Tori sat back against her mother’s headboard and pulled her legs up to tighten the laces of her seasoned running shoes. The stale, tan room had lacked sufficient light and air flow, but Tori recently brightened it up with a few floor lamps and an air purifier.

“Ah,” her mother groaned softly as she slowly adjusted herself up into a seated position. “Looks like its your run day.”

“Yep. How’s your abdomen?”

“Fine.”

Tori knew she was lying. Her mother’s pain seemed to be increasing. Tori had watched her mother slowly wither down to nothing. Her mother was fading from her, just as Jim had.

It was difficult to watch the denigration, and then relive the emotional heartache she had been through with Jim. Her mother wouldn’t understand, and she shouldn’t have to. So, Tori held back her thoughts, but most importantly, she held back her tears.

“I have an idea, Mom. Would you like me to bring you some yarn to knit?”

“That’s kind of you, sugar. But my hands are too weak these days to knit.”

Tori loved it when her mother called her sugar. She had only picked up a few Southern words from her few years in Atlanta, and that was one of them.

Tori’s nerves kicked into hyper drive. “I’m not sure what to expect on the run.”

“You seem uneasy about a simple run. You’ve done a hundred of these. Why are you anxious about this one?”

“It’s nothing. I’ve just never been hit in the head with colored chalk before.” Tori didn’t sound convincing, even to herself. She couldn’t bring up the hunk she had been thinking about nonstop for the past four months.

“Relax. I’ve known you to always emanate goodness. You must expect that what you project out will come back to you tenfold.”

“You don’t usually talk this way.” Tori looked suspiciously at her mother. “Are you preparing a book with words of counsel for us?”

Her mother adjusted the covers over her legs. “It may be on my mind.”

“I’m not sure Annie is the best influence on you. Next, you’re going to tell me to embrace my inner child.”

“Couldn’t hurt.”

Tori rolled her eyes. At least her nerves were beginning to calm, and, more importantly, her cold sore had healed.

“Can I massage your feet before I leave? You’ll rest better.”

“Annie beat you to it. She was here early this morning for a few minutes. She wanted to set our interview appointment up for tomorrow.”

“And she massaged your feet? That seems a bit odd.”

“She wanted to try out this new essential oil she bought.”

“That was sweet of her,” Tori said with a twinge of sarcasm.

“You’re my dearest sweetheart,” her mother said, cupping Tori’s face in her withered hands. Her brown eyes were warm and gentle. “I love you forever.”

Her mother was never one to give verbal affection. Perhaps it was a tender mercy to have time to say good-bye. It cut Tori to the core to watch her mother become dependent on others after being so independent her entire life. Although, her mother had also grown more affectionate and meek.

“I’d better leave.” Tori looked down at her phone. “I need to meet up with Annie and Zee.”

“Zee. Who’s Zee?”

Tori’s face flushed. “He is, um, her boyfriend. I mean, I think her cousin’s fiancé.”

Her mother’s face scrunched in confusion. “Her cousin’s fiancé?”

Shoot, her mother could see right through her. Tori took a deep breath and concentrated. “Her fiancé’s cousin.”

“I see,” she said, taking Tori’s hands in hers. “Promise me that you’ll allow yourself to relax and have fun today.”

“Okay.”

“Will you stop by with your friends after the race? I’d love to hear the details.”

“We’ll be caked in chalk.”

“I don’t care.”

“Wait. Who are you? And what have you done with my mother?”

“Do you really think that I care about a little colored chalk these days? In my condition?”

“I just never thought I’d hear you say not to worry about making a mess.”

“Want to make me happy?” She squeezed Tori’s hand. “Bring your friends.”

“You got it, alien mother.” Tori kissed her mother’s cheek and ran out the door to find Annie.

* * *

They’d decided to meet an hour before the race at the botanical gardens where a tulip festival was in full swing. There were advertised to be 300,000 tulips emerging from bulbs brought in straight from Holland. What did the Dutch not do right?

The refreshing morning breeze carried a fruity, floral scent. Tori stood at the top of the hill, overlooking the rows of bright blossoms. She marveled at how they wove into intricate shapes and patterns, diamonds within diamonds, and teardrops within teardrops. The tulips were arranged with meticulous care. She’d never seen anything like it. Friends of hers had posted on social media recent trips to Holland, displaying the sprawling tulip fields, but photos never did flowers their due justice. This was like an explosion of art. Vincent van Gogh, the native Dutchman, would have been scrambling for paints.

“Tori!”

When Tori turned around, he was standing in front of her. “Hey, Zee.” She tried to sound causal.

His white t-shirt fit perfectly. “So good to see you again.” As he spoke, his white teeth glistened, contrasting his bronzed chin. “How’ve you been?”

Tori swallowed, praying her knees wouldn’t give out. “Good. And you?”

“Can’t complain.”

There was an awkward moment of silence as they viewed the gardens from their perch. Tori couldn’t think of one smidgen of pleasantries to entertain him with.

“Annie said she’d be a few minutes late. Would you like to check out the botanical gardens with me?”

Tori shrugged her shoulders. “Sure.”

“This is amazing!” Zee exclaimed as they approached a hill of cascading water fountains lined with an array of yellow and pink tulips.

His vivacity made Tori laugh. He reminded her of Ethan. They both seemed to get a kick out of life. “Have you been to the tulip farms in Holland?”

“I’ve been to Holland, but never in the spring. You?”

“I wish. This is my first time to a tulip festival.”

“Mine as well,” he said with enthusiasm. “And I’m glad to spend this first moment with you.” He lightly touched her arm with the back of his hand, causing her to take in a quick breath. “I didn’t think there were many more of those on my bucket list.”

“Ever been on a chalk run before?”

He shook his head. “You?”

“No. Seems we’ll be sharing two firsts together today.” She was flirting with him, but it was all in the name of fun as her mom had suggested.

“I have an idea. Why don’t you think of all the places you’ve never been, but would like to see; and all the things you’d like to do, but never done. I’ll do the same, then we’ll compare notes.”

She swung her hands in the air as she gave a little skip. “Okay.”

* * *

Annie finally arrived at the gardens minutes before they were scheduled to take their places on the line.

Zee waved to her as she approached. “Thought you’d changed your mind. You missed some amazing flowers.”

“Sorry, got caught. You’ll have to tell me all about it, down to the very last detail.” She raised her sunglasses and winked at him.

Was she flirting? Or was it another inside moment of confidence? They seemed to share quite a few of those.

Annie stretched down and touched her toes. “Now remember, I don’t run. I’m only doing this to get material for my next novel, and release some pent-up anger.” She turned to Tori and whispered, “Get ‘em in the head. I find it to be…”

“The best therapy,” Tori and Zee said simultaneously.

Annie continued her stretching routine by raising her right arm up and pulling it over her body. “I’m a genius,” she said quietly.

“What was that, Annie?” Tori questioned.

“Oh, nothing. I couldn’t be more excited about this race, and with as good as this date’s, I mean day’s going, I’m set to get enough material for two books.” This time Annie raised an eyebrow to Zee.

Tori put her hands on her hips. “Seriously, what is it with these winks and eyebrow thingies you keep doing?”

Zee grabbed Tori by the elbow and pulled her aside. “She’s a writer. She tends toward crazy, but I like to call her eccentric.”

“Heard that.” Annie interjected. “Thought you said I was funny, not crazy?”

Zee smirked. “Still to be determined.”

The moment the shot fired, Annie unloaded her first round at Zee’s head and laughed. “Told you it’s the best therapy.”

A blue puff still lingered around Zee’s shoulders as he grabbed Tori’s hand and set out on a run. “Come on, we’ll lose her in two shakes.”

“Twenty nanoseconds? I’m fast, but not that fast,” Tori said, running through yellow mist.

“I’m impressed.”

Impressed? Tori warmed at the thought that he could appreciate an intelligent woman. “Thought about being a nuclear physicist. I excelled at math until college.”

“Then what happened?”

“Then I excelled at boys.”

“Got it. I’m interested in seeing how fast you really are,” he said, lengthening his stride.

Tori dropped behind him to contemplate his perfect physique. Was it the endorphins at work, or realizing that Zee did have a competitive drive and a beautiful body, that caused her heart to pump happy chemicals through her body. “Maybe, you didn’t get a good look at my legs?” she teased, pushing past him. A chalk bag pelted her back with what she could only guess held red chalk by the crimson cloud wafting around her arms. “They were made for running.”

A flirtatious smile brightened Zee’s eyes. “I’ll be sure to give them more attention in the future.”

* * *

Tori leaned over, panting. She hadn’t run that fast in ages. She waved off the bottle of water that Zee offered her. “If I drink anything right now, I’m gonna hurl.”

“Are you a surfer?”

She laughed. “That’s another never done on my list.”

“Really? Because you sure sounded like one.”

“Don’t surfers have the reputation of being flaky and unintelligent?”

“They tend to come off that way, but having known my fair share of surfers, I’d say that’s because they keep it real, without any pretenses.”

“I like how you see people.”

“I see you.”

“Really?” she said, drawing out the word. “And how do you see me?”

“For starters, you have vibrant purple and pink hair,” he said, twisting a strand of a blue, corn starch curl. “And you smell intoxicating, like a gym sock.”

Tori laughed. “Oh stop, please. You’re making me blush with your flattery.”

His face changed slightly, growing more serious. “And your eyes, they see past the superficial scars, and into the soul.” He tipped his forehead into hers, causing her to melt into his gaze. He looked at her as if he were asking a question. “And your mouth,” he said, leaning down.

As his breath warmed Tori’s lips, a fear grasped her, causing her to pull away sharply. “I had a fun day today, and I really needed that.”

“But?”

How could she explain to him her apprehension, and the guilt associated with being attracted to another man? “I’m not ready for this. And to be truthful, I’m not sure that I’ll ever be.”

His eyes blinked softly. “It’s okay.”

“Really? You’re being honest?” Tori had her doubts but he seemed sincere. “You’re not offended?”

“Slightly disappointed. Never offended. What’s offensive is how long Annie’s taking.” He backed away from Tori and made an exaggerated sweeping with his head in search of Annie. “Do you think she’ll be here before nightfall?”

The field where all the runners had parked their cars had emptied quickly. Tori jumped up onto the curb and scoured the crowd. She noticed Annie embracing someone. “I don’t think she’s in any hurry.”

“Where is she?” Zee questioned, taking a position next to Tori on the curb.

“I hope those are your cousin’s lips she’s tangled up in.”

“That’s him,” he said, shaking his head. “Sounds like a week was more than he could live without her.”

“Is that jealousy I hear in your voice?” The question had escaped her lips before she could stop it.

“Yes, but not the way you’re thinking.”

“What have you been thinking?”

“If you must know, I’ve heard that intimate relationships can be divided into two parts: the physical, and the friendship.” He paused.

Her intrigue mounted. “Define intimate.”

“Safe, healthy bond with family or close friends.

He seemed to be asking another question. She had to know what. “I’m listening.”

“I need to work on intimate friendship. Care to assist me in developing a trait I seem to be lacking?”

Could she trust him? “No tricks?”

“Do I look like a trickster to you?”

She tilted her head and raised a brow. “Gym socks?”

He pointed to his chest. “Surfer. Just keeping it real. You stink.”

Tori pulled an extra baggie of chalk from her sock. “Look what the stinky sock girl just came up with,” she said, nailing him in his left temple.

A yellow plume of silky corn starch engulfed his face.

“Annie was right. That felt amazing.”