When Ray woke, the room was in complete darkness. He was disoriented and was not sure if it was day or night. Then he remembered, it had been late morning when he fell asleep.
Neela was no longer in bed and because the room was so dark, he presumed it must be early evening at least. He could not believe he had slept all day. He felt annoyed with himself for sleeping so long and he was also a little irritated with Neela for not waking him earlier.
He lay in bed staring into the darkness. He started thinking back over the last few days. It was still barely a week since Lucien had phoned him; things were moving at an incredibly fast pace. Suddenly, for the first time he started to wonder if he was doing the right thing and he felt a knot tighten deep in his stomach.
He had no doubt about his feelings for Neela. Nevertheless, he started to wonder if they were destined to be together. He wondered if they were indeed good for each other. After all just because two people are attracted to each other does not mean they bring out the best in each other.
Had he done the right thing coming to Chicago so soon after her visit? After all, she had indicated that she wanted to take things slowly and he knew she was right. Neither of them should rush headlong into this. There was too much history that could be overlooked if they were too hasty, history that could cause trouble further down the line.
Instead of taking things slowly, he had jumped on the first plane to follow her. For the first time, since they met in New Orleans, he wondered what the future held and if he had made the right choice jumping in so deep so quickly.
Life had been going well in Baton Rouge before Neela showed up. He had felt a certain contentment and acceptance of his lot but he had also been getting on with life. Now everything was in turmoil once more. He smiled wistfully and shook his head. Turmoil and Neela seemed to go hand in hand.
She had said they had all the time in the world. Now, for the first time, he wondered if this was true.
He was not going to sleep anymore so he decided to get up. He sat up turned on the bedside lamp and reached for his prosthetics. His good humour of the past few days had evaporated. He hoped it was just hangover blues.
He really needed to work out. He couldn't go for a run as he only had his regular prostheses with him and he still felt very self-conscious going swimming except at the rehab centre so swimming was not an option either. But, he could go for a walk or better still he could check and see if he could use the gym at County. He needed to do something to shake off this angst. He wondered again what time it was and if the gym was still open. Well, only one way to find out.
He opened the bedroom door and was surprised to discover it was still daylight. He checked the kitchen clock and discovered it was a little after two o'clock. Neela must have blackout blinds. That was why the room was so dark. He wondered where she had gone.
Ah well, it was probably best if he had some time on his own. He showered and dressed. There was still no sign of Neela. He brewed himself a cup of tea and sat by the window allowing the afternoon sunshine to warm him. It was almost three o'clock. For no apparent reason, he started to feel stifled. Panic rose in his chest and he started to breathe really fast. He needed to get out of here. He needed to be alone for a while.
It was a warm Autumn day. Ray threw on his zip-up hoodie, grabbing his wallet and i-pod, he reached for Neela's spare keys and headed out. He walked slowly in the direction of the lake. As he walked, soaking in the early afternoon sunshine, the Clash blared from his headphones. The rhythm of the music and the warm sunshine relaxed him. He arrived at the lakeshore and turned left. He sauntered along slowly not thinking about anything just enjoying the moment. He took no notice at all of where he was going.
He wandered in a daze for some time. Then he noticed he had left the lakeshore and was walking through an area of clubs and restaurants. He recognised a number of venues where he and his band mates had played. He smiled nostalgically. He wondered where they were now. They had contacted him after his accident but he hadn't called back. It was high time he got back in touch, he thought with a smile.
He came to an El station. Without thinking, he entered and bought a ticket. He got on the next train and sat for a number of stops before disembarking. The area did not look familiar and he was not sure what he was doing here but he continued to walk. His i-Pod was now playing an R&B track and he felt quite mellow and did not give much thought to where he was going. The autumn afternoon sunshine warmed his back as he strolled along.
He wandered the streets for some time not knowing exactly where he was going. It was an old warehousing district with many derelict warehouses and some down at heel pubs and cafes. It was not an area he would have frequented during his time in Chicago. Suddenly he recognised a building and his stomach lurched.
What had brought him back here?