Chapter 1
He awoke to the sound of his blaring alarm. He reached around for his phone in the dim light of the electric candle on his dresser. he dragged the icon on the screen to "snooze". Lately, it seemed most days he hit snooze.
He returned to sleep and dreamt of lazy mornings filled with classical music in the background, eating hearty breakfasts and sipping piping hot coffee on the deck. The alarm, once again, screamed at him. He sat up before turning it off, fearing he may fall back asleep if he turned it off before getting out of bed. He sleepily walked to the kitchen, poured a glass of water, and chugged the whole thing down. He then cupped his hands, filled them with water, and splashed the water into his face, "Ahh," he sighed.
Nothing like a cool splash of water in the face to wake you up at four thirty in the morning on a Monday. He let out a long groan of annoyance at the fact that he was about to face another workweek. He worked as a technician for a beverage company. It was often a tedious yet rewarding job, as the pay was good and he did a relatively small amount of work.
He put some water on the stove to boil, and made some coffee. He threw two pieces of toast under the broiler to toast, fried a couple of eggs, and sat down to eat. He always disliked getting out of bed so early, but being awake to see the sunrise was always worth it. He watched an orange glow fill the sky as he wolfed down his food and drained his coffee.
He was about to walk out the door when he felt like he was forgetting something. He racked his brain for a minute, and then decided it was nothing. He shook his head and off to work he went. Driving early in the morning meant no traffic, which again, made him grateful to be awake before the rest of the city. He arrived just before six o'clock, got out of his company issued work van, and stretched his muscles. He had food and coffee in his belly, and he was ready to face the day that was bound to be filled with service calls, as it was summer time, and let's face it; people liked to drink beer when it was hot.
The Monday went by as any Monday would, slowly and dreadfully. The morning passed by after what seemed like a full day, and it was time for lunch. He had forgotten to pack a lunch that morning.
"Damn," He sighed.
He promptly drove to the nearest burger joint to get some sustenance, as he only had thirty minutes for lunch. He made it in time to quickly order a burger and fries, which he normally strayed away from. He preferred a healthier diet, full of salads, fresh veggies, and minimal meat. He sat down and started eating the burger anyway, knowing it was the only way he'd be able to get through the day.
Halfway through his meal, he received a call from his boss, who was a cheerful, middle-aged man. "Luke, just calling to let you know that you need to go renew your certification next week! I know it's last minute, but you don't need to worry about anything. We will fly you out there and put you in a hotel for the week, you'll love it!" And before Luke could squeeze anything into the conversation, his boss hurriedly said, "Oh! Gotta run! Thanks bud." Click. The phone hang up.
Luke had been once before to get certified. The company headquarters was smack dab in the middle of New York City, in a huge skyscraper next to Central Park. He had enjoyed the trip across the country, as he lived in a small town in California, but he truly preferred the quieter town he lived in. He was a simple, humble man who longed for a life where he could keep a few cattle, goats, chickens, and a large garden to sustain him. This was his one true life dream.
Now that he knew he had to travel next week, Luke began to feel anxious. He hated flying, and the thought of planes freaked him out. It just didn't make any sense to him how a large metal object filled with people could safely fly through the air at several hundred miles per hour. Weird. But he began to brace for it, anyway
Surprisingly, the rest of the week flew by. Luke happily finished the work he had cut out for him. He liked to have a task to do. His initial nature would be to lay around and be lazy, but he much preferred doing meaningful things. Things like running, playing music, gardening, and cooking. These things fulfilled his life and kept him busier more than anything else.
As fast as Friday rolled around, it finished just as quickly. He hurried home in light traffic. He was going to go take a bike ride through the town. He got home, changed into shorts and a t-shirt, and jumped on his bike. He enjoyed riding down the big hill, around the sharp bend, and into town. The freedom of cruising on a bike was something he savored.
As he came into town, he was pleasantly surprised at the sight of large, white tents. Friday was farmer's market day, where local farms brought their produce to town and sold it at a reasonable price. He set his bike against the tree, realizing he had forgotten his lock. He contemplated going back to get it for a moment, but decided to just leave it. He'd be nearby, anyway. He perused through the various veggies and fruits and eventually decided on beets and lettuce. With tomatoes and carrots from the garden at home, he'd be able to make a delicious salad.
The woman running this particular stand was someone he had seen several times before, and had talked to several times in the last few months. She offered a discount for being a repeat customer, but he happily paid full price and included a tip. She smiled and said "Luke, you always know how to bring me a smile!" Luke shrugged with a smile, and said "Have a good one." He grabbed his goods and headed back to his bike. He did a double take and saw his friends Garrett and Amir. They had stopped in at the bar across the street from the market. "Garrett!" Luke shouted. His two friends responded with a loud, "Hey man!" Luke walked over to meet them.
As he walked up, he asked "Got any plans tonight?"
To which they responded, "No, why?"
Luke remembered he had some meat he could cook up for them all. "Come on over to my place! I'm gonna make some dinner and drinks." They agreed, and they started walking up to Luke's house.
When they arrived at his house, Luke put on some music and grabbed some beers. He fired up the grill in the backyard and they began to catch up with each other's lives.
It was a nice Friday night, accompanied by friends, jazz, and good food. After they had finished eating, he pulled out his favorite guitar, and strummed and plucked away for a couple hours, as they talked. He found that he often lost himself in music. He could turn off the world for a little bit and just play. They sat out on the deck for nearly three hours before Garrett stood up and yawned, "I've got to get up early tomorrow, I should get going. Thanks for dinner, man!" Amir agreed with Garrett, and Luke walked them out and told them goodnight. Luke cleaned up the kitchen, and upon the feeling of drowsiness, Luke happily slipped into bed late, at around midnight.
His weekend passed quickly, as he kept busy working in the garden and running errands. It was a nice, warm weekend that he enjoyed, yet the thought of flying across the country was there in the back of his mind, nagging him. Sunday night came before he knew it. Luke sighed at the thought of boarding a plane that next morning.
Luke woke up, ate almost no breakfast, and drove to the airport in the late morning, his stomach in a knot. He parked in the lot where you could keep your car for several days while you were out of town. As he walked to the terminal, he could feel himself getting slightly dizzy and increasingly nervous. He showed his ticket to the lady at the boarding desk, and walked onto the plane. He was too nervous to really think about anything else going on. He just sat in his seat and stared at the one in front of him. After what seemed like an eternity, the captain announced over the intercom that they were ready to depart. Luke took a deep breath, his vision getting fuzzy. His heart was pumping like crazy and he could hardly feel his fingers and toes. The plane started moving, the engines screaming outside. As they started to leave the ground, Luke heard himself make a moan and then he was out.
Hours later, he woke up to the voice of the flight attendant. She was shaking him awake saying, "Excuse me, sir...sir? We've landed. It's time to get off of the plane now". He shot up, trying to play it off like he hadn't just panicked himself into passing out. "Yeah, I'm good," he said groggily. "Thanks". He departed the plane with his carry on bag, the only thing he brought with him. He somewhat prided himself with being a light traveler. He made his way through the airport and out to the area where cars, mostly taxi cabs, were whisking people away to their next destination.
Luke had only taken a cab a few times, on his last visit to New York, and still wasn't really sure about taxicab customs. He hesitantly waved one down, and gave the driver his destination. He was headed for Central Park.
When he arrived, he handed the driver the cash for the toll and got out of the car. It was about seven hours from his home to New York, and he was starving. He didn't need to be anywhere until the next morning. As it was about dinnertime, he walked to a café on the edge of Central Park. He sat and ate a whole pizza and drank a couple of beers (he had recently turned 21), as a reward for being so brave about his flight. Yeah, right.
The time passed by slowly, but Luke didn't care one bit. He took in the scene, people bustling about, even in the night. People always had somewhere to be, no matter who or where you were.
He finished his meal, paid, and decided to walk around the park with his messenger bag, packed with a few days of clothes and essentials. He walked by flower gardens, couples holding hands, huge trees, and overall just a beautiful scene. He absorbed as much as he could, while he was in the park that night. He walked late into the night, breathing in the warm evening air, and was thankful for where he was.
He saw many interesting things that night, but as the moon came up and people retreated back to their homes, Luke found himself almost alone in the park. He continued along the path when he thought to himself, "It's so quiet, serene. He heard no more people, but he could hear the faint crackling of bugs swarming the streetlights.
It was getting late, and between the flight, the pizza, and the walking, he was exhausted. He began to meander back to his hotel to check in. He started to take the scenic route back. As he came across a small clearing in the vegetation, he noticed something on the path, about fifty feet ahead of him. He blinked several times to make sure he wasn't losing his mind. "Must be a stray dog", he thought. He quietly walked closer, trying to keep his presence a secret.
He crept up a little closer, about twenty feet away now. He could not believe his eyes. He started blinking harder, hoping to reset his vision and bring up a clearer image of the path, as he continued approaching. He must have been imagining this. He came within ten feet of it and blurted out, "There is no freaking way". As the words left his lips, the huge cockroach turned around and saw Luke standing there in awe.