Outskirts

A NEW

She finally said goodbye to him after enjoying time with him. She ran up the stairs, flightless, ready for anything. She landed on her bed in her silk robe, the soft colors engulfing her. She went into the bathroom to wash her dry hands, and she saw her face. She never really paid any attention to it before. Her hair changed her face so much. She saw all the bumps and imperfections lining her face, brows undone, and lips dry from the cold weather. A thought planted in her head. Maybe she wasn't who she thought she was. Maybe there was a reason he chose the girl with the long blonde hair and perfect face. Hers was full of imperfections. She hated her nose and her chin. Out of anger she put on clothes and ran to the nearest pharmacy. She got on the bus hurriedly, trying to ignore the cold surroundings.
"I need something that will get rid of my facial imperfections."
"I'm afraid I'm not sure what you're looking for, ma'am."
The clerk was frightened by her blunt approach, but directed Rachel to the beauty isle. She reached for the new face cleanser, it was designed to get rid of all the bumps and unclear skin in two days.
She placed it on the counter and put her thumbprint on the scanner. It notified her about the transaction, and she left. She walked into the hair salon next door, and asked for a facial waxing.
"We don't take walk-ins."
Rachel was desperate. She had this new feeling of emotion running through her veins, and a confidence that she could fix all her imperfections.
"I will give you a hundred extra to do it now"
"Fifty. And it's a deal."
Rachel paid and set down her things and walked right to the chair. It was painful, but this got her adrenaline pumping. She knew Sam would love her even more after this. Her blue hair electrified her emotions, and she got up out of the chair and onto the bus.
Her stop was more busy than usual, possibly because it was getting warmer. Possibly because it was 10 degrees Celsius instead of -5.
And then she got dressed. She wore her white chef attire and pulled her hair up in a bun. Reluctantly, she got back on the bus. She carries herself differently, not in a more stiff way. The air shocked her cheeks before she walked into The Fré.
"Hello, Rachelle. Are you ready?"
"As ever."
All of them walked into the kitchen, their second day back. The weather had been really weird lately.
They started cooking, and Rachel was distracted.
"Can you book flights out of Paris?"
"What, Rachelle?"
"You know. Flights."
"I suppose. I don't see why not."
She continued flipping and stirring and adding. Maybe she did want to see her mother.
Time flew by, and she went home. She opened up her computer and typed "flights out of paris" and clicked on the first search result. She selected Hawaii. She had enough units to get a round trip ticket. The only thing was, she'd have to miss work. She only had a week of leave for the entire year. But this was one thing that had to be done. The ticket was bought, and she was leaving tomorrow morning. Her bag was already packed, stuffed with pre-packed clothing and necessities the house came with.
It was a tiring evening so only the smell of box macaroni filled the kitchen. It was satisfying. The radio played in the background and she tapped on her wrist and a screen came up. It had instructions on how to get to the flight. First, a bus will come and leave from city wall gate one, then it would drive her to the small jet with other passengers.
Who else would go to Hawaii right now?
She went to bed, anticipating to see her mother within the next 24 hours.
Tossing and turning, she couldn't sleep. She grabbed the phone and called Sam.
"Sam, hi, it's Rachel."
"It's really late Rachelle. What do you need?"
"I'm flying out to Hawaii tomorrow morning."
"Well, I'll have to deduct some of your paycheck while you're gone."
"That's fine. It'll only be a couple of days."
"Tell me how it goes. Goodnight, Rachelle."
"Goodnight Sam."
She put down the phone and pulled up the covers, her eyes slowly drifting into a sleep.

"Mom, I haven't seen you in forever! Why don't you call?"
"Mom?"
Rachel ran over and grabbed her mothers wrist, she had fallen and her hair was a silver.
"It is not me, Rachel."
"Mom! Please, wake up!"

Rachel threw the covers off. She had a nightmare. The clock read 08:24 am. Rachel changed into denim and and a light sweatshirt, and sneakers. She got her luggage and a backpack with more personal items in it and closed the door. The bus was already at her stop, so she ran to it right before the doors closed.
Her thumb was scanned and she sat down. There was only two other people on the bus, so she just set her things in the seat beside her. The bus windows turned pitch black, and you couldn't see anything outside. It showed the arrival time, 10 minutes. The fluorescent lights lit up the bus, and she closed her eyes.
The bus came to a halt, and you could hear something click outside the door.
"You have arrived at your destination!"
The doors opened, and a tube to the airplane guided you to the airplane. Strangely, there were no windows. When Rachel got on the plane, there were no windows there. What are they hiding? Did the bombs not go as planned? She put those thoughts aside and put her luggage away and tucked her bag beneath her feet. She felt the plane take off, and a voice said "Twenty five minutes until landing." She put on an old French movie, waiting for her flight to end. She got on the bus, again facing the concealment of her transportation. The bus ride was short, and everyone got off promptly. It wasn't warm in Hawaii. It was as cold as France. She put on another layer because it was so cold. Another bus awaited her, one to the hotel. Her thumb was placed on the scanner and she went to her room. It was small, but she didn't need a lot.
Her fingers dialed her mom's phone number, hoping this time she would pick up.
"Hello?"
"Oh my gosh, mom, it's you!"
"Lauren? Honey, I'm at work. You know this. Is it about the baby?"
"Who is Lauren? This is Rachel..."
"Rachel? Why are you calling?"
"I'm in Hawaii."
"Oh, my! You should have told me. We should meet up at a café after my work. How about Lovlie's Coffee at four?"
"Sure mom, but who is Lauren? I'm your only child."
Her mom hung up with her.
A baby? Lauren? Rachel was very confused.
It was only three thirty. She needed to figure out where this coffee shop was.
She typed in "Lovlie's Coffee Shop" on the bus. And it moved, a couple blocks down and dropped her off right at the shop.
And her mother stood there, with a confused face put upon her when she saw Rachel.