CHAPTER FOUR
Jess' house was on the outskirts of Willowheath, only a couple of miles from Xeno's.
It was a smallish bungalow, only slightly larger than Xeno's own apartment (or so he told himself), which she had inherited from her grandparents after they had left to "travel the world".
Xeno didn't know whether they had passed away- Jess often talked in euphemisms. He rang the camera doorbell and heard a clattering from inside. Had he startled her? Hopefully not.
As he waited for her to open the door, he looked around and noticed her garden.
Slightly overgrown as it was, her grandparents had clearly possessed a green thumb, and despite the slight chill of the early autumn air, the garden was alive with beautiful blossoms, pops of sweet-smelling colour against an emerald sea.
Finally, Jess opened the door. She looked like some kind of fashion student- she wore a red, knee-length coat and jeans, complete with a beret.
Her hair was pinned out of her face, with clips masterfully employed so as to use as few as possible.
"Hey, I was wondering when you were gonna get here.
You were only.." She checked her phone. "Five minutes early, instead of your usual fifteen. " She grinned at him.
"Hey, I'm not that bad." He replied. "Besides, I'd rather be early than late. Remember when you rocked up to that department meeting half an hour late, with a coffee in your hand?"
"Oi." She said, folding her arms in mock annoyance, "I'd gotten told the wrong time, that wasn't my fault."
Xeno began to laugh. "Didn't you say "Why is everyone here so early?"?"
"Yes, I did. Thanks for the reminder, I should ask Dr. Carmazan to make you my assistant."
He rolled his eyes. "Right, I take it we're going to the shopping centre?"
"Where else?" She asked, beginning to walk towards the car. "I wish you'd let me do this sooner, I don't know if we'll be able to find anything for a reasonable price."
"Why?"
She looked at him like he'd just asked her if he could drive his car into her house.
"It's.. prom season? Honestly, Xeno, what planet are you living on?
" Xeno hardly thought that prom was something that would be on the average adult's mind, but he decided not to retaliate.
As they got into his car, Jess began updating him on her life.
Despite seeing each-other every day at work, it seemed like she always had something new going on.
And while she could never rival Dr. Aruda in terms of gossip, she still had her fair share.
"Oh, by the way, you don't have to drop me home after this, I'm going out with some friends."
"That's fine, saves me the trip." He replied, even though her house wasn't a massive detour from his.
Along the way, he tried to be a good listener as she told him about her friend getting married and that her current boyfriend was "100 percent the one", but he got a sense that there was something she wasn't telling him.
Whenever he tried to discuss what they were going to do should the department get cut, she changed the subject.
When they arrived, Jess gave him strict instructions to show her whatever he was looking to buy before he bought it, pointing at the nearby Department store.
He stepped out of the car and put on his coat; Despite being late August, the afternoon air was surprisingly chilly.
They walked to the shopping centre with a quiet hum of chatter between them, doing that weird thing where they talked without actually saying much to each-other.
Xeno remembered when Jess had just joined the museum, only a year after he had.
She hadn't always been as confident as she was now, but there were signs of her true character, like her strong opinions on fashion and her office decor.
Xeno had been jealous when she got promoted to shift manager despite having worked there for half the time, but he never let it show because he was, as he liked to think, a good friend.
"All right, Xeno, I'm thinking.. A black button up shirt with some nice dark trousers, and a red tie, too."
They perused every section. They finally found the trousers, and just as he was about to try them on, he found a red tie with planets on it.
Despite not being an accurate representation of any planet anywhere, Xeno felt a strong compulsion to buy it, if only to satisfy some subconscious desire to prove his allegiance to the Astronomy side of the party.
And besides, Jess had suggested a red tie anyway.
He showed it to Jess, willing that she'd say it was a good idea.
. She gave him the thumbs-up, but she was clearly suppressing a laugh at the design.
As he was going to the changing rooms to try it on, he realised that the tie was probably for children, so he'd have to tie it up slightly higher than normal.
Looking in the mirror after he had changed, Xeno saw himself fully for the first time in a while- his flat didn't have a full length mirror.
The black shirt he was wearing complimented his jet-black hair well, and the tie contrasted his green eyes, bringing out their colour.
It was nice to see that he at least looked put-together.
"Looking sharp." Jess said, as he came out.
"Okay, let's pay and then I have somewhere I need to go. "
"Wait, where are you going?" Xeno asked.
Jess turned back towards him, a mixture of apprehension and guilt in her eyes. "I guess I can't hold out from telling you any more." She shifted uncomfortably, which would surely have been difficult in her high heels. "I'm looking for some school supplies. Drawing stuff, mainly."
"Really? Why?" He asked. She was often seen around the museum sketching in some notebook that she wouldn't let anyone see, but he hardly thought she'd need to buy a significant amount of supplies. And, anyway, why did she sound so guilty?
"I'm not going to work at the museum for much longer."
Her words hit Xeno like a bag of bricks. "What? Why?" He asked, hoping he came across less shocked than he felt.
"There's been an opening at a university. A really good one." She paused. "I'm.. going to study fashion."
"What happened to astronomy?" Xeno found it difficult to disguise the hurt in his voice. Jess' presence at both the museum and his life was one of the constants he counted on.
"It's a beautiful dream, the stars and planets. It's not like I was bad at it either, I got an honours from my uni, but.."
"But?"
"It's a beautiful dream." She reiterated, "But it's not my dream. It was my parents'."
That hit close to home for him. He remembered how difficult it had been to pursue his dream of working at the museum when his family had so desperately wanted him to stay at the bakery. "Is there no way I can convince you to stay?" He asked, trying to keep his voice from breaking.
"I've been thinking about it for a while.
" Jess continued, before looking back at him.
"Hey, don't worry, I'll still be able to talk, There's a direct train link from Kingston to Willowheath station.
" There was an awkward silence before she spoke again, trying to dispel the tension.
"Anyway, we're here to pick you up something nice to wear.
You go and pay, and I'm going to buy school supplies. "
"Jess, I just realised that I forgot to do something. I.. left my oven on at home." He replied, trying to steel his shaky voice.
"Oh, all right?" Jess said, clearly confused. "I'll.. see you on Monday?" She ventured.
"Mhm!" Xeno replied, trying to muster all of the chirpiness in his body.
He drove back to his flat, listening to his Paramore CD.
He'd picked up this CD from a charity shop when he was fifteen, he had no idea how it had survived for this long.
Some things stick with you, leftovers from your teenage years, no matter how much you try to leave them behind.