Terrified but Too Timid to Change

Chapter Five

"Shit!" She hollared as she looked at the alarm clock. It never went off because she hadn't wound it properly. Now she only had an hour to get to the office. There was no way to walk there fast enough. "Damn it!" She muttered as she quickly grabbed a shirt and pair of pants out of the back, never even looking at what they were. She tried to clear the cobwebs to figure out if she had enough money for a cab or had to suffer the bus. She counted and realized she could take a cab halfway or risk the bus getting her there late. "Ugh the cab will be better," she decided and grabbing her bag, slammed the door behind her, locking it on the run. Aurora rushed up to the guard shack and was relieved to see Frank. He looked up, surprise apparent on his face. "I thought you left before I got here. Is everything ok?" "No," she gasped, "I have to get to the office in an hour and I have to get a cab." Already picking up his phone, Frank smiled. "I'll get one coming. You just sit down and try to get calm. It'll be here quicker than you know." Aurora sat down and tried to focus on calming down. All she could do though was stress, wondering if she could make it in time. But true to his word, the cab pulled up in no time. "Thanks Frank," she said and climbed in. "How close can you get me to downtown on......fifteen bucks?" The driver looked at her in the mirror. "You serious? That's all you have?" "It's close to payday and bills were more than I thought this month," she lied effortlessly. The driver looked out the window at Frank. At Frank's thumbs up, the driver turned off the meter and said, "keep it. This is my free ride of the day." She looked out at Frank and he gave her a brotherly wink as they drove off.

"I'm sorry, darling but it looks like this is as close as we can get," the driver said forty minutes later. "Traffic is a nightmare for some reason." She looked out the window at the gridlock and grimaced. "How far away are we?" She asked fearfully. "You got about three miles to go." She quickly did the math in her head and said, "I have to try. Thank you so much...I never caught your name!" "Just call me Bob and are you sure? It's a little warm out today." "A couple minutes late and slightly sweaty is better than being extremely late. Thank you so much, Bob!  You were an angel sent to help me." Bob blushed and stammered, "it's no problem. Good luck today." She waved goodbye as she hurried past the cab to get to the office. A quick glance at her watch and she took off in a run. "Shit. This is bad."

At noon, she slammed into the front door. Panting hard, she yanked it open and bolted in. The receptionist jumped and glared at her as she scurried past, sheepish look on her face. "I'm sorry I startled you," she muttered as she did. As soon as she turned the corner, she saw Billie Joe walk into the room. "Damn it!," she thought. "I bet I'm last to get here." Doing a quick hop, she picked up her pace. As she neared the door, she heard Billie Joe ask "am I late, I think I'm late." With one final burst, she crossed the threshold.

"I apologize so much. I just still haven't gotten the hang of the... traffic in this town. Give me just a moment and we can get started!" Pete smiled at her and he got a hungry look in his golden eyes. "What's that about," she thought. He turned to Billie Joe but before he could say anything, Billie popped off, "which show did you get to go to?" She looked down and realized that she did not pay attention to what she grabbed this morning. It was her Hella Mega shirt. "Oh Lord, not today please," she silently prayed. Amy was talking but all Aurora could do was blush. Then she realized what was there to be embarrassed about and opened her mouth. "I was in Dallas, the first show back from quarantine," with a slight hint of pride in her answer. "What did you think of the show," Billie leaned forward as he asked. "Honestly," she looked around, "the Interrupters were fantastic. I had never heard them before. Weezer was great. I didn't really think Rivers was that big of a nerd. Fall Out Boy could have been much better and Billie, y'all committed mass murder that night!" Gabe started laughing obnoxiously and slapping Pete on the back. Everyone else had the grace to at least try to hide their humor. Pete eyes darken as he looked at her, a slightly wounded look there. "How could it have been better," Pete quietly asked. She turned to him and locked onto those hurt eyes. She gave a little one sided smile and said, "it should have been another hour long. I've been a fobbie for a very long time and wanted more." Pete's eyes lit up and she thought,"calmed that beast in time."

Aurora looked over and saw that the platters had already been delivered. "If you want to go ahead and make your plates, I'll get set up quickly," she told the room. Everyone got up and headed to the food and Aurora took the distraction to try to rub her legs. She knew better than to run on her leg since the accident but this was more than make or break for her. It was the last barrier between life and death. She turned to board and started writing, keeping everyone in her peripherals. "Pete looks happier today," she thought, as she gave him a slow look from his shapely ass up to his muscled arms. When she raised her eyes, she was shocked to see him checking her out. "What? No one takes a second look at me?" They locked eyes and that's when she felt like she had been electrocuted. She quickly turned away. "Nononono, it's way too soon," she thought. As the memories started racing at her, her breathe sped up. Oh no, not now. "Excuse me, I need the restroom," Aurora gasped out as she fled the room. If she could make it to the door, maybe no one will see the tears falling.