Midnight Run

Chapter Three

Nora got up with her alarm, despite the persistent ache across her shoulder blades leftover from a day at work, and laced up her running shoes. Her roommate, Carl, hadn't been home when she went to bed, and he was snoring when she tiptoed into the kitchen, but somehow, he'd still left a sticky note for her on the coffee pot.

"Kick butt, sweetheart." Nora grinned and slapped the sticky note on the back of her phone before she strapped it to her arm. Hurriedly, she scribbled her own note, wishing Carl a "rocking day", and then she headed out into the city. They'd been best friends since ninth grade, when Carl moved to Nora's small town and freaked everybody out with his pierced ears and flamboyant personality, and the sticky note tradition was almost as old as their friendship. Sometimes, if Carl was in a particularly nostalgic mood, Nora would find her morning note folded into a tiny paper football, like they used to fold and flick across their desks back in high school.

Living with Carl had certainly made New York more fun; before he broke up with his last boyfriend and moved in with her, Nora had had a string of awful roommates, people she'd only met because she'd put up flyers in the neighborhood. Still, awful or not, she'd managed to keep a steady stream of co-renters for the five years she'd lived in the city, and now that Carl was there, it was starting to feel more and more likely that she'd be able to stay in New York long-term.

She'd always loved the glitz and the glamor of the place, and even five years as a barista hadn't spoiled that for her. After all that time, she was making alarmingly good money at the coffee shop; Todd had a lot of turnover with the staff, but those who stayed more than a year were rewarded with big raises every few months and crappy health insurance.

Running, coffee, and the city, Nora thought with a smile as she started her run. What more does a girl need? True, with her crazy schedule, it had gotten harder and harder to keep up with her folks back home in Pennsylvania, but everything had seemed fine when she was home for Christmas the previous month. Still, Nora made a mental note to try and give her mom a call sometime that weekend.

As her feet pounded the dark asphalt, Nora's mind wandered, and her six-mile loop of the park flew by. I really need to start running the park twice, Nora thought as she checked the time on her phone and headed back across town to get ready for work. That would almost be a half marathon.

Back at the apartment, she took her contacts out carefully before stepping into the shower. Even though she had the kind that could be worn all day, even to bed, Nora always wore her glasses for work; getting a coffee ground stuck under her left contact years ago had been lesson enough for her. Now she only wore her contacts for running.

Stripping off her sweaty clothes, Nora jumped into the shower, relishing the feel of the hot water against her cold skin. Running in the winter was rough, but not as bad as running in the summer; at least her body temperature had a chance to equalize in the winter, instead of staying feverish all day long. Nora wanted to linger under the spray, but she wasn't ready to risk another late entrance at Books and Brew, so she skipped conditioning her hair and rinsed off as fast as she could.

The mirror hadn't even had a chance to steam up by the time Nora was finished, and she studied her face for a moment. High, pale cheekbones framed her hazel eyes, and Nora grimaced. She'd always hated how bland she looked; brown hair, brownish eyes, and pale lips that didn't look right with any color of lipstick, no matter how many times she let the women at the makeup counter in the mall back home do her colors. Remembering what Colleen had said, Nora didn't slick her hair back right away. Watching her face in the mirror, she cautiously scrunched up the ends of her toffee colored hair, and light, bouncy waves hung around her face, stopping just above her shoulders. She shrugged. Might as well try something different for a change. Carl had been after her to color her hair, but Nora was never sure she could pull off any of the bold looks he suggested.