Beautiful

2. I'm late

I'm Late... Shoot I'm Always Late

Six months earlier...

Tierra was always in a hurry. No matter how early she woke up each morning she just seemed to occupy any extra time that she had to spare with an extra long, luxurious shower. Either that, or she'd sit inside of her Japanese Soaking Tub, which she nicknamed her 'Jacuzu," until her skin resembled that of a wet prune.

It was Monday morning though, which meant the first day of her work week. Usually Monday's for her were great! Tierra couldn't wait to get into the office. It was the only place outside of her actual condo where she felt at home.

Today though, for some unknown reason, she was stuck deep in thought. It'd been that way, from the time that she'd jumped up, shaken out of a deep sleep, yelling her bestie's name, who she hadn't seen in at least a year. Thirty minutes later, she was standing in the middle of her bedroom, in a mental fog.

"Who's there?" she called out, turning her head around so fast that her neck cracked.

She was positive that she'd heard someone call out her name. She took less than baby steps as she held onto the side of her neck, creeping cautiously towards her bedroom door. Once she got to it, she barely poked her head around its wooden frame.

"You really might want to rethink this," she bluffed, as her voice raised an octave higher than it was, hoping to scare the intruder off.

"I have a gun," she threatened the would be intruder, and then held her breath to make sure that her breathing didn't interfere with her ability to hear any strange sounds.

Going against 'The Black Girl Rule Book' she made her way out of the safety of her bedroom, and cautiously walked down the hallway towards where she thought that the voice had come from. When she reached the end of the hallway, she had a full view of her grand room. She furtively scanned back and forth between the open kitchen on her left and the dinning/living room areas to her right, realizing that everything was as she'd left it the night before. She didn't see anything or anyone to give her any cause for alarm.

She laughed.

"Tierra, you're bugging out girl! Ain't nobody in this house but you," she told herself, as she began to calm her nerves.

She walked into the kitchen and turned on the Keurig coffee maker. She then reached up, pulled on the stainless knobs to open one of the glass front cupboards, and removed her favorite black and turquoise mug. As she began to take it out, she suddenly felt like there was a presence behind her. Instinctively she ducked, turned around as quick as she could, and then threw the mug that she held at... no one.

Her chest rose and fell rapidly, as she grabbed at her silk nightgown, her heart pounding. Her body began to perspire while her eyes darted to and fro again, confirming that there was no one there.

"That's it, I've definitely got to be going crazy," she deduced, physically shaken from head to toe.

Still paranoid, she stood facing the open room, reaching behind her back to unplug her Keurig machine. With her back flush to the counter, she made her way over to the pantry closet, pulling out the broom and dust pan. As quickly as she could, she then rushed over and picked up the shattered pieces of the mug from the floor, dumped them in the garbage, and then replaced the utility items back inside of the closet.

Like a snake, she slithered against the wall and down the hallway into her bedroom. Just as she entered the room, her cell phone rang out, causing her to jump and scream. She waited until her breathing had calmed before picking up the receiver.