Though My Eyes: On Time

A/N: A very tiny one that I dont know if it´s more of a side-story of this story. Idk if I want it here or if it fits but it´s what I have next in the Word doc but idk... I dont know if I should delete this whole part but I decided to post it

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“Marissa, hi” I called Mari as I walked towards her work place

“Diletto –she greeted me in one of her Italian endearments which I only knew was that but didn’t know what it was; I had a hard time keeping up with them- how are you”

“I’m on my way to your office. Mari I forgot my flash drive on your bag and I have my updated paper there and I need to finish and send it today” I explained

“Oh, oh, I see…but I don’t have my Tuesday-Wednesday bag with me…”

“What?”

“I don’t have it with me”

“Marissa, I really need that flash drive”

“It´s ok, tesoro, I’ll see if I can go out to get if or you. Are you close?”

“Just entering the building” we ended the call as I walked towards her on the counter. She stood up, looked around at the empty place and kissed me

“I can go get your flash drive in a couple of hours during my lunch” she continued with our conversation. I looked at my watch

“I really need it now” I sighed

“Ok, don’t worry, here, take my key, it´s in my bag –she put her keys on the counter- the bag´s on the chair next to my bed” she explained; I vaguely wondered if I’d give her my keys, not that I was to keep hers but still

“Thanks, I´ll bring these back later” I leaned in for a quick good bye kiss and left

“See you” she mouthed as she answered a phone call

“What are you doing here?” Nichole walked in the apartment as I was scrubbing my hand over my face. She seemed slightly surprised to see me alone in her place

“I forgot my flash drive in Marissa´s bag but I can’t find it anywhere” I said exasperated “I´ve been looking everywhere for the past hour. I really need that flash drive to finish a paper” I growled as she placed her bag on the sofa and took off the worn leather jacket she was wearing

“Didn´t she tell you where it was?”

“On her bag that was on the chair next to her bed. It´s not there, there´s no bag there” I sighed

“Marissa never leaves things where she says she left them…” she walked past me

“I´ve searched the entire place!” there was an edge in my words; Nic nodded and went in her room, the door closed behind her

“Marissa!” I grumbled as once again I scrubbed my hand over my face. Nichole came out of her room carrying a blue denim messenger bag; it was Marissa´s bag

“You had it” I said as I took the bag

“She left it in my room” she rolled her eyes

“It´s unlocked; you leave your room unlocked” I searched for the flash drive in the mess inside the bag. She nodded

“Doesn’t it bother you that anyone could open it?” I said taking things out ´cause I couldn’t find my flash drive. Nic shrugged “I could have opened your room”

“You didn’t”

“Maybe you should lock your room. Mari does”

“There´s not a single thing of value in my room, well, paint maybe so it´s fine besides Marissa´s always leaving her stuff in my room…”

“What if she gives the key to someone else?” I said frowning as I searched between the crumbles of a cookie on the bottom of the bag

“What could anybody want from there? But if it makes you happy, I wouldn’t have given you the key” there was humor in her voice; she was teasing me but it made me bitter

“I know, you –don’t trust me I was going to say but I remembered something- you did give me a key, before, a key to your room”

“Oh, huh –she looked taken aback for a second- you didn´t find out what that was?”

“It opened your room”

“It opened yours to and the SCR, the Art building…I guess you didn’t try it”

“We did –I explained, by accident we´d found out that it opened all doors in Burgeoys, at least the ones we tried- Aaron and I tried it”

“Ah” she nodded

“Did it open the gates?” I had started taking out stuff from the side pockets of the bag

“No, well, it opened the old ones but those had a chain and locks, remember? So not really”

“So not the main ones…”

“A computer code opened those”

“And you had the code –I half smiled despite my desperation, she shrugged- you could´ve left me that one”

“Ha! Cameras, Josh, it didn’t make sense to open the gate to get caught!”

“Of course… Finally!” I exclaimed finally finding the flash drive. I checked my watch, it was late, I wouldn’t make it if I went back to my place to finish my paper

“hey… -I started- can I use your computer and printer? –I asked showing the flash drive; she raised her eyebrows and I hesitated- Sean, my work partner, lost the file at the last minute, computer virus but I have the almost complete paper here… if I go back to my place I’ll be late, the professor doesn’t tolerate it” I sighed

“Ok –she opened her room and got in- you coming?” I heard her voice after a minute. “Printer´s there, paper´s there” she pointed to a folder as she typed her password on her laptop. The place was bright, unlike Marissa´s bedroom, it was sort of similar to her Burgeoys room, there was not a single thing out of place, there were books on the night strand, a drawing pad next to the laptop and drawings on walls, sketches pinned to the walls like a collage

“Thanks –I sat on her  swiveling chair- when did you put the key in my pocket?” I went back to our conversation as I opened the file I needed

“When you hugged me good bye”

“You had it ready –I said she nodded- what if I hadn’t hugged you?”

“I was just going to give it to you but I thought it´d be fun if you found it” she explained as I started to read over the paper trying to locate the changes we´d done and that had been lost

“Why give me that?” I asked

“On my birthday that year you could´ve been caught if I hadn’t been there… at the time I thought it could be useful” she said and left the room. I guessed it had been thoughtful in a strange way; in the back of my mind I thought that it´d meant that she´d planned to get more visits from me which was sort of interesting.

“Thanks” I motioned to my paper about forty five minutes later

“Need a folder?”

“Got one?” I asked, she stood up, went in her room and came back with a plastic folder “Thanks. I owe you one. Bye”

“Bye” she said, I think. I got right on time and then hassled my work partner for being so stupid and useless

“Just on time!” I texted both Marissa and Nichole afterwards. Mari´s reply came quick

“Good job! You´re the man!” it read and had a winky face.

An hour later I got a text I didn’t think I´d get “Part of that grade´s mine” it said. I laughed.