Gone and Reborn

DINNER

A couple of months had passed and Jo had started to feel a little less crappy at last. Eric´s new therapy was finally working and she was making slow progress. She´d still have nightmares but they were scarce and Eric was helping her deal with them and the way they made her feel, instead of dreading them all the time and trying to avoid them.

She´d added a few dancing lessons, some self-defense classes and even a cooking course to her routine and things were looking up. Regardless, Jo still felt wary about it and she´d sometimes have the feeling that one day it would all crumble down and everything would be just a sad joke on her sanity.

Whenever these thoughts crossed her mind, she would inevitably end up being terrified about finding out that she´d been living in a lie, that all this therapy had been doing was giving her a false sense of security… Cause that would mean she´d end up losing her mind, or at least what was left of it.

It all still felt so fragile and new that she feared it would just tumble down to the ground like a flimsy house of cards.

Jo took a deep breath and pushed her thoughts to the back of her mind as her van rolled through the streets towards the yoga studio. She stole a glance towards Ally, who was sitting on the passenger seat, looking down the window.

-Thanks for joining me for this class- Jo said, smiling at her- You´re gonna love it, it´s amazing!

Ally gave her a weak smirk and nodded at her briefly, before turning her attention back to the street.

-Are you ok, kiddo?- Jo asked, eyeing her with concern- You´ve been awfully quiet and that´s not like you at all, if I didn´t know you any better I would say you´ve taken a vow of silence.

-Yeah- Ally replied tiredly- I´m ok, it´s just work and a few little things I´ve been worrying about…Nothing serious, just petty stuff, don´t worry.

-K… If you say so- Jo trailed off as they reached the place and she got distracted finding an empty spot. An hour later, they were exiting the studio again, their yoga mats perched on their shoulders along with three of Jo´s classmates.

They stood at the entrance of the building, making small talk and just gossiping around when Lena, one of the youngest students, snapped her head towards the parking lot. Her eyes focusing on something behind them with great interest.

-Oh my!- she wheezed, fanning her face excitedly - Who´s that dreamboat?

Ally and Jo turned their heads towards the direction she was nodding at and Jo found Saul leaning on his Harley that was parked just beside her van, wearing a tight black shirt rolled over his elbows to show his beautiful ink, his defined legs tucked in some ripped jeans, his shiny hair put up in a man bun and a pair of sunglasses shading his eyes as he smirked playfully at her.

He uncrossed his tattooed arms from his chest and gave her a small wave that was enough to make her dizzy with lust.

-That´s Jo´s man- she hazily heard Ally´s voice say with scorn- Sorry cupcake, he´s taken.

-Well, god bless you girl!- Lena screeched with her marked slurred accent, side hugging her and placing an arm over her shoulder as she continued to stare blatantly in Saul´s direction.-What a stunner you got yourself there… no wonder you´ve been keeping him so well hidden from our peasant eyes!

Jo shook Lena´s arm off, ignoring her and walking up to meet Saul, leaving the four of them standing there and just staring at the scene.

-Hey!- she said blushing once she reached the place where he stood- What are you doing here?

-Just waiting for you, Sugar- He replied pecking her lips, then waving a hand at Ally- I´m taking you out for dinner.

- How did you even know I would be here?- Jo asked, furrowing her brows.

-It´s not that hard, sweetie-pie… We´ve been dating for months, it was just a matter of time before I learnt your schedule by heart.

-Wait! Did you say dinner?- Jo exclaimed, pointing at her yoga pants and messy pony tail- No way, I´m not even dressed for it and I´m so sweaty and gross right now!

-That´s bullshit!- he laughed, pulling her closer towards him- You look just perfect! And besides, the place we´re going to doesn´t have clothing etiquette. Now hop on and let´s go already.

He reached for the helmet, then started placing it on her head and strapping it as Jo tried to find something else to say.

-But I drove here- she finally muttered- I can´t leave my van here!

-I´ll drive it home- Ally said, and Jo turned to find her standing behind her with an extended hand- Don´t worry, now give me your keys, get your ass on that bike and stop bickering.

Ally waved her fingers at her with her palm facing up, urging her to hurry up. So, she looked down in defeat at the key chain clutched in her hand and placed it in hers.

-Ok- she sighed- Just don´t speed kiddo, I don´t want you earning me a ticket.

-Whatever mom!- Ally replied dismissively, peeling the yoga mat off Jo´s shoulder, then unlocking the van and jumping into it- Have fun you guys… and Saul… make me proud.

-Oh I will, ma´am I will!- Saul laughed winking at her, bringing a hand against his forehead and offering her a brief salute, before helping Jo getting on the motorcycle.

-What the hell is she talking about?- Jo asked while he sat in front of her, reaching for her hands and securing them around his abs.

-Oh, you´ll see it for yourself soon enough- he replied, starting the engine, the roar of it drowning his voice.

It had started getting dark by the time they drove down a too familiar street. Jo frowned when he rode through the entrance of his apartment complex and parked at his usual spot.

-I thought you said we were going out for dinner- she spoke when he turned the engine off and helped her down.

-We are- he smirked, offering her his arm and urging her to start walking.

He led her through the entrance of the building and into the elevator, where Jo stood in silence with a confused look as it went all the way up, her puzzlement growing when they reached the tenth floor and it just kept going up.

That´s when she realized Saul had entered a different number on the keypad this time and they were heading for the twentieth floor instead. She´d barely had time to register this fact when the doors opened and she was welcomed by a spectacular sight.

A huge terrace stood before them, dimly lit with hundreds of tiny light bulbs and decorated with a vast variety of ornamental plants. A lounge area with two couches at the edge of it and a single large table placed at the middle, along with two chairs and a set of fine tableware with some steamy food lying on it.

Jo paced shakily following Saul, her sneakers creaking on the fancy tiles. She reached the edge of the roof top and peeked around, marveling at the immensity of the city lights.

They were on the highest tower in miles and all she could see was a sea of tiny sparkles extending before her. She shook her head dizzily for a moment, overwhelmed by the amazing sight, her eyes darting up to the dark sky, where a beautiful full moon shone.

-Would you join me?- she heard Saul´s voice say and she turned around to find him standing by the table, pulling a chair back and nodding at it with a hopeful smile on his face.