Crimson

Chapter Six

Awaking with a start, moisture cascading down her brow to pool at her head, her sheets soaked in sweat, realization dawned upon Isabella as she noticed her chest heaved. Curiosity drew her to the pounding in her chest, the steady heartbeat announcing her anxiety.

However, she thought introspectively, "My dream was so peaceful. Where did this come from?"

Breathing deep several times, she calmed herself before rubbing her eyes and leaving the bed. Needing to strip her bed due to the moisture reddened sheets, Isabella sighed deeply. Luckily, still having laundry detergent in her pantry, relief washed over here as she witnessed this. Although low in quantity yet still enough to sustain her a bit longer. The hard zonk of the alarm quickened her pulse. Jumping slightly, dropping the sheets from her hands, aggressively, she turned off the alarm.

"No need for caffeine today." She thought to herself.

Now, the second day of orientation for the hospital, as well as the morning after her date with Doug. Her mind trailed off about the nuances of the date. Smiling, her mind lingered on his eyes, such kind and honest eyes. Charming, attractive, and witty, this man beguiled her. However, needing to focus on her work, this job meaning everything to her. If she did well here, she could dig herself out of the mound of debt slowly suffocating her.

Shaking this thought off, she quickened to lift the sheets off the bed, preparing for the second day of orientation. Hair, matted against the left side of her head, sweat and tangles keeping this style in place. Drawing a trail on her cheek and down her chin, white specks of dried spittle clung fiercely.

Wiping the sleep from her eyes, she yawned stretching wide. A flash of sharp pain shot through her stomach then quickly receded, nearly missed by Isabella due to the quickness of the event. Quickly, she clutched her side where the pain emanated. Pushing gingerly at the location into herself, she tested to see if it remained tender, nothing happened. Moving around her abdomen, she repeated the test. Again, nothing happened. A stitch in her chest reminding her to exhale as a puff of air shot out of her mouth. Her chest heaved, awareness dawning on her that she held her breath.

"Weird." Isabella thought to herself with her eyebrows knitted.

Disregarding this experience, walking to her bathroom to freshen up. Turning her facet on, annoyance radiated from her as she discovered her water did not descend. Racking her brain, she tried to think if she paid her bill. Her memory concluding she had, the annoyance grew from a minor itch to butterflies in her stomach. Needing to wipe her face dry and then reapply makeup without the help of water to remove oils off her face.

Onlywith 45 minutes to prepare, Isabella rethought walking to the leasing office to complain. She found calling did not work as fast as an actual human presence. This placing visible pressure on them to remedy the situation.

Peeking out the bathroom, she gazed at the alarm clock on her nightstand. With 30 minutes remaining before she needed to go into work, anxiety fluttered in her chest. Her bedroom, woefully absent style nor material possessions, only a scratched and worn, brown nightstand and a mattress directly on top of bedsprings adorned her bedroom. However absent, it remained roomy without the extras.

Ring. Ring. Ring. The loud shrill of her telephone erupted. Pulsing throughout the nearly vacant apartment, with nothing to buffer the sound, it bounced back and forth amplified in frequency.

As Isabella applied mascara previous to the ring. Finishing, she reached to pick up her eye-liner before the phone began its pulse. Dropping the mascara brush, leaving a black film in its wake, her annoyance grew. The previous butterflies became bees. Quickly she moved towards the phone to pick up the receiver.