Isobel and Emile by Alan Reed

closet.
    It is the suitcase he had on the train. The knapsack he had on the train is on the floor. It is empty. Some of the clothes that were in it are put away and some of them are the floor.
    It is morning. There is sunlight coming in through the window. There is not much sunlight coming in through the window. The window is too small.
    Emile is asleep. He will not be asleep much longer. Nicolas is awake. He is moving around in the kitchen.
    Emile hears him. He wakes up. He gets out of bed. He is wearing an undershirt and his underwear. He puts his trousers on. They were on the floor beside his bed. He rubs at his eyes. His hair is sticking up from his head. Emile has unremarkable hair. It is kind of blond. It is always messy.
    Emile opens the door to his room. He steps out.
    Nicolas sees him come out of his room. He takes two cups out of the cupboard. He puts them on the table. Emile goes over to the table. He sits down. Nicolas pours coffee into the two cups.
    Nicolas sits down at the table. He takes one of the cups. Emile takes the other cup. Emile looks into his cup. Nicolas drinks from his.
    They do not say anything.
    Emile looks into his cup of coffee. He says: ‘What happened to your paintings?’
    Nicolas drinks from his cup again. He puts it down on the table. It is not early in the morning. The sun is coming in the kitchen window.
    Nicolas shakes his head.
    He says: ‘I don’t have the time anymore.’
    Emile says: ‘What happened to them?’
    Nicolas says: ‘They’re in my closet.’
    Emile looks into his cup of coffee. He drinks from it. He does not say anything. Nicolas drinks from his cup.
    Nicolas says: ‘Are you meeting Agatha today?’
    Emile nods his head.
    They drink from their cups again.
    Nicolas says: ‘Do you want to go for breakfast first?’
    Emile shrugs his shoulders. Nicolas waits for him to say something. Emile does not say anything. He nods his head again.
    Emile and Nicolas sit at the table. They drink from their cups of coffee. When their cups are empty, they put them down on the table.
    They stand up.
    They leave their cups on the table. They can wash them when they come back. They put their coats on. They leave the apartment.
    Emile opens the suitcase.
    He is sitting on the floor in his room. It is dark outside. Nicolas is working at the bar. Emile is alone. The suitcase is on the floor in front of him. It is an old suitcase. There are leather straps around it.
    He undoes the leather straps around the suitcase. He opens the suitcase.
    There is a girl inside it.
    She is not the only thing in the suitcase. There are arms and legs and other bodies. They are wrapped in cloth. They are puppets. They are not moving. They are still and silent.
    She is lying on her side. Her legs are curled up against her body. The other puppets are lying beside her. They are pressed against her. She is holding her head in her hands.
    Her fingers are digging into her hair. She is moving. She is not moving very much. She cannot move very much. There are other bodies pressing against her. She is stirring like she is asleep.
    She moves suddenly. She raises her head, like she is awake now. She tries to move her arms and legs but she cannot move her arms and legs. The other bodies are too close to her.
    She wriggles. She pushes against them. She puts her feet against the bottom of the suitcase and she pushes herself up.
    She is standing.
    She sways. It is like she did not think that she could stand up. Her dress is twisted around her body. It is black. It is made from an old scrap of cloth. She moves her hands to straighten it.
    She turns her head, like she is looking around.
    Emile is there. His hair is sticking up from his head. His clothes are old and tattered. They have been mended. If they had not been mended, they would have fallen apart.
    He is standing with his hands together in front of him. He is not really Emile. He is a puppet that looks like Emile.
    He is