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On the 707th flat, Hachi ran her finger along her favorite glass. Her thumb traced the outline of the strawberry pattern, then moved to the next design, then to the other.
In the background, she could hear moans. The neighbors were ‘having fun’ in the apartment next door. She pursed her lips, then pressed her finger against the glass.
How rude, she thought. They could at least tone it down.
The situation irritated her for many reasons. Because it was 7 a.m., because she'd had a terrible week, because it's been months since she had some fun herself, because...
The woman on the other side of the apartment shouted, and Hachi huffed.
Because they reminded her of what she lacked. It's not fair, she told herself. It's not fair.
Hachi had tried. Again and again. First with that art teacher, then the guy from the video store, the pizza delivery guy, Asano, Shoji...
Hachi counted on her fingers. The more she counted, the more the neighbors' groans and cries of delight irritated her.
"For God's sake!"
"Pfft. Yeah, they're so loud, aren't they?" A voice said to her left.
Nana came out of her room. She had a cigarette between her fingers and a crooked smile on her face.
"Oh, Nana. Good morning," said Hachi. "What are you doing up so early? Do you work today?"
"I have the day off today," she yawned. "But I can’t sleep with all that fucking noise."
She had dark circles under her eyes, and now her smile was more of an angry grimace.
"I’d say," Hachi muttered. "My room is right next door to theirs. They woke me up at 7 and couldn't fall back asleep. So, anyways, I made pancakes, want some?
"Pancakes?"
Nana's face lit up, and her friend smiled.
"I know you always crave something sweet after a concert, so I thought you might like pancakes for breakfast. They're in the fridge, next to the milk."
"Oh, boy!"
"There are two kinds, chocolate and plain," Hachi continued. "Oh, and there's coffee in the pot too."
And just like that, Nana went from grumpy to beaming from ear to ear. She grabbed the plate of pancakes in one hand and the Italian coffee maker in the other, humming a tune.
The girl was all energy, just like she usually was at concerts. She moved from one side of the kitchen to the other, grabbing the sugar first, then the jam, the honey and the Nutella in what appeared to be a very weird Jenga. She put them on the table and stopped dead in her tracks. "Something's missing here, don't you think? Ah!" She ran to the stereo and pressed play. An eclectic guitar drowned out the sounds of the neighbors. "Much better."
Finally, she went back and sat at the table, and started chewing. Beside her, Hachi watched her. Nana had terrible manners. She kept trying to talk with her mouth full. But who cared? She liked seeing her smile.
"You're the best, Hachi!" her friend shouted between crumbs. "Damn! They're amazing! They always turn out great, but this time you added something different, didn't you? What is it?"
"Do you like them?" the other asked, reaching for the coffee pot. "I added a splash of brandy, that’s all."
Hachi smiled, her lips tightening. It's not fair, she repeated to herself, as her fingers traced the outline of the strawberries again. The Sex Pistols now drowned out the noise, but Hachi was still annoyed. The neighbors’ tryst still in her head. She wanted that too, the flirting, the good morning smiles, the sex.
She wanted…
"C’mon, what’s wrong?" Nana asked, her mouth full.
Hachi shook her head. "It's nothing."
"Are you sure? Because you’ve got that face. Yeah, that one! Your lips always do that thing when you’re sad. Come on, tell me, who do I have to kick? Has Shin crossed a line again?"
Hachi smiled tenderly. She loved Nana's temper, her lack of filters. It was one of her favorite things about her, her magnetic presence, her smile. That aggressive way she cared about her friends.
Nana kept looking at her. And now she was chewing angrily. "Don't tell me this is because of Shoji again. Did that moron text you?"
Hachi swallowed. She was used to people getting angry with her, but this, this desire to protect her, this was new. The girl still wasn't used to it. It wasn't that she disliked it, but… there was something. Something she struggled to put into words. It was like a warm feeling that spread across her chest, a kind of tingling down her stomach.
In front of her, Nana had finished her pancakes and was staring at her. There was no smile or anger left on her face. Only smoke. Nana had lit another cigarette.
"Hey, you know it’s fine, right? You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."
"Oh, no, sorry," Hachi said, wringing her hands, "it's nothing, I'm sorry I…"
Nana took the cigarette from her lips.
"Hachi, it's okay, really. I'm not going to pressure you to talk." Another pause, another puff of smoke. "I'm not angry, it's just… damn. It’s just that I don't like seeing you sad."
"Nana…"
Another tingle.
Damn it. It wasn't fair. Not fair at all.
Hachi wanted just that. She wanted to be close to someone, just like the couple next door was. She wanted someone to vent with, someone who would smile when she made him breakfast. She wanted someone to see her, to protect her.
She…
She wanted someone sweet and strong, someone who would protect her from jerks like Shoji. Someone like… well, someone just like Nana.
… Wait, hang on.
Hachi kept thinking about that last sentence, then looked at her friend. Her dark purple nails, her black lips.
"Do you want to go for a walk later?" Nana took her hand. It was warm to the touch. "No, wait. I know! Let's go shopping instead. That always cheers you up. Right? Shopping and lunch?"
Hachi now had a lump in her throat. A trembling smile on her lips.
"R-right, let’s..."
The rocker slammed her hand on the table. "Hell, yeah! Then let me get dressed and we can go whenever you want, okay?"
Nana got up from the table, and Hachi watched her transform again into pure energy. She downed her coffee in two seconds, and in another three, she cleared the table.
There's no point in asking, you'll get no reply
Oh just remember I don't decide
I got no reason it's all too much
You'll always find us
Out to lunch
Nana was black thunder and roared. She beamed. The girl wandered around the room a couple more times before stopping in the kitchen, doing the dishes, singing ‘Pretty Vacant.’
Oh we're so pretty
Oh so pretty
We're vacant
Oh we're so pretty
Oh so pretty
A vacant
Now it was Hachi's turn to stare at her friend. Nana had something... something that drew her in, like when she stepped onto the stage and became as magnetic. Nana was chaos, she was smoke and smiles. And, for some reason, today Hachi had stopped thinking about Shoji. Today, she could only think about her, Nana.