Celliwig

Nin cracked open two eggs. You could barely hear them sizzle over the hot pan because of the continuous noise of the city outside - horns blaring, speakers blasting some religious tunes, people shouting at each other, and stray dogs barking at the people. It was 11 in the night. Nin found it a labour to breathe. The omelettes were ready, and he placed them on the leftover rice he had reheated in the microwave. He seasoned it with lots of... something, it was dark, he couldn't tell, but he was 90% sure it was oregano. He ate right there at the kitchen counter-top, without properly chewing, as it didn't taste very good and he wanted it down his gullet as quickly as possible. It wasn't food, it was sustenance.

A strong dry breeze came in through the window and grazed his bare chest. It was going to rain tonight, he was sure. He contemplated putting on some clothes, any clothes, but decided against it after little thought. If he gets a cold or fever, at least he could take a holiday from work. Work, he sighed and looked at his phone. It was 11:20. He had time to watch the latest episode, he thought. So he did, on his laptop while in bed, looking at his phone half the time. He wasn't really invested in the show, but he watched it anyway because it would be what his co-workers would talk about by the proverbial water cooler in the office tomorrow. It wasn't even like he actively used it to socialize with any of them, its just that he wanted to be prepared in case someone actually talked to him about it. He didn't want to be a social pariah after all, but he still didn't mind being invisible. He skimmed through the last couple of scenes, his finger repeatedly tapping the forward key, and it was over.

Almost midnight now, he had to wake up in 6 hours to get to work. He whimpered at no one in particular, except maybe the monster under his bed, hoping it'd come out and comfort him with any kind of existential dread. But there was nobody in his room, or in his apartment. He was in one of the most densely populated cities in the world, and he had never been so alone. His life felt like an episode of the show - he wasn't invested in it, he didn't particularly enjoy it, and instead of stopping, he just kept tapping the fast forward key, hoping that there would be an end in sight, or at least a point. So far, nothing. Maybe his life was one of those American shows that ran for 15 seasons, and oh how he wished it could be a BBC miniseries. He went to sleep, dreaming about a woman in a white dress, writing letters throughout the afternoon in an old mansion during the Victorian era, worrying about suitors and balls and whether the hydrangeas in the garden would bloom. This, was now thrilling to him.

All day at work the next day he thought about how empty his existence seemed, and the worst part was, he'd started out hating it, but slowly the work had chipped away all emotion that existed in him, all passion. Walking back home, he couldn't even tell when the sun set, being hidden away behind the dirty skyline. He felt all the artificial lights though - streetlights, car lights, digital billboards. The weather was humid, putrid almost, and he sweat through his shirt. It was dirty, this city life, the air itself seemed to place filth on his skin, polluting his sweat. He felt like he was about to be split open by the heat and the noise. Speaking of which, he needed to get more eggs. He found a mart on his route home, and it's air conditioned interior was a relief, although he had a feeling that the dirty sweat was drying on his skin, seeping in almost. He winced, and quickly started searching for a carton. While he was at it, might as well get a six-pack of beer he thought, that would be his weekend sorted. Now, getting drunk and masturbating in bed wasn't the ideal weekend, but he decided it was at least better than being sober and masturbating. At least he could be passed out for a longer time this wa-

"Hello, you." he heard the sweet voice from his side. He had been lost in the cool air of the fridge while getting the beer. It was a voice that made his heart jump start and his ears stand up. It was Mila.

"Holy shit Hi!" he exclaimed, a little too loudly. But it was Mila, with her flowing golden locks and the enchanting scent and the hugs that could cure insomnia. He wanted one right now, but then he remembered his sweat soaked state, and decided against. How did she still look so immaculate?

"We're quite a mess in this weather huh?" she said, and he was confused a bit because she was perfect.

"It's so nice to see you. How long has it been?"

"More than a year, I think. Not since the break up."

"Right, of course. I guess it really was hard to stay friends after that."

"How is he though? Do you guys still live together?"

"No, I live alone now, got my own place. And yeah, I talk to him, he's happy and busy with the new relationship." He cringed at the words as they left his mouth.

"Oh, good. I'm happy for him." She said somehow with no hint of negativity. Of course, it must have bothered her, but she showed no sign of it. Instead, she continued with the same disarming smile, "Speaking of getting your own place, I just got mine, not too far from here."

He congratulated her, and she told him it was a nice 8th floor apartment. Then she looked at him with a quiet contemplation, one that scared him, like he'd suddenly been found out, although of what, he couldn't fathom yet. She said gently, "I guess this chance meeting is a second opportunity, to really stay friends, properly this time."

"What do you mean?" He blurted out.

"I'm having a housewarming party this weekend, you should come. It'll be fun, bring your girlfriend if you want."

"Oh I don't have a... um yeah, I'll be there." He stumbled into it.

"Are you uh, having a party of your own there?" she asked, pointing at the six-pack.

He replied with a nervous laugh, "Oh uh no, not at all."

"Well, do you mind if I have them then? This is the last one, and I could use it for the party."

"Oh of course, of course. No doubt." And he handed them over. She smiled and touched his hand, gave it a small pat.

"I'll text you the details of the party. See you there then?"

He smiled at her, and she gave him the slightest of hugs, like she approved of him for handing the beers over. It was like a weird maternal instinct she had around him, or at least so he thought. The rest of the walk home, he thought only about her, and how it had lit up his life, only for a few moments but after so long. He thought about calling his roommate, to tell him about this, but by the time he'd reached home, his exhaustion caught up again and he dined and passed out on the bed.

Day of the party, he was being yelled at by his superior, and while normally that would've traumatized him, and he'd been dreading it for a day before and after. But today, as those cruel words left his superior's mouth, it's as if they vaporized in thin air. Nin had a spell of protection around him, cast by his meeting with Mila, and he was now only excited for the party, everything else could've gone to shit and he wouldn't have thought twice about it. So quietly and inattentively he sat through the admonition, nodded his head at the end, made his apologies and left. The rest of the day went by in a flash, and before he knew it, he was back in the same mart he met Mila, and pondered on which wine to buy.

Mila was busy running around the house to really enjoy herself; the party was still in its infancy, as was her level of inebriation. Three hours later, she wouldn't give a shit if someone fucked in her bathtub. Now though, she was a little amused to open the door and find Nin wearing a hoodie and slacks, with a bottle of shitty wine in hand, the cheap one they used to drink back in college. She wondered what he was thinking was going to happen tonight. Nonetheless, she hugged him, and showed him around the house, the bottle went into the fridge with a promise to be opened later in the night, and they invariably got to reminiscing, because that's all they could think to talk about. One beer down though, she was actually having fun talking about college, about that mini-life they'd lived for four years and left behind so abruptly. It was like playing house really, college was for her as for many others, the beta testing mode of what their adult life was supposed to be. Of course it was much more fun, because there were few actual responsibilities, and fewer consequences. What seemed so scary as a child, college had seemingly opened their eyes to being rather... well, childish. But as with actual adult life, responsibilities arrive sooner or later, and before she could get too cozy, she was pulled away by her other friends, by someone breaking a plate, someone trying to work the oven to reheat some pizza, etc. And she told Nin she'd be back in a sec, that he should try to mingle.

A sec, she said, right? Nin thought looking at his phone. It had been 20 minutes. The party was at peak saturation now, there was barely any room to move. He'd only had one beer, and his excitement was starting to die. He had thought this would be his chance to leave his current life behind, if only for a night. Maybe he'd run into old friends, but he didn't recognize anyone here, and those that he did he was sure didn't recognize him. So he fidgeted anxiously, resisting another beer, holding onto the promise of sharing the wine with Mila later. But he couldn't even see her any more. Maybe she had forgotten all about him, and maybe she already had someone. He hadn't asked her, he was just running on an assumption. Maybe he'd made an absolute fool of himself and she'd seen it. He started sweating, the hoodie didn't help. He needed air, so he squeezed his way through half-drunk sweaty men and women who he was invisible to, and made it onto the balcony.

The air outside was still warm and pungent, but better than inside. There was a slight breeze, there was an immediate quiet, and all the noise of the city, while still present, seemed at a distance. Nin thought he would have liked to live here, it's more bearable than his place. Why didn't he find such a place? Why, as he looked around, he noticed another balcony down below, chock full of little plants. There were vines growing too on tiny beams, that had roofed the balcony of completely, save for a small hole in the middle, but he couldn't see inside it. What a nice little garden, he thought, he should like to see it. Then the door opened behind him, and he heard someone stumble on the slide of the French door and whipped around to catch them, thinking it was a drunk idiot about to fall down face first. Instead, he ran into a woman. Well, he actually ran into the glass in her hand, which with his undisciplined whipping around he knocked over, spilling the red wine inside it onto her mint green dress. Maybe he shouldn't live here, this place had a small balcony, he realized.

"Oh fuck me." she said with clenched teeth.

Nin made a whimper. He tried again, and spoke, "I am so sorry about that, I just thought..." and his voice trailed off.

"Oh never mind you, just hold this." she handed him the glass, and sat on a small stool in the corner, picking away the stuck cloth of her dress, squeezing it to get some of the wine out.

She hadn't noticed Nin yet, not as Nin. He was still just a person. But as she was sitting, Nin took notice of her, saw her. The bright red hair was striking - long, flowing locks with a slight curl to them. Her skin was brilliant, like polished ivory, with a slight pattern of freckles burned onto her arms. She reminded him of a Trill, and in such a muted grey city, such a sudden flash of white and red and green, she might as well have been an alien. She looked up at him, they were bold thin eyes of dirty green, her nose was crinkled with the overpowering smell of wine and her big lips were tightly pressed together (they were the lips of a flapper from the 20s, he thought). Nin was sure he was about to be yelled at again, and all the times his boss had yelled at him suddenly overwhelmed him. He blurted out the first words that came to his mouth, "You can spill wine on me if you want!"

Her face loosened and he heard her chuckle, "Why would I want to do that?" she said in a prim voice, strong with an accent he couldn't place.

"I-uh, I don't know." He said, still overwhelmed. Somewhat dramatically he turned away from her and tried again to focus on the shrubbery on the other balcony.

"It's fine. Honestly, I don't know what I was thinking coming to this party. I forgot how annoying new adults can be." She came up next to him and looked out into the distance. Nin wondered why she was talking like a grand old lady, she didn't look that old. Maybe she really is a trill and her symbiont is hundreds of years old. Or, maybe I'm just a dork. He made himself scoff, probably for the first time in months, and she gave him a miffed look.

"Are you a friend of Mila?" he quickly asked, putting back on a straight face.

"Not really. We ran into each other in the lift, and she ended up inviting me here. I live downstairs. Speaking of which, I need to go wash this stain off before it dries up, so thanks for giving me an excuse to leave.

"Downstairs?" He looked at the other balcony again. "Is that by any chance your balcony?"

She nodded, and turned to leave. He suddenly cut in, "Wait! Can't you wash it over here?"

"Someone threw up in the bathroom. Besides, I really don't think I wanna be here."

"Umm, Uh... Wel-"

"Speak already!"

"Sorry. Well, do you need any help with th-"

"I'm fine." She turned again to leave, but again Nin blurted out, a little loudly, "Can I come look at your bushes?!"

She turned back, the same miffed look on her face. Nin was sweating now. "I just mean, the plants on the balcony, those look like some interesting ones, can I come see them, please?"

With a confused wince, she asked, "I'm sorry, who are you?"

"Oh, I'm Nin. And I like plants. Nice to meet you." He said with a dumb smile.

For the second time today, she chuckled. With an alleviated tone she said, "Alright Nin, Liker of Plants, I suppose it would be alright, as long as you promise to keep away from any fluids while near me."

"Scout's honour, ma'am." He said with a mock salute.

"Alright let's get out of here, My chest is getting cold and my dress is thin." She said with a sly smile. "I'm Olly, by the way."

"Is it? I- I- Hi..." she heard before his voice trailed off. She'd already started walking, with a giddy mischievous smile on her face.

In the dim hued lights of the house nobody saw them leave. It was as if they hadn't been to the party at all, save for some spilled alcohol on the balcony that would dry up by the time Olly opened the door to her apartment. Nin noticed it was strangely colourful, filled with dark reds and blues, and there were things that he expected there to be that weren't. For some reason, maybe the fact that she was older, he had pictured a beige or grey apartment, with mundane crap crowding the oversized couch and a tacky dining table, maybe some trinkets on the shelf and random plastic flowers in the corners. Instead, it was a rather spacious looking, sparsely furnished place, not unlike his own but with a better sense of aesthetic, and you know, like the person who lived there actually gave a shit about it.

"Uh, just make yourself at home, I won't take long." She said and whisked away into the darkness behind the couch. Nin quietly walked to the far side of the hall, noting how cool and quiet it was here. He couldn't even hear the party upstairs, nothing of the city outside either. It felt quite peaceful, he could've just slept here on the carpet floor. But the balcony still fascinated him, so he opened it and stepped onto the plastic grass. There was a faint smell of jasmine, and the feeblest of rustling of leaves whenever the wind blew. One would have to concentrate, filter out all the other noise of the city in order to enjoy this, and so Nin sprawled himself across the grass, eyes closed, taking in the aura of the flora around him. He hadn't been this close to anything green or natural for so long, and he realized now how much it had depressed him. This was a tiny escape from his city life, momentary, but much needed. He forced his brain to stretch these moments as long as he could. His one beer had barely gave him any buzz, but now the scent and change of air gave him a different kind of high. Then his stomach growled and he realized he was actually just really hungry. The plastic wasn't anywhere near a good feeling as real grass or sand or mud, but he felt drowsy here anyway. He could forget the lights around him were artificial, and pretend they were moonlight, and go to sleep here. He was tired. He had been tired for months now.

"Don't get too cozy there dear, my dog likes to take a shit there."

Nin grumbled without any movement. It took a few seconds for the words to get to his brain and create a picture, after which he jerked off the grass like a reanimated corpse in a Romero film. Olly laughed at him, the kind of pithy laugh you'd give to your pet when it trips over its own tail. "I was just kidding." she said, and sat down next to him, wearing a white satin slip that barely reached her thighs. She looked fair as a ghost, a spectre so beautiful it could have trapped sailors on foggy nights.

"This is a very nice place you've created for yourself." He said, solemnly, realizing in that moment that he'd have to leave it sooner than later.

"Yeah, it's my little Celliwig."

"Your little what?"

"It's Welsh, means 'forest grove'. It's where Culhwch went to seek Arthur's help in finding Olwen, who he was destined to marry because of a curse. Olwen was the daughter of a giant, who gave Culhwch forty impossible tasks to complete before he could marry Olwen. If that ever happened in the end, it's unclear."

"Olwen. Olly." he said, as the pieces kicked into place.

"Indeed."

"So are you here waiting for your Culhwch?"

"Maybe, but I'll settle for a Nin." she smiled at him.

Nin suddenly was nervous about what to do. This wasn't supposed to happen, was it? This doesn't happen. Not really. He had been cut off in his little corner of the city so long that he'd forgotten the social behaviour of humans. But it wasn't this, right? He noticed her leaning into him. Right?

He caught a sudden chill, and sweat formed on his forehead. The first thought he had once her lips had touched his was how long it had been since he had been kissed. It was such a vague feeling, the kiss, and his hand lingered at her neck, while hers slowly went around him and pulled him in closer. To suddenly be in this position was confusing and overwhelming but even so, it didn't take long for his dick to take over, and like an autopilot light turned on in his body, he went into the same familiar motions - the arm slipping to the thigh, the slow push of his body onto hers until she was lying with her back on the grass, and the careful placement of long kisses all over her body, each with the tiniest of pauses to look her in the eye. It was like riding a bike, you know.

In hindsight it was hard for Nin to piece together a rational chain of causation that had led him now to be naked in a woman's (and yes, he meant woman in it's peak expression) bed, feeling somewhat gratified, but also somewhat used. Olly was not something he was used to. There had been no cuteness, no quirky quirks, no stumbling, no drama, and none of the extreme passions he had experienced in his previous encounters with women. She had held him lightly, with delicate care as you would use for items in a china shop. There had been no pretensions on their way to the bedroom, they had not hopped or ran or giggled their way there. They walked, and the door was left open, and they had taken off their clothes with no apprehensions or cute remarks. Nin remembered hesitating for a good minute after that, partly because being naked in front of her piercing green eyes gave him goosebumps, and the body he was looking at was like something he'd only seen in you know, videos. Olly's curves, accented darkly by the dim light against her ivory white skin, made her seem like a sketch. If not for her fiery red hair, she might as well have been a charcoal on canvas. When she had walked close to him, inches away from his own pale skin, he noticed the green veins on her bell shaped breasts, and the little strands of red hair on her arms. These little things made the reality of the situation sink in for Nin, and for a moment he wondered if he should back out or take a breather, only to process everything that was happening. For the love of all that was holy, Nin wondered why he couldn't just let something just happen to him for once.