Ling's mouth pouted as she observed Alex and Elisa flirting, a small physical rebellion against an absent brain.
She had a tendency to become lost in moments like these, as if her mind was watching the scene from afar as it unfolded. In some ways Alex and Elisa also lacked a presence of their own: so animated and carefree together, it was as if all human self-consciousness had fled their forms.
Elisa had a figure that could carry being brainless, Ling thought, somewhat jealously. Elisa's breasts had a fullness that pushed into the fabric of whatever she wore, always seeming to be yearning to burst free of whatever modesty was secured over them. Even though her own breasts were large for an Asian, they snugly fitted her B-Cups, a recalcitrant modesty that left them undifferentiated in a crowd.
Since the other guests had left, though, there wasn't much of a crowd to blend into. She was suddenly aware of a silence, and that they were both looking at her.
"Hm?"
Elisa laughed, and moved over to put an arm round her. "I told you she wasn't listening!" she motioned to Alex. "Always off in her own little world."
Ling smiled weakly. But the teasing between the three of them was warm, and the smile was genuine. And she enjoyed the closeness, as the two resumed their banter.
Elisa had been her friend since university, and they'd moved in together after into a two-bedroom apartment in New York. Though different on the surface, they'd grown together; Elisa was more grounded and sensible than she gave the appearance of, and Ling was more open and outgoing than her initial demeanor suggested.
Alex had the rugged handsomeness and casual air of a Manhatten yuppie, but didn't seem to have found contentment in either the finance or dating lifestyles here. Perhaps that explained why he was the last one still at their apartment in the early hours. Again.
The conversation spaced out, slower and slower, talk of who was dating who and the vagaries of existence winding down. Ling's reverie was broken by Elisa's yawn in the final silence. Eventually, all nights fall prey to entropy.
Alex grimaced. He had a habit of breaking phones, leaving the prospect of trying to hail a taxi at three in the morning as the chance to get home. Elisa came to his aid.
"Just crash here if you want. I can sleep with Ling. If she doesn't mind."
Ling shrugged. "Fine by me."
"Thanks."
They lay there in silence a little more, lethargy pulling out the minutes. It was Alex who slouched off first. Ling lay there a little more, Elisa pressed into her shoulder. These little moments were nice, in a bustling city like New York. It wasn't that she liked to be alone, it was just nice to exist sometimes.
She shifted, and Elisa woke.
"Come on. Time for bed."
Ling woke, groggy, as morning light's first rays tentatively explored her room. Her head slightly ached from the alcohol, though it was her need to pee that really commanded attention.
Elisa's arm was stretched over her chest. She gazed at her friend's lightly freckled face, relaxed and peaceful in the morning light.
They'd slept together a fair few times after parties, during university, and after Elisa had gone through a rough patch when her parents had passed. She didn't think of her as a friend, though not particularly as a sister either. Just as Elisa, something separate and unique. She closed her eyes and involuntarily breathed in the scent of her, primal and musky in the dawn.
