Cat's in the Box

The phone was on its sixth ring when she finally answered.  Of course, answered was the wrong word, seeing as she hadn't said anything yet.

Komura had disappeared by the time I got out into the hall.  Class was about to begin, after all.  It wouldn't have been that hard for her to squeeze between a group of students and slip down a side hall.

I could hear her breathing on the other end, like she was waiting for me to say something.

"Hello?" I said, giving up on her saying something first.

"Yeah?"

It was the most natural "Yeah?" in the world.

"You left your box on my desk."

She paused.

"Who is this?"

"You know exactly who this is, Komura."

"Mmmmm, nope," she said.  "Gimme a hint."

"You left your box on my desk," I repeated.

"Oh!  Right!" She actually sounded surprised.  "So what's up?"

"Well, there's this box on my desk," I said.  "I figured you'd know what was in it.  Since, you know, it's your box."

"Well, why didn't you say something sooner?"  She asked.

"It was the first thing I said," I said.

"No, when you called me, you were like..." She paused.  "'Hello?'"

"That's because I called you," I said.  "You're supposed to answer when you pick up."

"That's silly," she said.  "Why should I have to answer?  You're the one who called."

"Look," I said.  "That's beside the point.  What's in the box?"

"No, it's not," she said.  "Let's establish some ground rules here.  When you call me, you answer first.  When I call you, I answer first.  Easy, right?"

"Sure," I said.  "Easy."

"Good."

She hung up.

The bell rang.

Debating whether I should've called her back or not, I pushed my way back into the classroom.  Not that there was much to push past anyway.  It was the last day of school.  Half the class didn't even show up.  All we'd be doing was passing around yearbooks anyway.

I found my desk and sat back down.  It wasn't that hard to find, being as it was the one with the box on it.  It hadn't changed in the five minutes I was gone, though, to be fair, I probably wouldn't have been surprised if it did.

But it hadn't changed, it hadn't moved, and it hadn't been stolen.  It was still dark blue with faint, glossy pinstripes running across it diagonally, with a little hinge on the back.  This was the kind of box that fancy watches came in.  Or cuff links.  Or one of those ties that cost more than most people make in a week.  I wondered if I should open it.

My phone rang.

"Hel-"

"Hey," Komura cut me off. "Forget already?"

"Funny.  So what's in the box?"

"Stop calling it that," she said.  "The box.  It's so impersonal."

"What would you prefer?"

"Your box," she said.

"Fine, what's in your box?"

"Your box," she said again.  "Not my box.  Your box.  It was a gift."

I sighed.

"Alright," I said.  "So what's in my box?"

"Key to a lost magical civilization that only you can unlock," she said.

"Really."

"Really," she sounded so sure of herself.  "You're the last of their race.  That's why you can open it."

"Cute."

"Alright, it's a badge.  I'm a recruiter for a paranormal threat detection and counter-measure agency.  We only recruit high school students."

"Komura."

"Winning lottery ticket."

"Komura."

"Unlicensed handgun."

"Komura!"

Half the class turned to stare at me.  To be fair, the teacher wasn't even in yet.

"The cat's tongue," she said, slyly.  I could see her leaning on her arm as she talked, with just the cockiest smirk on her face.

"You really killed a cat and put its tongue in a box?" I didn't bother whispering.  I was already yelling into a phone in the middle of a half empty class that didn't even start yet anyway.  "What-why?"

"'Cause I'm real big into the occult," she said.  "Soon as you open that box, bam! Your soul is mine."

I sighed.

"Then I'll sell it to the cat god for nine extra lives," she said.  "No, I didn't actually kill a cat and give you its tongue as a gift.  That's fucking weird."

I grabbed my things and walked out.  I wasn't getting anything done sitting around in there anyway.

"Hey," Komura said as soon as I stepped out.  She snapped her phone shut.

"Hey."  I adjusted my bag.

"How's breakfast sound?"

-

We stopped at a Denny's off campus.  She ordered endless pancakes.  I had coffee.

"You're not going to eat anything?"  She cut off a sliver of pancake and pushed it into her mouth.

"I don't really eat breakfast," I said.

I stared at the box.

"Well order something," she said.  "Anything at all.  Doesn't even have to be breakfast.  You could get ice cream."

"I'm just not hungry," I said.

"So I'm going to be the only one eating," she put her fork an knife down.  "That looks weird."

I shrugged.

"Have some pancakes."  She cut me a sliver.  Syrup dripped onto the table.

"I don't like pancakes," I said.

She sighed.

"Why even agree to go to breakfast if you won't even eat anything?" She asked.

I held my hand up.

Our waiter stopped by.  "Did you need anything?"

"Could I get a Lumberjack Slam?  Eggs over easy, sourdough bread, extra bacon instead of pancakes, and a bottle of Cholula?"

He jotted that down.  "Coming right up."

"I thought you weren't hungry," Komura said.

"I'm not.  I'll just save the rest for dinner."

She cut off another sliver of pancake.

"So what's in my box?"

"Why don't you just open it?"  She asked.  "Go ahead, you have permission."  She pointed at it with her knife.

I sighed and went for it.

"Wait."

"Wait what?" I said, hand on the lid.  "I thought you told me to open it."

"No, I told you you could open it," she said.  "But that's beside the point.  Clear your mind."

"What?"

"Clear your mind," she said, putting her fork and knife back down again, and took my hands.  Eyes closed, she took a deep breath, then exhaled.

She opened an eye and stared at me.  "Breathe."

I breathed.

"Good," she closed it again.  "Now, picture your heart's truest desire."

Nothing came to mind.  Money?  How much money would she be able to fit in the box anyway?  I can't believe I was actually considering this in the first place.

"Now open the box."

I flipped the lid open.

It was empty.