Fiery Trap

Chapter Seven: Meeting

    Saturday came with cirrus clouds that spread across the blueberry sky. Dominic usually picked her up at 10:00 a.m. to take her to the park to jog. Rachel already missed this. It still felt odd her cell didn't ring, that Dominic wasn't calling her. Rachel knew she couldn't go to the park because there was a possibility Dominic may be there to get his daily exercise. Rachel knew she couldn't skip her exercise routine; she already learned that lesson her freshman year at Dartmouth, when she seldom exercised and ate whatever, causing her to gained weight. Rachel thought about exercising at one of the gyms on campus, but rejected that plan. She loved the outdoors, the fresh nature air instead of the indoor air-conditioner that oozed with sweaty funk.

"I guess I'll just jog around campus," Rachel muttered to herself. She remembered once seeing a few track and field runners jogging there one Saturday. Rachel also carried her portable music device. She usually didn't bring this since Dominic kept her company. She stepped out of her apartment and dragged her bicycle along.

After locking her bike at the rack, she stretched her body. She limped up, stretched her arms, and twisted her body from side to side. She puffed out air from her mouth and began to jog lightly. She wasn't used to seeing buildings and students glancing in her direction every once in a while as she jogged. The trees, however, were a welcoming sight that Rachel was familiar with. The benches at the edge of the pathway somewhat reminded her of the park as well. Two joggers streaked pass her, although one flashed a friendly smile at her. Rachel did likewise. So far it was a nice day and she started to enjoy her jog. Rachel still missed the comfort Dominic brought her.

Maybe music will drown out my thoughts, she thought, trying to get Dominic out of her head. She removed the portable music device from her pocket and placed the headphones into her ears. She knew she needed to get used to listening to music from now on. Her conversation days with Dominic weren't returning any time soon. It took a while before Rachel felt the upbeat tempo of her indie music through her body and mustered the energy to jog faster. Despite the calm, cool wind that rubbed against her skin as she jogged onward, perspiration sprung up along her forehead. Rachel zoned out anything and anyone close to her. Her goal was to jog from the southern portion of the campus to the northern tip.

Underneath her armpits, her workout shirt was already damp as she drew close to the north area of campus, close to where the dorms were. Rachel noticed two willowy girls clad in sweat pants and workout bras at the front steps of the dorm building. Behind them, stepping out of the building, seemed to be Josie. Rachel wasn't too sure, but she didn't want to risk being seen by her. So she took a U-turn and retracted to where she came from. She missed hanging around with Josie. For some reason, she suddenly didn't have the energy to jog. Once she was at a safe distance away from the dorm building, she started to walk. She removed her headphones and decided to listen to the whispers of the crisp wind.

At her apartment complex, after taking a shower, Rachel swaddled her mauve towel around her body. She quickly wiped the foggy mirror to get a better look at herself. Her face appeared slightly droopy, like she had a lot on her mind. She did. She turned to the medicine cabinet to her left and opened it. She reached for her glasses case and closed it. Rachel's eyes then gazed at what was plastered beside the cabinet. It was a black cube and from its center jutted a ruby-red button. Rachel kept staring at it. I hope I never get to press that button.

Rachel prepped herself in front of the mirror. Once she was done, she stepped out and donned herself in a corduroy pant and long-sleeve, violet shirt. She was getting ready to go to work. She went to the kitchenette, ate cereal for breakfast, and then called Alyssa.

"Could we meet around 6:00 p.m.?" Rachel asked her. "Would that be a problem for you?"

"No, not at all," Alyssa replied, sounding serious.