Let's talk

"Okay, let's talk," I say.

"Where's Helena?" Zuriel asks, looking around.

"She went off."

"For what?"

"I don't know, exploring the port or something."

"That's nice."

Nisha is not shy anymore and prepares the chairs for us all. Letitia helps her circularly arrange them.

"Thank you," he says as he sits on a chair opposite mine.

Jiana is at his left and Letitia is at his right. He pulls their chairs closer to him so he could rest his arms around their shoulders. He looks like he's bragging but it doesn't matter to me. Nisha sits at my right. We are more polite than he is so we won't show affection if there are other people.

He smokes his cigarette, exhales it into the air above us then says, "Let's start by asking you how did you meet Fumiko."

I don't know why he has to ask that in a way that he's suspecting me. Nonetheless, I tell him how I ended up meeting her on the cloud island just above us.