Paint Over my Scars

Chapter 6

  Sunshine shone through the blinds, giving it a halo of golden streams. The breeze blew the thin white curtains and they waved in the cold blow like a woman's dress in the wind; the soft curtains gently tapped the wall on the other side, softly and cautiously.  

The chilled air encased the small room, even the thick blankets that Monika wrapped in wasn't warm enough. Goosebumps spread across her body, clammy feet strived to find warmth under the blankets and her thighs stuck together with cold sweat. 

With her groggy body, she slipped from her bed, feeling the cold blankets dropped to her side and her feet felt the freezing wood. She wandered to the window, looking out to see her garden, visible dew stuck to the green leaves of the plants, dark dirt was damp and mushy. It looked like it rained last night while she slept.  

She glanced at her phone, the screen brightness shined in her face, she read the time: 5:34. While squinting her eyes, she read a text message from Gilbert. 

1:05am

Gilbert: I can do it tomorrow, I got nothing before work. I work at noon so we could chill at a restaurant at 10? That cool? 

Monika adjusted to the light, repeating the message in her head before thinking of what to reply. She didn't want it to sound eager as though she wanted to go on the date more than anything, but she didn't want to sound like she was speaking to her boss. 

5:36am

Monika: That sounds fine. I'll see you then. 

Her reply seemed acceptable to her and she set down the phone on her nightstand, satisfied with the text. She didn't expect him to text back until morning, so she layed back down on her bed after shutting the window, stopping the breeze. 

She covered her body with the blankets, glancing back at the phone, secretly wanting a notification to appear. Temptation ate her up until all she could do was stare deeply at the phone, waiting for anything to happen. 

Monika realized how stupid she seemed at the moment. She shouldn't be this eager to see him, to hear his voice, to have him acknowledge her. 

She rolled over, back facing the phone and she struggled to get it off her mind. 

Her dream was filled with a mixture of nervousness and joy. 

___

The orange leaves crunched under Monika's feet, the chilled weather made her red scarf wave in the wind, her hands remained in her pocket, for they felt numb from the cold. 

The town that she lived in was big, she lived with a row of stores, all connected. On the other side of the street, there was another long row of different stores. The town was one where tourists came to shop: not because the scenery was breath-taking or that the history was deep and educational or that celebrities lived there: just the stores that filled six extended streets. 

Tourists didn't bother Monika, in fact, she loved seeing new faces in the Bakery, people enjoyed coming there for lunch after a long morning of shopping and that was always great. The only thing she dreaded was the cars that crowded the streets, either parked or moving.  Honks filled the air when people wanted to fit in a parking spot, you'd have to come extremely early to find a spot. 

Monika didn't drive much, too much traffic, so she walked to anywhere she needed. Which was simply, the six streets held anything she needed from dollar stores to lingerie stores.

The people bumping into her made it hard for her to relax. She was nervous, she didn't go out with others often, much less a man. She felt her heart pound under her sweater as she opened the door to a Bakery where they decided where to met. She slightly jumped when she heard the bell jingle and the woman behind the counter popped her head up, gleefully.