Not You

Chapter 2

Foreign scent.

As a child, she remembered how she would run up to her mother and hug her when she got back from the airport. Her mother travelled a lot on work so this scent was very familiar to her.

She didn't move for a few seconds. She inhaled in the scent and smiled. And then she heard a voice rumble from the wall.

"Are you done sniffing?"

She slowly pulled her head back and looked up. She couldn't see anything. So she raised a hand and flicked on another light switch. She saw a pair of dark eyes squint back at her and she felt her blood run cold. She stepped back a few steps and asked loudly, "Who are you?"

He looked as tired as her. Dressed in a black hoodie and black jeans, he had a bag strapped across one shoulder and had two large suitcases lying behind him. She flicked her gaze back to his face. He had a five o'clock shadow and his longer than usual hair was all disheveled as though he had just driven with the windows down.

He stifled a yawn with difficulty and asked her, "Who are you?"

She scurried behind the sofa and picked up a vase from the side table to arm herself. This action made him more alert as he raised his eyebrows.

She shot back, "You're standing in my apartment and asking me who I am. Now answer my question or face the risk of this vase being smashed in your face!"

He raised his hands slightly and said, "Would you calm down? There is no need to throw perfectly good vases at perfectly good faces when we can use good ol' communication."

She picked up another curio from the table and said really loudly, "Start talking or else I'll start throwing."

"Adi?"

They both looked around and said, "Yeah!"

She scowled at the intruder and backed away from him towards Mads. She reached her and said, "Can you please call the police? I'll hold him off as long as I can."

She noted that he actually had the gall to roll his eyes at this. He took off his bag, dropped it on the floor and strode towards Mads. Before she could think of anything, he engulfed Mads into a hug. Her jaw dropped as she saw Mads hug him back with a big grin on her face.

She shook her in disbelief and asked in a low voice, "You know this guy?"

Mads looked up at him adoringly and said, "He gets on my nerves all the time but I wouldn't call the police on him really. Adi...meet Adi, my brother."

He looked her up and down and broke into a slygrin that she was going to have to get used to as he said, "Nice PJs, ninjaturtle."