50 Days

Day 35

DAY 35

An obnoxious beeping sound woke me up. I groaned, reaching for the source of the noise. I sat up, rubbing my eyes, and reached for my phone.

Jace was calling me.

I tapped the answer button. "Hello?" I asked, yawning. A quiet chuckle came from the other end of the line.

"Morning, Sleeping Beauty. Feel like breakfast?" He asked. I groaned again.

"I don't wanna move," I said. He laughed.

"You'd better start, because I'm outside with fresh food for you." Jace hung up. I immediately bounced off the bed and rushed to the door, running a hand through my hair to make sure it wasn't total bedhead. I grabbed my coat by the door, wrapping it around me. I snatched the keys from the hook and dashed out the door, slamming it behind me. I made it down to the bottom of the building before I realized that I forgot my shoes.

Jace chuckled when he saw me with my crazy hair, mismatched outfit, and bare feet. I flipped him off, and he handed me a croissant. I bit into it, the flaky pastry filling my mouth. I chewed and wiped a couple crumbs off my face before swallowing.

"So why exactly am I awake at 10 in the morning on a Saturday?" I asked Jace. He stared at me, a blank look on his face.

"Seriously?" Jace said in disbelief. "You forgot?"

I looked up at him guiltily, taking a small bite out of the croissant. "Maybe," I mumbled around the croissant.

Jace laughed. "We're working on the project for improv, remember? We're supposed to find a really old, historic building to research and present it to the class as a skit. Any of this ring a bell?"

My eyes grew wide. "That's today?" I asked him. Jace laughed again.

"Yeah. You're not wearing that, are you?" He asked incredulously.

"No...but wait, I thought we just had to research it!" I protested. I didn't really feel like going anywhere today, especially not for a project that we didn't have to go out for.

"Rachel..." Jace whined. "Research is boring if you can't see the real thing! Come on, we'll be able to present better if we've actually been there!"

"Jace, we're researching Hart Island. It's practically a dumping ground for nameless bodies people don't care about. It's completely restricted, and, in case you forgot, there was a prison and a women's insane asylum there!" I replied angrily. I couldn't believe that Jace actually wanted to go there.

"You forgot the tuberculosis hospital and the boys' reformitory," Jace said. I rolled my eyes.

"Way to help convince me we should go there Jace. Thanks for that," I said, my voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Come on Rachel, it's not that bad. Just please go put some clothes on?" Jace pleaded.

"Fine," I said, finishing my croissant. "But if we get caught or sent to prison, it's your fault."

-

Fifteen minutes later, I had my hair tied back and was wearing some black skinny jeans and a dark blue shirt, along with a warm sweater and high-tops. I met Jace out on the steps and he grinned at me.

"It'll be fun, I promise," he said. I didn't believe a single word that came out of his mouth.

"I hate you for this," I muttered. Jace flagged down a taxi.

"Come on Dave, we don't have all day," Jace said after we climbed in. It made me feel a little better that Dave would be there to help us escape. I tried to relax, but I was too nervous.