Chapter 231: On the Metro
Monday, January 23rd, Evening
Karen "Kay" Scott thanked her blessings because she made enough money to afford to live in Chicago. She had a lovely one-bedroom apartment on the "L" Line in the South Loop, near the river. Because of this, she didn't need a car, which was good because cars scared her.
Standing by her living room window, she could see the train tracks off in the distance. The wind howled outside the glass, and Kay knew if she touched the glass, her skin would feel the cold. It's grey out and looked like rain, which could also mean snow.
A train moved off in the distance; Kay looked over to her all but abandoned smartphone. Ivy was working tonight so that she won't be over; that left Kay all alone, with her thought.
Kay looked down at her empty wineglass. The wine was a North Carolina red she liked, that she brought a case with her to Chicago. Kay looked over across the living room to the kitchen. She contemplated getting up to refill the glass.
She stood up and grabbed the wine glass; instead of heading to the kitchen, she stopped and sat in her chair. Kay recovered her smartphone and went into her cloud drive. Finding some old pictures, she looked at them. In terms of years, it was an old picture that may be just over five years, but in reality, it seemed like a whole another lifetime ago. Kay looked at the slowly growing tattoo on her right arm. Turning back to the smartphone, Kay looked at the picture, a selfie taken on a wet London Winter Day with King's Cross Railway Station in the background.
(Flashback in italics)
Kay hopped into the seat of the Eurostar Train. She couldn't wait to get to London. This season was Kay's second winter to play in Europe, and she just finished up playing and had a few days off. So, she was off to London.
She enjoyed playing for ESB Villeneuve-d'Ascq, located in the Villeneuve-d'Ascq Commune in the Nod Department, part of Métropole Européenne de Lille; the team was great, the area was fantastic. In short, she loved playing in the Ligue Féminine de Basketball (LFB). Topping it all off, Kay found out there is an incredible museum there, the Lille Métropole Museum of Modern, Contemporary and Outsider Art.
Being the only American on the team, Kay often felt lonely. Her French wasn't the best, but she kept working on it.
Her day started early, as she bundled up against the winter weather and caught the VAL to Lille. Once in Lille, she made her way to Gare de Lille-Europe. After passing through both French and UK security, she got onto the train.
Sinking into her seat, she put in her earbuds and tried to sleep. Kay couldn't sleep because she was trying to search for the words she wanted to say. It's been a long time and a lot of miles since she saw the person on the other side of the rail trip.
As the train moved off, there were several stops along the way; Kay would spend time thinking about what she had to say. Looking to the seat across from her, a guy was sleeping. His hair is short, which could mean many different things. Kay knew he's a soldier; she could spot them even if they are asleep.
Kay nervously played with her fingernails and refused to look out the window as they passed through the Chunnel. It's only about an hour and a half from Lille to London. If she had more free time and money, she's spent more time in London.
The last time she remembered visiting London was when Keith arrived in London. He was on a trip for business overseeing some RBR business. They had dinner, drinks, and talked; he was doing well. She was getting better.
Kay went back to trying to place the words and feelings she wanted to share. Reaching into her coat pocket, she pulled out a copy of Getting Past the Affair by Douglas K. Snyder, Donald H. Baucom, and Kristina Coop Gordon.
The train ride wasn't long enough. Kay found herself following behind the soldier as she disembarked at St. Pancras International in London. Kay adjusted her bag on her shoulder and slipped the book back into her coat pocket.
Outside St. Pancras, Kay found who she was here to meet. There she stood a vision in an expensive white coat. Her pale skin and pale blonde hair gave her an angelic appearance. Their eyes met across the distance, and the blonde was looking very Mother of Dragons.
Kay felt a cold rain land on her. Quickly, Kay closed the distance to her "girlfriend," Connie Garland. Once they were close together, Kay's blue eyes kept in contact with Connie's violet eyes. Kay noted Connie was smiling as they looked at each other.
"Darling," Connie said.
"Connie," Kay said.
"How was your trip?" Connie asked.
"Short and uneventful," Kay said.
"Follow me," Connie said.
"Where are we going?" Kay asked as Connie pulled her arm.
"This calls for a selfie, and I know where," Connie said.
"Do we have to?" Kay asked, "Connie, we need to talk."
"We will, but first a selfie," Connie said.
Connie, who was shorter and slighter than Kay, practically pulled her across Pancras Road to what looked like a castle with a clock tower and two big arched eyes of glass. Connie had her smartphone out and was holding it up, trying to find the perfect spot to take the selfie.
"Where are we?" Kay asked.
"King's Cross Station," Connie said.
"So?" Kay asked.
"Not a Harry Potter fan?" Connie asked.
"Is that the one with the Sparkling Vampires?" Kay asked.
"No, that's Twilight," Connie said, "Come here, let's take this selfie."
"If we must," Kay said, and took her place next to Connie. They posed for several pictures, including a kiss, which Kay reluctantly did.
Once done, they slowly walked along the road.
"Why did we agree on London? Last year we were in Paris. Wintertime in Paris, it was beautiful," Connie said.
"You were coming here," Kay said.
"I'm sorry," Connie said,
"What?" Kay asked.
"I'm sorry, I dragged you to London; I should've gone to Paris," Connie said, "But this trip was an opportunity I couldn't turn down."
"It doesn't matter, I'm on train routes to both," Kay said.
"Paris in winter, the cafés, the Seine," Connie said, "Remember we walked along the banks of the Seine?"
"Yes, we did," Kay said.
Kay felt Connie's hand in her's, their gloved fingers intertwined. Connie's grip was weak, and she felt like she's a hundred miles away.
"We need to talk," Kay said.
"We are talking, Kay," Connie said.
"About Paris in the winter, it's not what we need to talk about," Kay said.
"Pish, Paris is more important," Connie said.
Something in Kay broke, and she ripped her hand away from Connie's. Kay's last sight of Connie was her smiling as Kay turned away. What happened after Paris the previous year still hurt?
Kay stormed back to Saint Pancras. After finding out the next train back to Lille would leave, she bought a ticket. Having time to kill, Kay found a chip shop where she could hang out until her train left to return to Lille.
Looking up from her plate of fish and chips, Kay noticed the soldier from the train. Kay reached into her jacket and pulled out a badly wrinkled and folded letter.
Connie gave her the note before they walked along the river Seine last year. Paris is truly a city of lights and love. The cool air and the lights made the whole situation just perfect for romance. Connie leaned against her for comfort and warmth. At one point, they found a place to sit. They would make out under the lights of Paris in the chilly winter night.
Kay looked at the note and locked in on one of the lines. In Connie's script, it said simply, "I'll love you always." Kay started shaking her head; she crushed the note again. Warm tears were streaming down, warming her cold cheeks.
Looking back up, she made eye contact with the soldier. The soldier shook his head and looked away.
A four-letter word filled Kay's mind, hate. At that moment, she hated Connie. Kay hated Connie for what she did. Kay hated Connie for just blowing it off. Kay hated Connie most of all for loving her.
In the present, Kay shook out of her daydream. On the floor, her wine glass laid shattered. Kay closed her connection to the cloud and deleted the old picture from her smartphone, again. She threw the smartphone onto the sofa. All it was all about Connie swimming through hallow apologizes.
Kay looked at her growing tattoo on her right arm. Slowly, she drew up her knees and hugged them. Kay started to cry.
That was when her smartphone started to ring. Kay stood up, took a deep breath, centering herself, and retrieved her smartphone.
"Hey, Ivy," Kay said, answering her smartphone.
"Hey yourself, how are you doing all alone?" Ivy asked.
"I'm dealing," Kay said, "How's your night?"
"So, far, it's a good one," Ivy said.
Kay nodded, "Good to hear," she said and looked at the broken glass, and then her tattooed arm. Yes, she's dealing, badly, but dealing, Kay reflected.
