Chapter 2

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Scott and Katie’s Apartment

Big Bear Lake, California

December 21, 2012

7:32 AM

My alarm went off and I woke up into a world of post-pleasure.

Scott turned off the alarm and pulled himself off the bed, having to untangle himself from the blankets first. Some of them moved away from my bare back, tickling me. Slowly opening my eyes, my head was buried in my pillow with my hair covering most of my face, obscuring my sight of Grizzly Summit in the bedroom window. I heard Scott stretch, his back making cracking sounds, but the backache was a good one.

There was no other sound other than Scott opening the door to the bathroom. No war, no fire crackling in the distance, no demons killing people, no burning buildings, not even the clear blue sky was aflame. It seemed that to me, from my knowledge of mystical history, the Mayan myths were nothing but myths. I turned over, stretched my arms over me, saw the ceiling fan motionless, and then raked my hair away from my face. I pulled the blanket up over my naked chest. The sound of the shower running was resonated through our apartment and I was happy that it wasn’t a shower of scalding lava.

Scott came out a few minutes later into the bedroom with a white towel wrapped around his waist. He was a bit overweight, around two thirty pounds. His brown hair was combed back and still moist, shining in the peeking sunlight along with his pale skin. The Celtic pendent still hung on his neck and over his heart.

Upon everything else, he also had scars, but they weren’t from any bar fights. They were remnants of a brutal moment in his life, something both of us and my family weren’t comfortable talking about. Mind you, it wasn’t from his parents, they loved him. Paler than his skin, the scars were located on his wrists and lower arms, the right side of his chest, over his liver, and a vertical one on the left side of his neck. On top of the weight, the scars were a painful reminder.

He went to the closet across from me, but caught me staring. I smiled.

“I lost ten pounds in the last week, Katie,” he said, almost whispering. “I was very good on my diet.”

“Wahoo,” I cheered with my arms in the air and giggled a little. I glanced at the clock on the bedside table and read the time. “You should get ready, Scott, or you’re going to be late on your last day of work.”

He nodded and opened the doors, pulling out his ski resort gear. He put on a pair of light brown cargo khakis, black work boots, a green shirt proudly showing off Grizzly Summit’s name and logo, name tag, and hid his necklace underneath his shirt.

He walked to our bed and leaned over me, giving me a morning kiss. As we kissed, I could taste the minty flavor of his mouthwash on his lips. 

“You know, I am glad the world didn’t come to an end.” Scott spoke softly.

“Me too,” I said.

“After work, I’ll finish packing. See you soon.” He left after grabbing his coat and scarf, leaving me alone. I heard the car start and drive off.

Several minutes later, while I was remembering last night, my cell phone rang from the kitchen and I had to fight through the blankets. Only in my underwear, I ran and grabbed my phone from the kitchen counter before the call went to voicemail.

“Hello?”

“Morning, Kitty, and Merry Christmas.” I knew the voice and what she said wasn’t what I wanted to wake up too, the nickname part I mean.

“Mom, I’m not ten anymore. You can stop that you know.”

“Okay. Okay. I’m only missing you. Everybody else is already here for Christmas and waiting for you two to come home.”

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