"C'mon c'mon keep up."

     I was at least a yard ahead of Nin and constantly found myself having to either take several steps backwards or pause and wait for her to catch up.
     
     It made no difference whether I was ahead, backwards or paused-- her face bore all expression of annoyance. Something in this pleased me. It made for a better pay off.
     "This is as fast as I can go short of running," Nin complained.
     "Could you?"
     "What?"
     "Run-- I mean, would you mind running?"
     She stopped moving all together. Her feet were firmly planted on the pavement.
     "Where are we going?" She demanded.
     "No no you're right. The running is unnecessary ." I corrected myself.
     "Lee."
     "It's a surprise."
     "I hate surprises."
     "Nobody hates surprises. They merely hate anticipation because they fear it will only lead to disappointment."
     "Lee."
     "You can say my name all you want; it won't change it."
     "I sincerely hate surprises."
     "Good because we're almost there and you won't have much longer to be surprised."
     He shoulders slumped as she made the slow shuffle forward.
     My face shifted into a smirk, conceited and assured. I shoved my hands into my jacket pockets and walked in reverse as to face her.
     "Great, isn't it?" I titled my head back to glance at the clouded sky.
     "How much longer do we have to walk?" She sighed.
     "Almost there. Almost there... it'll change the frown on your face. Make you happy you met me."
    Her dark eyes widened a bit.
     "I'm not unhappy to have met you, Lee. I almost think that you're the best thing that's happened to me in months."
     "Mhuh-"
     "What?"
     My bottom lip jutted slightly and I shook my head.
     "No one has ever said that before."
     She rolled her eyes in disbelief, though she was being honest. Few people had gotten me wrong in a nice way.
     "See? Now you're rather lucky all of those terrible things have happened to you because--here I am."
     "I'll admit that you're difficult to dislike."
     "Thank you."
     "If one can learn to tolerate you."
     "You're not very good at holding onto a moment, are you?"
     "I'm beginning to wonder if it's that I can't stand consistency -- somehow I've equated a lack of pain to boredom. I can't stand boredom."
     "Oh to be so young. To have youth and all its follies."
     "You say that as though you're old."
     "I'm older than you. Have almost a decade more of experience."
     "That doesn't matter. Boys are slower than girls."
     "Not really. That's what women like to believe because it pains them to think that we actually know the difference between right and wrong and still don't do anything about it."
     I ceased motion.
     "What's wrong?" Nin asked.
     "This is it," I jutted a thumb towards the alley. It was narrow and dim, lit only by a single lamp above the metal door in the center. The light washed over the gray with an orange hue that seeped out to where Nin and I stood.
     "My surprise is down there?" She was hesitant.
     "Behind the door--and down a hall--then behind another door."
     Nin held her breath.
     "Ok-- lead the way."
     "Women and children first," I extended my arm, "Luckily, you're both."
     She frowned and proceeded with cautious steps.
     When we stood before the door, I faked trembling hand as I put the key into the lock and punched the security code into the pad. Nin was so unamused that it was boredom as as we looked down the carpeted corridor at the row of doors, I cleared my throat with a cough and announced,
     "Practically the labyrinth." 
     "Which one do I choose?" She asked.
     "Oh you can choose whichever one you like-- only one will open."
     I smirked. She cast me her eyes. I pulled my mouth into a straight line.
     "Number three-- you're no fun, you know. You suck the life out of things," I paused, entertained by the thought,"Quite literally, actually. I mean, I'm giving you mine, after all. Biblically speaking it's the most profound think that I can do-- laying down my life for a friend-- sort of makes up for all the other stuff that I've done. What a relief! I know where I'm going to go but what about you, Nin? Where you going? I wouldn't have to lay down my life if it weren't for you so that makes two on your head and your hands."
     "If the Lord is merciful, I'll be where you're not-- just so I don't have to listen to you talk anymore... even if it is hellfire."
     I pushed open door three.
     "Maybe then you'd thaw out-- you know, it's not that you're cold. It's that you feel too much. You can't keep from feeling. Your passion is a torture in itself. That's fire. That's hell."
     "What are you saying?"
     I locked my gaze with hers. I was aware of the blood pulsing beneath the thin skin on the inside of my wrist. I had never really noticed it before. It was a strange sensation. One that I hadn't taken the time to enjoy. It felt almost powerful. It felt almost fragile. Death was like life in that sense, I wouldn't have the thought to miss it.
     "You've been through torture in life. God would not make you suffer more in death."
     "I don't know how I feel about God right now. I don't think that I believe there is a God-- if there was, I don't think this would be happening and if I did believe in him, I would have nothing but anger towards him."
     "I think you're wrong. I think there are miracles everywhere. Look up."
     She lifted her head and looked inside the room.

     The practice space was illuminated by a junk shop chandelier that cast lace-like patterns of light upon the red walls. The north end of the room had a drum kit in the west corner and a guitar half stack in the east. A few feet down the east wall was a second half stack and not quite directly in front of that on the west wall was a bass rig. Various (but strategically placed) guitar pedals littered the floor amongst beer bottles and empty cigarette packs. There were cables aplenty to trip over and guitars resting on stands.
     At the other end of the room was a torn up couch that I had spent many wasted days and nights sleeping on and in the corner opposite that was a console piano.
    I waited for Nin's dark eyes to widen with wonder but after a silent and awkwardly long amount of time had passed, I came to realize that I would get no reaction from her at all.
     Suddenly, I was as dumbfounded as to why I had brought her here as I had imagined that she was.
     "It's a practice studio--," I said to clarify, "--for music."
     "I know."
     "Oh."
     "It's nice."
     "Right-- I just um-- I, uh, thought that because you like records-- you--."
     "Played?"
     "Yeah."
     "I don't."
     "Oh. Well, maybe you should. You might like it-- make you happy."
     Her smile was synthetically sweet.
     "You thought this was my happiness?" She enquired.
     I felt embarrassed.
     "I thought it could be-- but how do you know that it isn't? How do you know this isn't your talent or the thing that only you can do for you? Hey, why don't you give it a try?"
     "Play something?"
     "Sure."
     "On guitar?"
     "Why not?"
     "And you'll teach me?"
     "I could."
     "Okay. Let's play Blitzkrieg Bop."
     I shuddered.
     "What?" She asked innocently.
     "I could teach you anything-- probably anything that you want to learn and the first thing you want to learn is Blitzkrieg Bop? I wouldn't even mind teaching you something droll like The Ramones but you couldn't have picked something like You're Gonna Kill That Girl-- you wanna play what everyone wants to play fucking Blitzkrieg Bop-- no, no. I refuse. This is England and you're going to learn something English."
     I grabbed a guitar and handed it to her, "We're going to play Jail Guitar Doors."
     "The Clash?" She questioned.
     I snarled.
     "If you ever repeat that in the form of a question again I'll have you deported."