Alex trails behind the lovebirds as they head into the gates. As the swimming pool comes into view from where they're walking towards the locker rooms that are connected to the separate showers, she notices that it is technically empty if it isn't for the middle-aged man in his blue swim shorts seated on one of the laid-out benches. They get to the locker room, and she joins Jenny, changing into her black swimming shorts and tank top as she watches Jenny shed her jeans and top to reveal her pink bikini set with tiny yellow flowery patterns. Her eyes linger for more than a few minutes, lost in the thought of how beautiful and sexy Jenny looked as she put her hair in a bun.
"Alex…Alex…" Jenny's voice disrupts her thoughts as she shakes her head, cursing under her breath and looking at her eyes now.
"Yeah?"
"Where'd you go?"
"Sorry, random thoughts. What were you saying again?"
"I was asking if you needed some sunscreen, silly." Jenny says, a soft smile on her face.
"I carried mine, thanks girl." Alex replies, shuffling in her bag for the yellow bottle of sunscreen.
Jenny runs out of the locker room squealing and straight up jumps into the pool, having pulled her knees close to her chest before she lands on the water. Alex laughs as she watches her head come up from under the water, laughing and urging her to also jump in since the water was warm. She shakes her head as she stands at the edge of the pool and dives in, her hands held together and stretched out just like a professional diver. The warm water feeling nice on her skin as she opens her eyes underwater, the familiar sting hitting first before her view adjusts, and the familiar shades of blue caused by the sun's rays sipping into the water come into view. She glides slowly, enjoying the warm water on her skin, and seeing Jenny's feet treading water, she decides to join her above water and swims to the surface.
Gasping softly as she comes up for air, Alex slowly pulls her hair back away from her face as she opens her eyes and spots Dave getting into the water and Jenny swimming towards him. "Ugh! Why did he have to come today?" She mutters under her breath as she watches them talk and kiss, turning away and deciding to swim a couple of laps, in an effort to keep her mind occupied and her heart somewhat soothed from the jealousy that threatened to show its ugly face. Three laps gone, she decides to hit the washrooms, then come back and relax on the benches to pass the time. For some reason, the architects of this building decided to put the washrooms separate and further down the hall.
"Who separates washrooms from showers like that? Weird people, that's who..." Alex mutters as she walks to the washrooms, noticing how eerily quiet it is as she passes the receptionist's office, not seeing anyone behind the desk, the sounds of her sandals hitting the tiled floor producing an echo as she walks. The hallway walls start feeling too close to her as she seems to be taking forever to get to the washroom door, which is now directly in front of her view. Hastening her steps she focuses on the door handle as she tries to regulate her breathing, which was now coming in shorter with every passing second. The feeling of the cold metal coming in contact with her fingers makes her take a long, deep breath as she pushes the door open with so much force she ends up stumbling head-first inside the washroom.
Her left hand automatically holds her body weight against the wall as she bends over, breathing deeply in and out as she composes herself. Her claustrophobia gets too extreme sometimes, and in worse-case scenarios she ends up getting a panic attack, which she was so glad that it didn't happen this time around. She knew she was not good with empty spaces, but she did not want to disturb Jenny to take her to the washroom like she always does. Walking towards the farthest cubicle and shutting the door behind her, it takes her less than two minutes to finish up, and she flashes the toilet, stepping out and heading to the sinks. A shadow flashes behind the washroom door, forcing her to stop in her tracks. Looking closely at the space between the foot of the door and the floor, she calls out, "Is anyone there?… Hello?" No reply. She shrugs, deciding to wash her hands quickly and sprint out of there, only for her to hear heavy footsteps outside the door. This time her eyes catch the shadow and the front part of a pair of black official shoes standing directly outside the washroom door. She panics, and in a shaky voice, she calls out once more, "Hello?… Who's there?" her eyes refusing to move away from the shadow. She watches as the shoes take a step back from the door, and another, the sounds of footsteps now echoing as the shadow disappears from the door. Clutching her chest, she heaves in and out, eyes shut as she tries to compose herself. It was as if she was holding her breath the entire time. Opening the tap connected to the sink, she lets the water rush out as she washes her face over and over again, in a futile attempt to wash away the image stuck in her head.
Minutes pass, she didn't know exactly how long she had stayed in the washroom until she heard Jenny's voice calling out for her from afar. As if that had given her some adrenaline, she sprints out of the washroom and sees Jenny on the other side of the hallway, and she doesn't stop running towards her, eventually landing in her open arms, hugging her tight as she takes deep breaths. "You're okay now, I got you," Jenny says softly as her hand strokes Alex's hair in the hopes of calming her down. Alex detaches from Jenny after a minute or two, composed now as she smiles at her in appreciation. They walk towards the pool hand in hand in comfortable silence until Jenny turns and looks at her, a concerned look on her face. "Your phone has been constantly ringing, and I went to check the locker rooms, but I didn't find you there. I checked your phone only for it to ring again, and I saw it was your mom calling. I answered, only for her to tell me to inform you that an emergency came up. I think you should head home and see what's up. I'll go with you." Alex looks at her in shock, trying to process what she just heard. As the gravity of the situation slowly dawns on her, she lets go of Jenny's hand and rushes to the locker room, changing out of her swimming attire immediately. Jenny comes in closely behind her, getting her bag, but before she can start changing, Alex stops her, telling her she should stay with Dave and instead she will just get a cab home.
"No. I'm coming with you, Alex, I'm not leaving you to go alone. I'll talk to Dave, don't worry about it." Jenny insists. Alex drops her bag and moves closer to her, reaching out towards her and holding her right palm in between her hands. "Jenny, it's okay. I will text you immediately after I get home and after I've dealt with the emergency. Please, I can handle this." Jenny sighs, nodding her head and pulling Alex in for another hug before she lets her go, sadness and worry plastered on her face. Alex picks up her bag and pockets her phone as she speed-walks out of the locker room, heading to the gate, ignoring the thought that she had not, at the very least, said bye to Dave. As she steps out of the gate, she looks up at the sky, noticing dark clouds starting to gather. Walking through the parking lot towards the main road, she silently prays that it doesn't start raining before she gets home. Luckily she doesn't get to stand and wait for a cab to pass by as she notices one coming immediately the main road comes into view, so she waves her hand out for the cab driver to notice, and luckily, he does, coming to a stop a few feet in front of her and she rushes in. Throughout the car ride, her mind would not stop wondering what her mom meant by emergency and why she kept calling nonstop.
Did something happen? Was it Dad again with his garage "accidents"? Did they get too bad that he ended up getting seriously injured? Or is it about what they were arguing about early morning? What was the argument about anyway?
She gets pulled back to reality when the cab makes a gradual stop. Looking outside the window, she notices she's arrived home. Taking a twenty and handing it to the driver, she thanks him and alights the cab, only to notice three black SUVs parked in front of the cab. Her mind starts racing once again, taking a minute to stare at the cars before walking towards her front door, a weird feeling of anguish and dread settling deep in her stomach the closer she got to the door.
Alex could hear voices coming from the house the closer she got to the door. One stood out in its familiarity—her dad, shouting. Swallowing hard, she turns the knob and slowly opens the door, not knowing her entire was about to be turned upside down from that moment in time.