Storytelling continues . . .
I woke up with a start the next morning. It was a dream, but of course I couldn’t remember anything about it, just the feeling it gave me. I checked the time. It was too early for a non-morning person to be up. I looked over at Sean who was snoring away with his back to me. Thank god. If I woke up with him snoring in my face, I think I would want to gently place my pillow over his face and lean into it. I tried to go back to sleep, but couldn’t, so I got ready to go to my personal training session. I had time to walk to the gym because I was up so early. Hannah messaged that she would be late, but that her cousin Jae was there, so I could relax until she got there or get started with him. Jae was on the treadmill when I walked in. I went to the locker room to drop my bag and came back out with my water bottle, hand wraps and gloves. Jae came down to the mats to stretch and offered to wrap my hands.
“I can do this myself now, you know.” I said to him, as the long strip of fabric made its way around my fingers and palm with Jae’s guidance.
“Yeah, but it took you so long to figure it out and you’re still slooow. Plus I get to be close to you without you throwing kicks or punches at me.” He smiled. This damn guy, always flirting with everyone at the gym. “Are you blushing?”
“No.”
“You still married to that guy that doesn’t appreciate you?”
“I guess you could say that.”
“You still haven’t left him for me then.”
I playfully kneed him in the side. “You should be careful. Someone is going to fall for your bs one day.”
“What bs are you talking about?”
I shook my head at him and rolled my eyes. He was young and hot and he knew it. I still have no idea what his day job was but his side hustle making old people feel attractive should pay enough to keep him comfortable until the day he dies.
When he was done wrapping my hands, he went to pick through the skipping ropes to get a shorter one for my height and handed it to me.
“I’ll set the timer for skipping and when it goes off, get to the bar to loosen up your hips. I’m going to shower and get dressed for work so I can leave when Hannah gets here.”
I started skipping and thinking about everything and nothing at once. The sound of my feet and the rope alternating against the mats set a rhythm for my thoughts. My mind started planning my day, then I got a flash from last night’s dream. I was somewhere I would normally be in my everyday life, having a conversation with someone, but then the images in my mind’s eye were gone. I focussed on the mirror in the gym, looking at myself as I jumped rope and slowly I remembered bits and pieces. It started with a figure. I could only catch a glimpse of them out of the corner of my eye. I couldn’t tell whether they were human. They were genderless and somewhat menacing, but also familiar. From what I could discern, they were tall. At times they were as tall as street lamps or buildings, forever looming outside or fixed in a dimly lit spot in whatever space I was in. They were focussed on me. Even though I couldn’t see a face, it felt as though their eyes were fixated on me. It wasn’t the first time they appeared in my dreams. And I remember why I woke with a start. I heard them whisper in my ear in another language that I understood. I could feel their warm breath against my skin as they said every so softly “Your time is near.”
I heard a whistle in my waking life. “Are you all right?” Jae was standing next to me. I stopped skipping. “The timer was beeping but you were off somewhere else for a minute.” I looked at him and blinked.
“Yeah. I’m fine. You know I’m not a morning person.” I smiled. He went to get my water bottle and handed it to me. He looked concerned.
“Maybe drink some water and sit for a minute. Hannah should be here soon.”
I thanked him and plopped down on the mat. I didn’t really register how nice he smelled or how handsome he looked in a suit. Remembering the dream and realizing the repeat figure left me with a heavy feeling in my chest. Could the figure be something or someone I had seen before?