*knock* *knock*

"who is it?" I asked, not expecting anyone.

"Me."

I lazily got up from the couch, "Come in N, the door's open." I said, sitting up, rubbing my eyes, clearing the redness. The door silently glided open, soon followed by a scratchy shuffle of feet.

"What's up?" She said, dropping Sam's leash, the little dog scampering across the floor, rushing to jump on me.

"Not much, what's up wi..."

"Hey, what's wrong?" She asked.

"Nothing." I responded.

I scratched the dog under the ears, "He's not going to piss on the chair again is he?"

"He shouldn't, unless you did recently, then he'll need to remark his territory." N said, smiling.

I tilted my head to the side, smirking, highly unamused, "Now, really, what's wrong? Were you asleep?"

"What time is it?" I said, "And yes, by the way, what are you doing here?"

"Fine, be a tool. But at least accompany Sam and I on a walk." N said, not smiling, but looking somewhat concerned, head cocking, trying to catch eye contact.

I suddenly remembered the dog. I looked around frantically and sure enough there he was, sniffing diligently at one of the legs of the arm chair. "I could use a walk, just harness the beast."

"Aye Comrade"

Minutes later, coat clad and outside, after some dead silence and a little shoe scuffing, walking the same circuit around the public gardens and continuing onto the cemetery a dam broke.

"She's very pretty you know." N said. I looked to her, completely caught off guard. I'd been watching Sam shuffle along, almost to the beat of her clicking high heeled boots.

"I know" I said, ending that conversational train.

"You know what the funny thing about the alphabet is?" She asked, the darkness of the cemetery all around, home now looming high in the sky, parked above the trees.

"I have no idea, what?"

"Well, it's that the letters C and R are closer together than the letters H and M. I've recited it over and over but it's the way it is."

My mind somewhere else, dancing through fleeting ideas, I failed to comprehend. "What? what are you talking about?"

"There are 4 letters between H and M, there are 14 letters between C and R, but when you discount the 6 letters of H to M inclusive, C and R are next to each other."

"I thought it was the Gee's who made the hallway smell like weed? What the fuck are you taking about? There are 26 letters in the English alphabet you Russian..." and my mind clicked as my eyes looked up to hers in my birthing scolding.

Sam was scampering through leaves, desecrating the cemetery in his own naturally innocent way.

"Why are you saying this?" I said, my tone completely changed, my composure breaking.

"Look." She said putting an arm around one shoulder, hugging me. "It's alright. There's nothing you can do right now, things are a way, at a time for a reason."

"You know what I think of Astrology."

Sam came running back through the leaves, the leash was clicked back on and we walked out of the cemetery.

"Just Remember, nobody forgets the alphabet, once they've learned it, No matter how long it is since they've said it, no matter how they've ordered it."

I looked at her. Simply Stunning, everybit the former model, though now everybit the professional. Things were much better for the way they had worked out.

I burst out laughing. "Is that an old Russian Proverb?" Tears running down my cheeks, the hug came again.

" You're a best friend N."

"You're a great best friend Colum"

"Thanks." I said, smiling now.

A couple of steps later, the smiling turned into a giggle. "Put any thought into what the first postcard will be?" She said, laughing.

"Actually..... No" I said, winking. "Up for a run tomorrow?"

"Always" N said, smirking full of superiority.

"6:10am." I chimed.

"6:10 am it is. I'll call at 6:09. Out the Door at 6:11 am, beat the rush." She smiled widely, accepting the challenge.