The Only One

Chapter Four

    Jerking awake as hot, salty sweat beads at her forehead and rolls down the sides of her face is how Isabo has grown accustomed to waking up each morning. Sitting up and folding her legs in, she wipes at her face and runs her fingers roughly through her thick hair before taking a deep slow breathe and dropping her hands into her lap.

Feeling tired, Bo looks towards her bay window to see great sheets of rain hammer against the glass. For a second she thought the force of it would break the panels. Laughing quietly under her breath at how much that would cost to fix, she pushed her grey cotton sheets aside and got up to sit in the wooden rocking chair she kept by the windowsill.

Folding her knees up to her chin and resting her head atop them, Bo gazed at the pouring rain and realized it was still dark out. Moving her head slightly from her knees to stare at her alarm clock she had plugged in on her squared wooden table that she had painted white, and then one night when she couldn't sleep yet again, she outlined the corners in dark, green vines that snaked throughout the woodwork.

Seeing the red lines on the clock that told her it was a little after four in the morning, Isabo groaned. She didn't have work at the diner today meaning that she could sleep in. Obviously, that wasn't going to happen. Sighing as she once again ran her fingers through her hair and grimaced at the dampness that she hadn't noticed before, Bo slowly got up from her chair and stretched. Going up on her tiptoes to crack her ankles while she brought her arms up above her head to release the tension in her body. Slowly bending over and grabbing her calves she realized just how sore she was.

Straightening up, Bo trudged over to her bathroom, grabbing her light grey silk midi-robe she got as a Christmas present two years prior from Chicago; laughing lightly at the memory of him telling her she needed more 'girly shit' in her life. Turning on the light and fan of the bathroom, Isabo cranked the shower dial all the way to the red portion as she stripped out of her now sweat-dampened t-shirt. Letting in fall to the white tiles beneath her with a quiet thump, her underwear following suit, Bo grabbed her toothbrush after squirting the last of her toothpaste on the bristles and stepped into the steam of the shower.

Letting the scorching hot droplets soothe her aching muscles, Isabo went through the list of things she needed to do today before her shift at The Starlight began. Grocery shopping was a priority, she decided, laundry could wait another few days but she could do it today since she had the time, and she needed to tidy up her apartment too.

Happy that she was going to accomplish something beneficial today, Isabo quickly went through her shower routine and toweled off. Applying her mint-scented lotion to her body and the usual concealer underneath her eyes, she gently brushed out her long, thick hair and let it air dry. Tying her robe loosely around her body she walked back into her bedroom to pull out her clothes for the day.

Deciding on a grey cross-back bra and a matching lace cheeky underwear and pulling on black leggings with a grey knit, crew-neck sweater, Bo grabbed thick black socks out of her top drawer and her clip from her bedside table where she had left it the previous night. Taking note that it was now six-fifteen and that the heavy rain had turned into even heavier snow, Bo walked to her front door to pull on her boots, coat, and scarf. Deciding to not take a hat with her and making sure her keys, phone, wallet, and legal pad were secured in her bag before slinging it over her shoulder and walking out the door, locking it behind her.

Carefully walking down the now icy steps and turning left, Isabo kept her head down to try an avoid the snow blowing into her eyes. Sticking her hands into the pockets of her black over-coat, she cursed herself lowly for not remembering her gloves, already feeling them getting red from the cold.

Briskly walking the two blocks to get to the local corner store that was more useful, not to mention cheaper, than the actual grocery store that was further away from her apartment; plus the corner store had more of a selection after they expanded a few months ago. Seeing the store coming up, Isabo crossed the now busy street filled with commuters, taxi's, and pedestrians on their way to work, or getting coffee as was the norm in the city at six thirty in the morning.