Lost and Found

Showers

I woke up in the morning enveloped in the smell of coffee.

Blinking slowly, I let the remnants of sleep drift away. Sunlight filtered through the cracks of the window, both heating and blinding me. It had been a while since the last time the sun shined this early in the morning and I took a moment to appreciate it before glancing next to me.

The spot where Karen slept last night was empty now, and if the smell in the room was any indication, she was brewing some coffee.

I sat up slowly, scanning the room for a clock because I wasn't sure where my phone had ended up. Karen had an alarm clock on her nightstand and it read that it was five in the morning.

Slipping out of the bed, I made my way out to the kitchen in search of Karen.

She was leaning against the island in her kitchen, her thoughtful gaze locked on her toes. Fresh coffee bubbled from the machine on the counter and an untouched mug sat next to Karen on the island.

"Hey," I said, my voice still thick with sleep. Clearing my throat, I moved to stand beside her.

She peeked up at me, the distant look falling from her eyes and masked with one of bright cheeriness. "Morning. How'd you sleep?"

I smiled and crossed my arms over my chest. It was a bit chilly and my arms were covered with small goosebumps from the slight breeze drifting into the kitchen from an air vent. "I slept great. Your mattress is a lot better than mine."

She chuckled and pointed at the coffee machine. "Do you want some coffee? I'm sorry, I don't have creamer or sugar."

"Sure, I'd love some," I said, rubbing my cold arms. Maybe the hot coffee would help me warm up.

Karen grabbed me a matching mug to the one she had and poured me a full cup of steaming brown liquid. She handed it to me, avoiding my gaze.

I accepted it, noting how there were dark circles under her eyes that I hadn't noticed before. Had she not slept well last night? Maybe she'd felt uncomfortable having me in her bed?

She ushered me over to the small kitchen table and we sat in silence while we drank our coffee. The heat did seem to help and I took the time just enjoying the hot mug against my palms in between small sips. The coffee only reminded me of the man, Marc, from yesterday.

There had been so many strange things happening recently around me and it was off putting. I didn't like my schedule to change and ever since I'd dropped off that wallet, odd things kept happening.

"If we want to be on time, we should head out soon," Karen said, eyeing the watch on her wrist. "You can take a shower if you'd like? I even set out clean towels on the counter for you."

"Okay," I said, though something slithered into my chest, wrapping around my heart and squeezing at the thought of getting into a shower. Maybe she had a bath?

No, I could do it. I hadn't had much of an issue with showers for the past several years.

Karen offered to clear up our coffee mugs while I finished getting ready and I thanked her before heading back to the bathroom inside her room.

I grabbed the clothes I'd brought from my apartment and closed the bathroom door behind me. Unfortunately for me, there wasn't a bath, only a stand up shower. The ground was still damp from a shower Karen must have already taken, though how she'd managed to do it without waking me up was a mystery to me. I was usually a light sleeper. Maybe it was just because I'd been so exhausted after these past couple days.

Reaching out, my shaking fingers wrapped around the cool shower handle. My heart strummed to a nervous song as I struggled to remain in the here and now. It was ridiculous that even after all this time, she was still able to haunt me in ways as simple as taking a shower.