Ondrea snapped her head up and stared at the wide open door.
"Ever heard of knocking, Franca?"
"Ever heard of locking the door?" She gave an appreciative whistle, "Nice undies by the way, very sex goddess."
Rea threw a pillow at her friend who dodged it and plopped down laughing on the bed.
"I wanted to see if you were ready, but apparently not."
"I was changing before you barged in." She quickly pulled on plum sweater and dark grey jeans.
"I still can't believe how good you look. I think I just might join your gym when we get back. You've inspired me."
Franca said the last comment more seriously, and Rea knew that she wasn't just referring to her body. A few years back she started to loose herself, and finding a way back is never easy.
She had always been very levelheaded, outspoken, and confident. She was ambitious, working hard to be in the top five of her class and with big hopes for the future. Not a social butterfly, Rea preferring a relaxing bath and mystery novel to a noisy club, but she did like to go out with her friends now and again, or on an occasional date.
Rea's parents got divorced when she was very young. Since then it had been only her and her mom. She had come to depend on her mother more than on any other person, she knew Ondrea through and through. Her mother was her confidant, her closest friend; they had a very special relationship. Her mom had been casually dating, but nothing serious ever came up, until Ferdinand. They had been dating for two years when he asked her to marry him. Ondrea was ecstatic when she heard the news; her mom deserved this so much. She later fought of any negative thoughts by focusing on how happy her mother was and how selfish Rea was being.
Lots of extended family came to town for the occasion and Rea was aviating aunt Claudia's arrival. Claudia was actually Rea's second cousin, but because of the 20 something age difference, she had always called her aunt. The woman vibrantly danced to her own tune, moving to Prague and joining the theater when Rea was five. She would come back to visit often; bring her old stage costumes and jewelry, as well as trinkets from her travels throughout the year. Her visits were always too short, no matter how long she stayed, and this time was no different.
Once her mother moved in with Ferdinand and Claudia went back home, Rea often found herself alone in the house with only her two cats keeping her company. Her mom came over often and they still did a lot together but it was different. Rea busied herself with school, she took on more courses then she could comfortably do and joined committee after committee, she was tired and stressed but it kept her occupied and away from evenings filled with film-noir and wine.
Writing to Claudia helped, the woman always had insight into everything and her optimistic nature rubbed off on everyone. A few years passed, and after a particularly bad week Rea got home to one of the much awaited letters. Her spirits brighter, she ripped it open and started reading. She wasn't greeted with delicate loops and swirls however, but her uncle's messy writing. Claudia had been in a nearly fatal accident and was now comatose and in a very bad state; the doctors gave a slim to none chance of recovery.
With every letter on Claudia's unchanging condition, Rea spiraled farther down into depression. Her marks dropped, she stopped going out, and wine filled evenings became more frequent. She put on a good show for everyone, acting as in her blood, but only Franca truly knew every dark detail about that time of Rea's life.
One day after arriving at an empty home once again to a letter from her uncle that contained no positive news, something snapped. Rea ran out into the crisp October air, the sun had already begun to set, casting a warm glow on the autumn foliage. The bright colours seemed to mock the way she was feeling so she ran faster, not paying attention to where she was going. She ran until her legs were on fire and it seemed that she could not get another breath through her lungs. Coming to a stop, Rea realized that she had run to a playground she used to visit when she was very young. She collapsed on a swing and cried quietly at what had become of her. She wasn't herself anymore, her mind in taters, a chaotic mess. Then she thought of Claudia and what the woman would say seeing her like this. Like a scarab, the thought buried itself into Rea's brain; it helped lead her back.
Ondrea kept running, when she ran all she felt was the pounding of her feet on the pavement, the movement of her body, the way sweat drops ran between her shoulder blades. Running became her drug; it was the only thing that kept her sane in moments of madness.
There was also another payoff which Rea didn't notice until people started to comment on how great she looked. Inspired, she joined a gym and worked her body hard, making it healthy and fit. She celebrated quietly by getting something she had always wanted, a tattoo. It was a small orange tiger, majestically lying below her right hipbone. It looked just like the statue her aunt had given her years ago. It reminded her of just how strong she was.
Not long after, she received another letter from Claudia's address. Rea felt a sharp pang in the pit of her stomach but forced herself to open the envelope. There was a whole letter written from her uncle, but Rea only saw the first line. There was a simple phrase written in the lovely loops and spirals she had loved since she was a kid. It said "I'm okay."
Rea smiled at that memory and unconsciously ran a hand over her tiger. She had been fine for a year now, only having occasional flare-ups. "Exercise is nice and all, but right now want to stuff my face."
She grabbed her key and they excited the room.
"You go on, I'll go get Stan and the rest and we'll meet you there."
The two women separated at the landing as Franca quickly made her way up and Rea went down. She was the only person there and was about to take a seat in one of the lobby armchairs when she saw a familiar face at the reception desk.
Grinning, she ran up to where he was standing and threw her arms around Ian in a tight hug, the kind of hug you give a close person after not seeing them for a year. What surprised her was how warmly he returned it.
Ian wasn't known for his emotional displays. He was quiet, reserved, an enigma. Rea was one of the few people who knew him well, which wasn't saying much. She figured that was what attracted her to him so many years ago. She loved a good game of hide-n-seek and Ian seemed to be skilled at hiding.
"What's this? A real hug and not one of those okay-you-hugged-me-now-let-me-go hugs you're so fond of?"
He didn't answer but instead lightly yanked her ponytail. She stuck her tongue out at him in response.
"Why the long delay?"
"Last minute family gathering, bad shrimp, you get the picture. Say, have you shrunk? You seem shorter..."
"No, actually I think you got into Alice's magic cookies. You're 23, stop growing!"
"You know I can't resist a good cookie. It's still good to see you though, even if you are a midget."
She scowled at him. At least Ian hadn't changed. Their conversation flowed easily, as if not a year but only a few hours passed since they last saw each other. "On a side note, do you want to take your stuff upstairs and join us for lunch?"
"Would love to, I'm starving!
"We went through the menu and everything looks really good, I think we're rarely going to go out." They made their way up the stairs and to the end of the hall, arriving at room 2D. Rea opened the door and walked into the now familiar surrounding.
"Well, here's our room."
"Our?"
