Chapter 20: Unknown

                                    

                                          
"Is it moving too fast?" I asked Rory. I decided to promptly tell him about Jacob's invitation to Connecticut before I could talk myself out of it.
                          
He took a huge gulp of his iced coffee before answering. "No. What makes you think it's too fast? You need to do something to progress relationships." 
                          
"I was just thinking that we should have a few more dinners, or do some things around New York." 
                          
The streets were jam packed near Times Square, like they usually were. It was one of my least favorite spots in the city, but it felt overhyped to me because I lived here. Rory and I paced ourselves as we made our way through the maze of tourists enjoying their summer vacations.
                          
"What do you want to do around here? Live shows? Art galleries? A picnic in Central Park?"
                          
I wasn't sure what he meant. Those things were all typical date ideas. "You have anything better that you'd like to share?" I asked.
                          
"I do," he said, and took another sip of his cold drink to wake himself up before his first shift. "Out of all those places, and others, at what point can you actually have quiet time to sit and get to know this guy better? Why would you want to distract from that with some kind of entertainment?" 
                          
In the lifetime of knowing Rory, I should have expected his philosophical side to come out sooner than later regarding this situation—the side of him that spilled wisdom like a wise, old Monk. 
                          
"That chance is literally being placed into your hands and you're not taking it."
                          
"Okay, I get it," I said, then walked slightly faster than him when I saw an opening in the crowd. 
                          
I darted through the stopped traffic towards one of Rory's workplaces. He helplessly trailed behind, but caught up in no time after dodging more tourists.
                          
"Then for my sake, get out of here for a little while so that I can have a vacation too," he replied, breathless.
                          
I playfully shoved him towards his job and uttered a sarcastic, "Rude."
                          
~ ~ ~
                          
I tiptoed down the slippery basement steps, as I lost track of Angela during the dinner rush. I silently prayed that she snuck out to the back alley for a smoke break and that she wasn't down in her office. 
                          
As my foot touched the penultimate step, I heard a rustling of papers come from her dungeon office. I held my breath when I took the last final steps, but my foot didn't land properly, and I slipped on the greasy surface. My hand gripped the railing to save myself, thankful that I didn't actually tumble, and took several sharp breaths. It was a close call and I cursed myself for not being more careful, as if it were possible. Angela didn't acknowledge me and I began the twenty foot trek to the time clock.
                          
She sat at her desk, but was distracted by her phone ringing and did not notice me as I scooted past. I rushed to clock in my vacation time before I clocked out for the night. 
                          
She shouted obscenities that made me almost jump out of my shoes. I hurried faster to punch in all the dates and times, but the ancient computer system froze. I jammed my finger onto the power button to attempt a restart, but it stayed stuck. 
                          
I stopped and took a deep breath, and tried the power button once more. It worked. The system restarted and showed the main screen within a few seconds. More calmly, I punched in for my vacation time. I had accumulated a long backlog of days, more than ever would be acceptable, but I only took off the days I would be gone—no extra. 
                          
Angela's chair squealed to indicate she stood up. She groaned as she stretched after sitting for too long. Then, she appeared in the doorway, leaning and looking right at me.
                          
"You'll be here at one tomorrow?" she asked, rubbing her eyes and yawning.
                          
"I will. I'm putting in my vacation time for next week. I already talked with Jill and she said she'll pick up most of the hours." I bit the inside of my lip, scared of whatever her response would be; I was banking on a negative one.
                          
She dragged her feet over towards me and craned her view in to look at the computer screen. "Tuesday through Sunday? Where are you going?" 
                          
"Connecticut."
                          
She began to walk away and scratched her jaw. "Can you work Sunday night?"
                          
My finger hovered over the "Submit Time" button, and I suddenly felt like erasing everything and throwing my hands up in defeat.
                          
Do I ever get a break? 
                          
"Probably not. I don't know what time I'll be back, with traffic and all." My jaw tightened as I inadvertently clenched my teeth together from stress. I seriously needed the vacation at that point. 
                          
Angela didn't look back at me and retreated into her office cave. "Fine. It's your paycheck."
                          
Her unusual calmness might have frightened me more than her banshee screams. I deduced that she could have received bad news over her phone call, but thought nothing more of it. Whatever it was, it wasn't my problem and she wasn't making it out to be.
                          
I submitted the time and received a confirmation screen of acceptance. I logged out and headed back towards the steps. "Goodnight," I called out as I ascended. There was no response, other than the continued rustling of papers.
                          
~ ~ ~
                          
I stared into the scrambled eggs cooking in the skillet and allowed my thoughts to run freely. My mind wandered all over the place in the span of a few minutes it took to make my breakfast-for-dinner. 
                          
Angela was too quiet today.
                          
I was comfortable with being confident, and taking my time off without asking for approval. Were things changing in my world?
                          
I wonder what Jacob does in the evenings.
                          
The eggs cooked just enough, then I removed the pan from the heat so that they could continue cooking just a little bit longer.
                          
Don't forget to pack my hair straightener.
                          
I hope I have some hot sauce left.
                          
There were barely four drops of hot sauce left in the bottle, but it was enough to satisfy my spicy craving over two small scrambled eggs.
                          
As quietly as I could, I rinsed the skillet and filled it with soapy water. I would wash it out proper in the morning, as to not wake up Rory sleeping in the open loft. He had too long of a day and was still adjusting to his new roles. 
                          
I ate my late night dinner in the solitude of the living area while listening to the traffic that hummed on the street far below. I watched out the window at the people crossing the street, running after taxis, and a few who stumbled into each other on their walk home from the bars.
                          
There was an anxious, unfamiliar breeze that swept in through the window—one that brought in the possibilities of new beginnings and adventures far away.
                          
There is a world out there for me, somewhere.
                          
Connecticut was far away in my perspective; I rarely went anywhere besides work and home. The trip would turn a new chapter in life for me, or at least provide me with a brand new experience. Either way, I consciously felt gratitude for the chance. I was also aware of the unknown, and I was figuring out that I liked it.