The Traveler's Key

Chapter Two

    My alarm went off and I cracked an eye open long enough to hit snooze.  An extra nine minutes sleep sounded like an eternity but went by much too fast.  So, I hit snooze one more time before dragging myself out of bed.  It was 7:02 and there was no time for a shower.  I threw my hair up on top of my head, messy bun style, applied deodorant, washed my face and brushed my teeth.  Then I threw on a pair of sweats from pink and a hoodie.  I skipped the makeup - I wanted my outsides to match my insides.  I stared at my face in the mirror, the dark circles under my eyes, the hollow look within them, and didn't recognize myself.

Mom was sitting at the kitchen table when I got downstairs, a cup of coffee at her elbow.  It was 7:20 and I had to leave.  I looked at her. She looked fragile, sitting with her knees pulled up, her silk kimono robe hanging down to the floor, her long blond hair piled atop her head. .  I poured a cup of coffee and sat down next to her, close enough that our shoulders touched.  I leaned into her and she leaned back and rested her head against mine.  We stayed like that for a while.

"You're going to be late," she said eventually, placing her bare feet on the ground and pushing herself up.  She kissed the top of my head and took her empty cup to the sink.

I followed her, dumped the contents of my cup, and gave her a hug.  "Do you want me to stay home?" I asked.

She squeezed me tight, then pushed me away.  "No," she said with a firm shake of her head. She looked like a young girl, her face free of makeup, her eyes sleepy still.   

"Are you sure?  This will be the first time you're alone since..."

She pushed me across the room, all the way to the front door, which she opened before pushing me outside.  "We have to get back to living, Charlie," she told me.  "Go to school."  And then she shut the door in my face.  

I stared at it for a moment and imagined my mother all alone for the day.  Her work had been more than generous with bereavement time and she wasn't due back for another week.  I wished she would go back today.  Then I wouldn't worry so much.  She'd be surrounded by people who cared about her.

Knowing she wouldn't be budged, I plugged my earbuds in, started walking and thought about the day ahead.   I'd hit the pool today after school for sure.  I'd gone about a block when a cramp seized my chest so hard and tight I had to stop.  I rubbed the spot that ached, right over my heart, and had a dim flash of last night's dream - the hooded figure placing his hand over my chest and the searing pain that came after.  I massaged the area until the cramp released and started walking again.

I caught sight of my school, which looked like a giant spider.  It consisted of nine, single story buildings.  The main office, cafeteria, gymnasium and auditorium were in the main building, located in the middle, like the body of the spider.  Eight long, low buildings branched off from the main building like spider legs.  In order to get to the different classes, you had to go outside and walk across the school grounds.  When the weather was nice, this was a good thing but it kind of sucked when it was raining.   

I was a block away when I spotted Luke at the track.  I wasn't surprised.  He got up early every morning and came to school to train.  He was at Thayer on scholarship  for lacrosse and he took it very seriously.  Thayer was his ticket out, a means to a better life.   As far as he was concerned, anything was better than his current life.  His parents had abandoned him a little over two years ago.  He referred to them as junkies but I liked to be politically correct and called them addicts.  Luke wasn't totally sure where they lived, but he thought they were on the  streets somewhere.  He'd moved in with his older brother, Alex,  and his Alex's girlfriend.  They lived in a tiny apartment above a laundromat.  Now, Luke always smelled like dryer sheets all the time.  This was a good thing since he was always working out and sweating all over the place.  Anyway, his brother wasn't the best guardian either - he treated Luke like a room mate more than anything else. He provided a roof to sleep under, a bed to sleep in and made sure there was food in the fridge.  Beyond that, not much.  Luke prepared his own meals, did his own laundry, kept up with his school work without any reminders. He got by alright in school and did what he had to do to pass, but he was too busy raising himself to do much more.