The morning air was crisp as Leah catapulted her body past the myriad of people. With her dark hair in a high pony tail she could feel the wisps seeping over her neck and shoulders, on the verge of failing out of its band. With a dull ache in her ankle and a light sheen of sweat over her skin, she stopped just on the water's edge, even though a small part of her wouldn't have hesitated to jump right in.
Panting from exhaustion she took a long drink from her water bottle and lent against the handrails. With her head down, chin almost touching her chest, she took each breath slowly and purposefully. In through her nose. Out through her mouth.
Checking her watch she noticed two things. One; Her time over five miles had gotten better. Two; her class started in less than an hour and she still had a lengthy run back to campus.
Stretching out her ankle by holding her foot to her backside Leah watched as the calm water broke against the rocks. The salty spray of the ocean was underwhelming. Pitiful even. Not comparable at all to the smell of the ocean back home. In LaPush.
Taking the band she re-tied her hair and set off back along the winding path.
She'd been with the University of Washington for eight months and so far she had enjoyed the experience. The students were eager, and the course content they allowed her to teach had great flexibility. The student's seemed to enjoy their unique experiences. And Leah was fond of each and every one of them.
Taking the student housing path she shook her head, a coy smile running over her mouth. Red plastic cups littered the lawn of every second house. Some guys, half asleep and shirtless, had already begun the clean-up.
Reuben Jones pulled off a dazzling white smile as he waved from the porch of an old double-story. She rolled her eyes and waved back, even more eager to hit the showers. Reuben was in her morning class. And he was a terrible flirt, often offering to be her jogging partner if she needed one.
She didn't.
Five minutes later she jogged up the path of steps and headed toward the staff entrance of the building. Pulling her ID from her hip and swiping it past the door, she entered the old redbrick and made her way toward the office.
The Department of American Indian Studies was only a small branch of the University. Subjects like law, business and medicine were the big boys on campus, boasting most of the student numbers. Between a staff of seven, Leah felt that her department was far more cosy and intimate, adding to the overall student satisfaction of the subjects on offer.
Opening her office door she moved toward the couch, wrapping up her grandmothers handmade quilt and stuffing it into a box, along with her pillow. Grabbing a small backpack she headed toward the single cubicle staff shower.
She washed quickly, allowing the hot water to soak her tired muscles. She rotated her ankle as she simultaneously lathered her hair with aloe vera shampoo. The damn thing hurt. Though, sleeping on the hard and very old couch in her office probably didn't help with matters.
The night before she hadn't been able to sleep. She had lay in bed for over four hours staring at the angry red numbers of her alarm clock. At 2:14am she'd decided to get a jump start on grading her student papers before the semester break in two weeks. Students all over campus were cramming to make sure everything was submitted to free up their four week break so she wasn't surprised to find zombie-like first-years wandering the campus as she arrived.
Turning off the water, she dried and quickly dressed. A simple sleeveless blouse, a pair of tight jeans and some flats completed her attire. Tying her hair back with her band, she twisted the long tresses around and into a bun. She liked to be casual at work and her students appreciated it. Some of the university staff wouldn't be caught dead without a pair of heels and a designer bag or two, but Leah liked to be comfortable. And they could all go jump if they didn't like it.
Running lip gloss along her semi dry lips, Leah smirked as she looked in the mirror. She was looking more and more like her mother every day. And while it was in fact a compliment, it terrified the hell out of her. She'd be thirty in only a couple of months. And she summed that up as the reason for her recent sleepless nights.
Replacing her sweaty clothes and backpack, for her shoulder bag in her office, she locked the door and headed toward the lecture room.
