Every Stoic Needs a Fire Cracker

Chapter 9

Pauly's apartment has a Buddhist shrine in the living room. The smell of burning incense overwhelms the setting.

"Did you have temple today?" 

 "Nah, just tryna cover up the weed smell so my land lord don't kick me out." She looks back and flashes her infamous grin. 

I chuckle. She races to her cabinet. Without hesitation, she pulls out large bottles of Absolute and Svedka.

 "Pick your poison, literally!" She laughs at her own joke.

 "I'll take the Svedka." 

 "Got you! On the rocks?"

 "I'll take it straight."

 "Oh boy, it's more serious than I thought than!" 

 I roll my eyes before downing my first shot of the night. She joins me. She lets out an exaggerated sigh before after downing her first shot before scrolling through the Roku for anime shows. I pour myself another shot in the mean time.

"Yeah, yeah, go 'head. You already know if it's mine, it's yours."

Pauly and I are like sisters. I don't allow myself to get close to many people often, but I trust her for some unknown reason. We have shared with each other things no one else knows. We are able to be honest with each other in ways that feel awkward with other people.

So me being down ricocheted on to her as if we share a vessel.

 "Dude, I hate seeing you like this. Cheer up already. Who do I have to beat up?" She lands the TV cursor on Death Note. 

The apple in the artwork catches my attention. I grow distracted. Completely off topic, I redirect the conversation.

 "Hey, do you really think demons exist?". I have a flashback back to Ethan being in my basement with his bloodshot red eyes. I see a closeup of his eyes and begin to feel shivers. 

"Of course! And they're so bad a*s! That reminds me, wanna watch 7 deadly sins?"

"Sure, go for it." 

 "Okay, you'll love it! I promise." She turns on the show and begins to snack on popcorn. I am engaged for a few moments before drifting off into my own world.