Country Mile

YOU ARE

Fireflies twinkled like fallen stars and crickets chirped under the cover of a moonless sky. The thick heat of the night blowing in through Genna's open window made her restless. Before she could stop herself, she rolled out of bed and dressed silently.

She tip toed down the stairs and padded onto linoleum tiles that felt slightly sticky beneath her feet due to the building humidity.

Then, she paused in the middle of the empty kitchen.

Her fingertips tapped her thigh as she contemplated slipping on the running shoes that were tightly gripped in her other hand.

Eyes that appeared darker than usual due to the low light, darted back and forth between the green illuminated clock on the stove and the locked back door straight ahead of her.

To sneak out at 3:57am would surely not end well for her, but that minor nuisance had never stopped her before.

Despite after all of her efforts, she still couldn't shake the nagging feeling that beckoned her like a siren to breathe in the saturated air.

To work her muscles until they tired her brain.

The relief that she knew would come was too much to deny her overwrought nerves.

She sat down and leaned back against the kitchen island as she slid on her shoes and meticulously laced each one extra tight with a double knot.

Before she could stand, her eyes turned into slits when the kitchen light flicked on and assaulted her pupils.

Her heart began to jackhammer in her chest because now she was stuck sitting on the floor, hoping Adam or Anne were going to simply get a drink and retreat back to their room. She couldn't move unless she wanted to give herself away to Adam, or worse, scare Anne into an early labor.

So she sat and listened to the soft shuffle of feet and the opening and closing of the refrigerator and cabinets. After a few short minutes, the light flicked off and Adam stepped into view. With his back to her, he walked into the living room with a sandwich and a glass of water.

Genna remained frozen, even when the room lit up a soft shade of blue and the murmur of voices from the television flitted through the air to her, she didn't move. She couldn't make out what Adam was watching, but she could see his right leg from where he sat upon the couch.

She continued to sit there, contemplating if the sounds of the tv could drown out the sound of the lock, or if maybe moving to the opposite side of the island would be the better choice.

She jumped, making an audible squeak when Adam's voice called to her from the other room.

"You gonna sit out there all night or are you gonna come in here and talk to me?"

She let out a breathy laugh and stood, slowly moving to stand in the door way.

Her fingernails picked nervously at the painted wooden frame. In this light, she couldn't tell if her father was irritated or tired or indifferent. His face looked blank, as if he were waiting for her to speak before deciding how he felt about finding her sitting on the kitchen floor, dressed to sneak off for a mid night run.

"Hi," she said softly.

His eyes finally left the screen and pierced her where she stood.

"Wanna tell me what it is you were doin'?"

Genna's lips pressed together slightly and she shook her head.

"Alright," he drawled, leaning forward to place his sandwich on the coffee table. "Am I wrong in assumin' you were about 5 seconds away from sneakin' outta this house to go for a run?"