Page 27 of Origins of Eternity

“Door?”

“I’ve got it,” she replied and opened her own door before climbing out, holding on to the rose probably a little too tightly.

She checked that her slacks and jacket weren’t wrinkled and that her shirt and tie were also in order. Then, she walked to Arwen’s building and pulled open the unlocked door that still unnerved her because doors in a modern city should have locks and buzzers so that unsavory people like Iro couldn’t get inside.

She saw the elevator but decided to take the stairs since she was sure Arwen took the stairs herself. When she reached the second floor, Iro walked down the hall. Finding the door marked 2F, she looked around for a moment. The old, dingy hallway carpet in this apartment building needed to be replaced. The off-white paint on the walls showed all the dirt, grime, scrapes, and tears. Iro could also smell all sorts of body odor, as well as a small amount of mold growing somewhere within these walls, and she didn’t like that Arwen lived here. It wasn’t her decision,of course, and she had no right to tell a woman where to live, but this place wasn’t clean or safe, and Iro didn’t like that at all.

Seeing no doorbell, she knocked and waited. Then, she heard a few locks turn, which made her smile, and the door opened, revealing Arwen standing there in a tight, strapless black dress that had Iro’s mouth falling open.

“Hi,” Arwen said.

“Hello,” Iro replied and held out the rose. “For you.”

“Another flower?” Arwen asked and took it from her. “Come in. I’ll put it in water.”

“Very well,” Iro said before she walked into the apartment and closed the door behind her. “You have four locks here?”

“I do. It’s not the best part of town; I know. So, I try to be as safe as I can, at least. I have locks on my windows, too, and pepper spray in the drawer by my bed.”

Iro looked around the small apartment that looked as if it had been cobbled together over the years with mismatched furniture and a few prints of famous paintings on the walls from different periods in art. It all felt very much like Arwen somehow, and Iro was smiling again.

“Um… Do you want a drink or something before we go?” Arwen asked and slid the red rose into the vase that held the other flowers Iro had given her before turning around to face her.

“No, thank you. Another time, perhaps. I made a reservation, so we should be going soon.”

“Okay. I just need to grab my purse, and we can go.”

“Arwen?”

“Yeah?” she asked as she picked up her purse from the coffee table.

“You look incredibly beautiful, but you didn’t have to dress up for me,” Iro said.

“You’re wearing a suit,” Arwen pointed out.

“I came straight from work, I’m afraid, so I didn’t have time to change.”

“Maybe so. But why do I have a feeling you don’t own evenonepair of jeans?”

Iro laughed a little, held out her hand for Arwen to take, and said, “I own jeans. I don’t wear them often, but I do own them.”

“Okay. What about sweatpants?”

“I have sweatpants, too, yes.” Iro opened the door. “I work out in them sometimes.”

“You work out, too?”

“I run on my treadmill every morning. It helps… with stress,” she said, not telling Arwen that it also helped with the cravings.

“What do you sleep in? Sweats still, or some really fancy matching pajamas? Do you have a pajama tie?”

Iro laughed again and said, “No, I usually sleep naked.” Then, they walked out the door, but Arwen just stopped in the hallway, so Iro asked, “Are you okay?”

“Uh… Yeah. You just… You sleep naked?”

“Usually, yes. It has health benefits.”

“Right. Health,” Arwen said, looking at where Iro had unbuttoned the top button of her shirt and loosened her tie a bit.