like they’re completely taboo or something. But most people are more offended by the so-called technical terms. I simply hate being called an environmental activist. Hippie is so much simpler.”

She took a sharp turn into the parking lot of the Breakfast Barn, snuggling in between two other parked cars.

Switching off the engine, she brushed her long, beautiful hair out of her face and flashed me a dazzling smile.

“Shall we?” she asked.

I nodded, returning her smile and stepped out of the car. The air outside the Breakfast Barn seemed to be at least ten degrees colder than the air outside of my apartment building, and I immediately regretted not wearing a jacket.

As I joined Sunny on the sidewalk, I felt her extremely warm hand slip over mine.

“You’re absolutely frigid,” she said, squeezing. “Let’s get you inside.”

She smiled gently, leading me through the tall, wooden doors, painted to look like actual barn doors.

Once inside, the warm air immediately coursed through my veins, calming me and allowing me to think clearly at last. It was only then that I realized I’d never actually been to Breakfast Barn before. The inside of the restaurant was dimly lit with thick, wooden booths where only a few early birds sat munching their eggs and toast.

“Just two?” asked a man dressed in a flannel shirt and bib overalls, with an impressive straw hat perched on top of his head.

“Yes,” said Sunny, squeezing my hand again. “Just the two of us.”

The man in the farmer attire plucked two menus from the slot on the side of his podium and tucked them under his arm, beckoning for us to follow him as he started across the room.

He seated us in a dark and lonely corner where we were guaranteed lots of wonderful privacy.

“Take your time,” he said, laying the menus out on the table. “Sue will be around to take your order shortly.”

With that, he shuffled back to where he came from, leaving Sunny and me alone at the large wooden booth. I grunted as I hoisted myself up onto the hard bench.

“This place is… different,” I said. “Do you go to all the themed restaurants?”

Sunny smiled, picking up her menu.

“I just happen across places now and again. Have you really never been here? It’s so close to where you live.”

“I don’t go out to eat much,” I confessed. “For one, there’s the minimum wage job, and for two, well… I don’t really have anyone to bring along.”

“You never just take yourself to breakfast sometimes?”

I shook my head, gazing blankly at the menu.

“I feel like a loser going out by myself. I mean, who does that?”

“He does,” said Sunny, pointing to an older man across the room. He sat at his table, chewing slowly, thick glasses slipping down his nose.

“He doesn’t look like a loser, does he?”

I frowned.

“He looks lonely,” I said. “What if he used to come here every Thursday morning with his wife, and she died? And what if he still comes here every Thursday morning in her honor?”

Sunny stared at me, an eyebrow in the air.

“God, Remy, that’s incredibly sad. Do you always think like that?”

I shrugged, trying to look at the menu for real.

All of the specials had ridiculous names like “Barnyard Benedict” or “Ornery Omelet.” I found myself put off my appetite just reading the titles.

“He really does look sad,” said Sunny. I looked up to see her still peering over at the man.

“Maybe he’s just thinking really hard,” I said. “People tell me I look sad when I’m thinking hard.”

Sunny continued to gaze at him as a middle aged woman emerged from the bathroom and strode across the restaurant, taking her seat right across from the man in question.

They smiled at each other and Sunny turned back to me, a breath of relief escaping her lips.

“See?” I said. “Everything’s fine with him. And he doesn’t come to breakfast alone, either, so there you have it.”

“Well, there’s nothing wrong with going to breakfast by yourself, as far as I’m concerned. Everyone should be free to do things alone without being judged.”

I opened my mouth to speak, but was interrupted by a tall, blonde waitress setting two glasses of water down on the table.

“Can I get you anything else to drink?” she asked, her glossy pink lips curved into a smile.

“I’d like a glass of orange juice, please,” said Sunny. The waitress nodded and turned her gaze to me.

“Cup of coffee,” I said, to which she nodded again.

“Alright… And do you folks know what you’re having yet, or do you need a little more time?”

I couldn’t tell if the country accent was real, or just a part of the theme, but I found myself expecting to see her chewing on a piece of wheat.

“I haven’t really decided yet,” I told her.

“Well that’s just fine. I’ll be back in a few minutes to check on ya again.”

She smiled and sauntered off, leaving the two of us alone again.

I buried my face in the menu, trying to ignore the obnoxious food names and find something that seemed good. As I looked over the photos of bacon and sausage, something occurred to me.

“You don’t mind if I eat meat in front of you, do you?” I asked.

Sunny smiled.

“I control what I eat,” she said, “not what you eat. If you want a nice chicken fried steak it’s completely cool with me.”

“You’re sure?”

“Of course.”

Her smile never faded as she turned her focus back to the menu.

“I think I’ll just have some waffles with hash browns,” she said, laying her menu down on the table. I peered back into my own, realizing that I wasn’t even very hungry.

“I’ll just get some biscuits and gravy,” I said.

Sunny nodded, taking a sip of her ice water.

“So Remy… What do you normally do on your days off?”

I shrugged.

“Um… I don’t know,” I said, taking a swig of my own water.  “I usually just sit around the house and do stuff…”

“Oh, wow, stuff? That’s amazing. I do stuff, too. What kind of stuff?”

I laughed, trying not to choke on my water.

“Um… You know. I just doodle… Listen to music… Watch anime… Stuff like that? Not very exciting stuff. Not like sculpting.”

“Well excitement is all relative,” she said. “I personally feel like most people think sculpting is a silly waste of time. But I think that drawing is something that takes real talent. I’d like to see some of your work sometime.”

“I’d like to see yours, too,” I said, shyly.

“I’ve got an idea,” said Sunny, reaching into her bag. “Why don’t… you… draw me?”

She pulled out a spiral notebook with a pen stuck in the spine and flipped through some pages until she found one that was blank.

“Here,” she said, sliding the notebook across the table and handing me the pen. “Just don’t look through the other pages, okay?”

I nodded, my cheeks feeling slightly flushed.

“I’m… I’m a bit nervous,” I told her. “I’ve never really done portraits or anything…”

“Doesn’t have to be realistic,” she said. “Just draw me in your normal style.”

I heaved a breath, taking a good look at Sunny’s flawless face.

“Alright,” I said. “But no matter what, you can’t laugh.”

“I won’t,” she promised. “I could never laugh at another person’s art.”

Biting my lip, I touched the pen to the paper and sketched lightly, beginning with the eyes.

Sunny was silent as I worked, smiling the entire time. I wondered how she managed to smile so much without her cheeks getting tired.

After several minutes, the waitress returned, setting down an empty mug and a brushed silver coffee pot next to me.

“Oh, wow, that’s really something!” she said, peering down at my drawing.

I instinctively hid it beneath my arms.

“Uh, th�"thanks,” I choked.

She handed Sunny her glass of orange juice and then tucked the tray under her arm.

“Had enough time to decide?” she asked politely.

“Yes,” said Sunny. “I will have the Wild Waffles, please.”

“Breakfast potatoes or hash browns with that?”

“Hash browns, please.”

The waitress nodded, scribbling the order down in her little pad.

“Alright… And for you, sir?”

“The, uh… The Biscuit and Gravy Bonanza…” I said distastefully.

“Sausage or bacon?”

“Sausage, please.”

“And… pancakes or toast?”

“Uh… toast?”

“Great! And… white, wheat, sourdough, rye, or multigrain?”

I blinked a couple of times, the unexpected assault of options rattling my tired brain.

“Just white…” I said, praying that no more questions would be asked.

“Alrighty, we’ll have that out real soon! You guys take care! And keep up that beautiful work you’re doing there.”

She winked as she walked away toward the kitchen.

“Can I see?” Sunny asked.

“Not yet. I’m not quite finished.”

“Take your time,” she said. “I’m going to have some of this orange juice. Breakfast just isn’t complete without a nice glass of orange juice, don’t you think?”

I nodded, watching her take a drink of the liquid gold, and wondered why I didn’t order any.

“Here, have a sip,” she said, holding her glass out to me. I sucked the straw into my mouth, taking a quick drink before going back to my drawing.

“Thanks,” I said, not looking up. “I’m almost done. Just a few more minutes.”

I traced back over the outline, darkening it before starting on the shading.

Just as I’d promised, I was finished within a couple of minutes. I picked up the notebook, looking back over my work before handing it over to Sunny who accepted it with a smile.

The smile faded into a look of amazement as she scanned the page.

“Oh, my! This is incredible!” she said. “You are so talented! Jeez! I wish I could draw even half as well! It really looks like me, too!”

I grinned, pouring myself some of the coffee.

“Glad you like it,” I said.

“Like it? I love it! I don’t care if it’s on a sheet of lined paper, I’m so framing this.”

I chuckled, reaching for a couple packets of sugar.

“Seriously,” I said. “I could do better with a pencil and some nice Bristol. Then you could frame it and it wouldn’t look so silly.”

“It doesn’t look silly at all,” she said, closing her notebook and replacing it in her bag. “I think it’s an extraordinary work of art. Thank you for it.”

“You’re welcome,” I said, raising my mug toward her. She clinked her orange juice cup against it, producing a strange ringing sound.

“Cheers,” she said.

“Cheers.”