Chapter 4: Saturday Calm
616 Words
Saturday morning came quietly, a sharp contrast to the chaos of her first week at Nexus Prime. Sunlight spilled into Lara’s apartment, where the familiar scent of coffee and toast already made the tiny kitchen feel like home.
“Good morning, sleepyhead,” Iris called from the living room, flipping through a magazine. “You actually slept past seven. Impressive.”
Lara groaned, stretching and rubbing her eyes. “Impressive? I’ve been awake since six, thinking about… absolutely nothing important.”
Iris laughed, a sound that always made Lara feel lighter. “Come on, let’s not waste a perfect Saturday indoors. You need a day off, seriously.”
It had been this way since high school. They had met in class by accident, been paired on a project, and somehow, they never stopped being inseparable. And now, years later, living together as roommates, Iris had become more than a friend—she was her anchor, even if Lara didn’t always realize it.
By ten, they were out, strolling through the weekend market. Lara let herself get lost in the rhythm of the day—bright clothes, the smell of baked bread, laughter spilling from cafés. Iris chatted animatedly about her latest freelance project, weaving in jokes and playful nudges, while Lara felt the week’s tension drain with every step.
“You look… different,” Iris said suddenly as they paused by a shop window. “Relaxed, I mean. Like you’re not carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders.”
“Thanks,” Lara muttered, feeling her cheeks warm. “It’s just… I don’t know. I keep feeling like I’m losing my mind sometimes.”
Iris raised an eyebrow, soft but knowing. “Mind wandering? Or nightmares?”
Lara hesitated, then shrugged. “Nothing like that. Just… strange dreams, weird thoughts. I think I might need therapy. Or maybe I’m just reading too many fantasy novels, making my brain overwork itself.”
Iris didn’t reply immediately, just gave her a gentle look. There was a calm in her eyes, an understanding Lara couldn’t quite name. “Well… if it helps, I’ve seen stranger things in people than you. You’re fine. Probably just stressed.”
“Yeah, maybe,” Lara said, though her mind was still racing.
They continued shopping, stopping for lunch at a small café tucked between boutiques. Iris insisted on cooking dinner when they got back to the apartment, claiming it was “my way of making sure my baby doesn’t starve herself.” Lara chuckled, half-amused, half-grateful, and claimed a short nap while Iris got to work.
When she woke, the aroma of simmering garlic and herbs filled the apartment. She stretched and laughed softly to herself. “I’m definitely going crazy,” she muttered, “if a little smell of food makes me feel like I just ran a marathon.”
Iris poked her head around the kitchen doorway. “You okay, Lara?”
“Perfectly fine,” Lara said, blinking and staring at her reflection in the window. For just a second, she thought her eyes shimmered, faintly and unnaturally, like something from another world. Then, just as quickly, they were normal again.
Iris tilted her head, amused. “You and your dramatic flair.”
“Drama,” Lara corrected, laughing, “is surviving my boss, apparently.”
Dinner smelled too good to resist. They sat together, chatting and joking, the kind of easy companionship Lara had almost forgotten existed. Outside, the day was fading, golden and calm. For the first time in a long while, she felt like she could breathe.
And maybe… just maybe, the strange, unexplainable things she had felt were only whispers, small enough to ignore.
- Writer
