I Am Not Pearl

I watch the steam rise as I pour hot water into my mug of cocoa powder. I stir gently and wrap my hands around my mug, leaning against the kitchen counter. I take a long, slow sip. Bang! Bang! Bang! I almost choke on my hot cocoa when I hear the loud banging on my front door. I set the mug down gently on the kitchen counter and check the camera. I quickly open the door. “Aunt May?! What are you doing here?” I ask. My aunt steps into my house and looks around. “So this is where you live,” she says, totally ignoring my question. “Oh well. It will have to do,” she says, then pulls in not one, not two, but three hot pink suitcases from outside. I stare at her, openmouthed. “Aren't you gonna show me to my room?! Jeez, you visit your niece's house, and she doesn't even welcome you or offer you any food or drinks,” she mutters under her breath. She walks towards the stairs. Her words snap me out of my surprise. I quickly lock the front door and run after her. “Let me help you with your bags,” I say. “Oh, so you do have manners,” she says and then lets go of all three suitcases and walks up the stairs. “Aren't you going to help me?” I ask. She turns and gives me a funny look. “Of course not!” She says. Then she disappears into the hallways of my house. I sigh and drag the biggest suitcase upstairs. I set it down in one of the guest rooms and go get the others. Five minutes later, I successfully moved Aunt May's things into the guest room. I sit down wearily at the dining table and reach for my tea. It's not on the counter where I left it. I go to the living room and see Aunt May sitting in my seat, watching my TV, and drinking my tea, out of my mug.”What exactly are you doing in my house, Aunt May? If you wanted to visit, you could have just called me,” I say. “So what? I can't visit my niece just because I miss her?” Aunt May asks innocently. I glare at her. “Fine,” she sighs. “You might want a cup of tea for this one.” I shuffle over to the kitchen and make myself a new mug of hot cocoa and sit down next to Aunt May. She takes a deep breath. “I'm…an undercover agent,” she says, pausing dramatically. I can't help but burst out laughing. “What?! It's true!” she yells. I calm myself down and ask, “If you were an ‘undercover agent,’ why would you tell me, and why would it involve you barging into my house unexpectedly on a Saturday morning?” I lean back and wait for Aunt May's answer. “It's because you would probably see through whatever lie I cooked up and kicked me out and something fishy is going on in this area, and you're the only relative I know that lives here,” she says. I don't know why, but something tells me that she's telling the truth. I sigh. “Is there any way I can help? Aside from housing and feeding you?” I ask. “Yes actually! Do you know a fellow named Aaron Seiten?” Aunt May asks. I think for a second. “I think I do. I'm pretty sure he owns a small shop at the Mill Street Plaza,” I say. “Thank you,” she tells me. “Why are you looking for him?” I ask. “He was caught up in a money scandal in Europe. I believe he ran to the U.S. and changed his name,” Aunt May says. “How do you know if Aaron is the right guy if the culprit changed his name?” I question Aunt May. “I have the person's passport. Even though the names are different, the faces are exactly the same,” Aunt May explains. “Let me see the passport,” I say. Aunt May pulls the little burgundy booklet out of her purse and hands it to me. I  flip to the identification page. Tristan Dover is the name that the passport says. I study the picture. The guy in the picture — Tristan Dover — looks so similar to Aaron Seiten. The only difference is that Tristan has a clean, shaven face, while Aaron Seiten has an unruly, wild beard. They might as well be the same person. Aaron Seiten did not do a very good job of hiding his identity. “This is the same guy,” I say and hand the passport back to Aunt May. “Yes, it is. Well, I have to be on my way now,” Aunt May says and gets up abruptly. “Where are you going so soon? You just got here!” I exclaim. “I'm not leaving for good yet. I'm only going to pay a visit to Mr. Seiten,” she says. “Oh. Ok,” I say. “See you later,” Aunt May says. “Yeah.” I watch Aunt May walk out the front door. I try to watch TV but there are no good shows. I sigh. Now that Aunt May has left, what am I supposed to do? I don’t even have any friends or hobbies. “Urgghh!” I groan. I get up quickly and run to the door. Maybe Aunt May hasn’t left yet. I step outside in my slippers. I look around but can’t find Aunt May. “She probably already left,” I say to myself quietly. “Pearl? Why are you standing outside?” A voice says from my left. I  turn towards the voice. It’s my neighbor, Finn. He’s leaning over his porch railing, looking out towards the street. “Oh…uh, just enjoying the sunrise,” I lie, then immediately remember that I am the WORST liar on Earth. Finn gives me a funny look. “But it’s one in the afternoon,” he says. “Oh yeah! I…forgot about that,” I say. This is so embarrassing. Even more embarrassing than when I first moved into my house.

7 months ago:

I took a deep breath before stepping into my brand new house. I couldn’t wait to make this house into a home. I quickly ran around the house and checked every room. There were four bedrooms. The house was huge! Just as I was about to start dancing with joy, the doorbell rang. That’s probably the movers, I thought. I opened the door. There was a guy standing awkwardly at my door with a glass baking dish. “You’re new here, right?” He asked. I didn’t even get to formulate a response before he started talking again. “Of course you’re new here. I mean there isn’t a for sale sign on the lawn anymore so why would I even think that? Stupid me,” he said. “Uh, yeah, I’m new here. Um, is there anything I can help you with?” I asked him. “Oh. Well, since you’re new on the block, I decided to bring you some food. To like, welcome you to the neighborhood, I guess,” The guy said. “Oh, um, well, thanks. Uhhh…What’s your name?” I asked. “Finn,” he said and smiled, almost blinding me. His teeth were like pearls. “What’s your name?” he asked. I hadn’t heard him though, because I zoned out while staring at his commercial-worthy smile. “Uh, are you there?” he asked. That had startled me and I said exactly what I was thinking about at the moment. “Pearl!” I yelled. “Oh, that’s a pretty name,” he said. “Ah thanks,” I replied and then remembered that I was supposed to act like the well-mannered young adult that most people would expect. “Uh, do you want to come in or something?” I asked. “Ah no. I just wanted to drop this off,” he said and handed me the baking dish. “It's a spaghetti casserole,” he said. “Thank you,” I said. “See you around then, Pearl,” he told me. I nodded. I didn’t even tell him that my name wasn’t Pearl. I just watched his back as he walked down my porch stairs and towards his own house.

Present day:

“Well, it was nice chatting with you,” Finn tells me. “I’ve gotta go now.” I just nod and walk back into my house. I wish I had something to make me less bored. I shuffle upstairs and flop onto my bed. I stare at the cracks in the corner of my ceiling until I start feeling sorry for myself. I wish I wasn’t an introvert. I wish I wasn’t so shy. I wish I had friends. I wish I was more fun. I wish I could gather the courage to tell Finn my real name, instead of letting him call me Pearl everyday. I wish I was a different me. I sit up on my bed and sigh. I get up. Today is the day I will make a friend. Today is the day I stop feeling sorry for myself. Today is the day I will be different. I go to the bathroom and start getting ready for today. I brush my teeth and take a shower. Then I yank open my closet door and look for the perfect outfit. I scrutinize all the pieces of clothing I own until I create the perfect ensemble in my mind. I pull out a brown long sleeved top, a black mini skirt with black tights, and a pair of black knee-high boots. I put on each piece of clothing and stand in front of my mirror. I look like a different me. A me who doesn’t only wear sweatpants and sweatshirts. There is just one thing missing. I put on a pair of hoop earrings and give myself a mental pat on the back when I see myself in my mirror. I grab my keys, phone, and my wallet and put them in a black crossbody with a gold chain strap. I step into the warm sun and take a deep breath. I hear someone whistle. “Wow Pearl. I didn’t know you owned anything other than sweatpants and sweatshirts,” Finn says from his front door, which he just stepped out of. I blush. “Where are you going anyway?” he asks. “Oh…I don’t really know,” I answer truthfully. “Ok,” Finn says and walks towards his car. Before I can stop myself I blurt, “Can I come with you to wherever you’re going?” “Oh, uh,” Finn says. I clap my hands over my mouth. “I mean if you don’t want me to come, I totally understand. I just thought that since I’m dressed up all nice, I shouldn’t just waste the outfit by sitting at home all day,” I stammer. “You know what, just forget it. I’m–” I ramble until Finn interrupts me. “Sure, you can come with me,” He says. “Ok, um, yeah, thank you, I guess,” I say and walk towards his car. I open the right back door. “You can sit in the front if you want to,” Finn tells me. “Oh, right,” I say and move to the passenger seat. I pull on my seatbelt and stare out the window as we drive in silence for at least three painful minutes. “I’m just going to my uncle’s shop to help him out,” Finn tells me. “Oh. What is his shop?” I ask, just to be polite. “He owns a laundromat,” Finn replies. “What is your uncle’s name?” “Andrew. Andrew Seiten,” Finn says casually. I sit up so fast that I think I might have cracked my back. “His name is Andrew Seiten?” I ask. “Yeah, I just said that,” Finn tells me. “Do you know him?” Finn asks. “Um, no. I just…His name…It…sounds familiar,” I lie. “Ah. Ok,” Finn says as we pull into the parking lot. It’s a big one story building with five shops. The laundromat has no windows, which seems kind of sketchy. Finn and I walk in. “Uncle Aaron! I’m here!” Finn calls out. He walks past the counter and towards the back. “Follow me,” he says. I look around for Aunt May, since she said she was coming to this place. She’s not here. I quickly run after Finn before I lose him. He stops at a door, pulls out a keychain and picks a circular key with the number #3209 on it. He unlocks the door to a shocking scene. Aunt May is backed up in a corner of an office, where Aaron Seiten is towering over her with a scowl on his face. He has a knife. “Oh. My. Gosh! Aunt May!” I yell. Aaron turns around. “Finn. Oh. I didn’t know you were here yet,” He says. “What are you doing with that knife?” Finn asks, eyeing the knife in Aaron’s hand. “Oh. I was just…” Aaron is obviously looking for an excuse. He lunges at Finn. Finn punches him. Aaron and Finn roll on the floor, fighting. The knife flies out of Aaron’s hand and lands at my feet. That is the moment I let out an eardrum-shattering scream. I back away from the knife. Aaron struggles to get the knife, while Finn holds him back. “Pearl, you have to pick up the knife. Before he gets it,” Finn tells me. “Who is Pearl?” I hear Aunt May ask. I stare at the knife, then at Finn, then at the knife again. Just as Aaron frees himself from Finn’s grip, I snatch up the knife. “Wh-what do I do with it?” I ask. My question does not get answered because next thing I know, Aaron is lunging at me. On pure instinct, I drop the knife and hit him. He staggers backwards. I look at my hand. “I am so sorry, I-I,” I stammer. Andrew grabs the knife on the floor and stalks towards me. Before he can reach me, someone hits him on the head with the desk chair. It’s Aunt May. He crumples to the floor. I let out the breath I didn’t realize I was holding. The last thing I see is Aunt May tying Aaron up before everything goes black.

I wake up on the floor. I sit up and almost bang heads with Finn. “You’re alive,” he says. “Yeah. I guess I am,” I joke. “Where’s your crazy uncle?” I ask. “Your aunt went to go turn him in,” Finn answers. “Ok,” I say. We sit there in silence for a few seconds before I break the silence. “Can we go home now?” I ask. He nods. We both climb into his car and take off. When we get home, I invite him into my house.

I turn off the kettle when it starts screeching. I pour hot water into two mugs with cocoa powder in them, stir them gently, and give one of them to Finn. “That was crazy, huh?” he asks. I nod and take a sip. “There’s something I need to ask you,” he tells me. “What is it?” I ask. “What did your Aunt mean when she asked who Pearl is?” He asks. My eyes snap up to Finn’s. I sigh. “I need to tell you the truth: My name isn’t Pearl,” I say, feeling more confident with every word. Finn is looking at me with a surprised look in his eyes. Soon I feel like the most confident person in the world. “It’s Aurelia.”