24 Weeks...
Chapter Seven
The room was red. Everything in the room was red. The wallpapers were red, the floor was all red, and the cushions randomly scattered all around were red. The color of the entire room blended itself so much, especially with the windows all covered by red curtains and lit only by the numerous candles that stayed at one corner, so that if one weren�t looking they would completely miss the circular fluffy red bed lying on the center of the room and the two women sipping champagne. Now if they were actually using the cover that lied somewhere on the bottom of the bed, then the two beauties would have blended to the background too. But for the lovers for just a little over fourth months shyness was the last thing they felt as they lied conjoined in their complete natural state.
�When did you get the time to paint the floors, though?� Olivia finally asked still a little surprised at the scene that greeted her when she had entered her lover�s living room.
�Well�I didn�t do it, myself. I had this guy working on the store so I just got him paint and move few things here too.�
�Yeah but when?�
�Just yesterday actually�I just had too much time in my hand.�
�And that is the reason why you did this?� Olivia asked rolling her head around the room that looked like a magazine cut out for a Valentine�s Day advertisement.
�Yeah�too much time at hand.� Jena concurred as she pulled the champagne bottle to fill her glass for another refill. Before the sparkling liquid could start pouring, Olivia intercepted the bottle.
�What�s going on Jen?� She asked her girlfriend who lately hadn�t seemed like herself.
�What�s going on�what do you mean? I thought we were having the most romantic night�� Jena pretended oblivious to Olivia�s concern.
�Don�t get me wrong�like anyone else I love this whole attention on me. You cooking gourmet meals�you getting crazy ideas like driving for hours just to catch a sunrise�or go skinny-dipping in the middle of the night�or this whole red red room �.I love it all. But, this is not you. At least not the normal you. It feels as though by doing all this you are trying to ignore or hide something.�
�What can I be hiding babe?�
�I don�t know�you might be cheating on me�or cheated on me. And you feel so guilty that you need to do all this to make yourself feel good.�
Jena just laughed at Olivia�s speculation before she answered. �I don�t cheat. I don�t do one-night stands. Never done it. Always been with people I believed I would have relationship with. Except for one time but that was for some specific reason and it was a big mistake. So, no babe I am not cheating on you, or did not cheat on you�. and if I am trying to make anyone feel better here, it�s you.�
�Then ever since you came back from Upstate�when was that?� Olivia asked herself as she tried to remember the approximate time lapsed. �That was in the middle of my mid terms so I would say couple of months ago�yeah couple of months ago�you are acting very extreme. Sometimes you spend whole day and night cooking like you have an army to feed. Then you go through couple of days doing nothing but just work and work so much so that I couldn�t even tempt you with sex�and for a horny girl like you that�s saying a lot.�
�You think I am horny�?� Jena asked cutting her sentence, but before she could say anything else she felt a hand right in between her legs that dipped in and out.
�Yep.� Olivia said putting her two fingers that she had just pulled up from Jena�s sex right in between. �Horny and wet.� She sucked her fingers slowly making sure that her lover didn�t miss a single millimeter that slid into her lips. �All the time.�
�Yeah and you really need to wonder why?� Jena said nudging closer for another dance of their naked bodies, but Olivia gently pushed her back.
�No�not until I get some answers.�
�What answers?�
�What is happening Jen?� Olivia asked for the first time with no smile on her face. �And do not give me crap this time�. like couple of days ago when I found you in almost tears and you said you were just upset over putting too much vinegar in the food. Don�t give me shit baby� tell me what is wrong�because I feel and I know there is something wrong.�
Jena stared at the bottle of champagne that Olivia had put on her side of the bed while she contemplated an answer.
�Not to mention the fact that you rarely drink and tonight in particular you are trying to get drunk.� Olivia added.
�Well�this is just my way of balancing my life.� Jena finally spoke.
Olivia waited patiently while Jena fumbled through her fallen clothing to find a pack of cigarette and lighted one.
�You see business is like a roller-coaster ride. Sometimes its way high up and sometimes its way �way down. The key�well at least for me�the key to surviving is to keep it in balance. Now, when I reach a very scary down points �if I don�t have some highs in life, I�ll suffocate and die or like many commit suicide. For a while I have needed this high �this high point with you.�
�You mean you are at that low a point in business? I thought the store was doing good�. it looks like it is doing well.� Olivia who had never till this moment talked about Jena�s business said feeling a little guilty that she hadn�t paid attention.
�The store is doing terrific. The Seven-Eleven Franchise signed us up again. I just signed the papers transferring it to my name just last week. It is not the store babe. It is about couple of things that I was trying my hands at before I took on the store and it kind a fell through� But it�s ok now. Tonight actually was for celebration, because I gonna get through it.�
�Really�what or how�?�
�Let�s just say I have a plan in action. So, if anything you�ll be missing this side of me for a while.� Jena said hijacking the champagne bottle and pouring toast for both. �And I never use alcohol when I am down�like I said it only accelerates the emotional state you already are in. The reason why I wanna get drunk tonight is because I am happy and I want to feel ten times happier if that is even possible.�
Olivia�s smile returned satisfied with what she heard. She toasted with her girlfriend as the candles that lit the room flickered and died out letting the two lovers slip inside each other before giving in for a deep slumber.
The redness of the room even evaded her dreams, as all she saw was red everywhere with occasional smiles of Jena that appeared and disappeared right away. Olivia smiled in actuality as she chased Jena�s smile in her dreams when finally she ended up at a dead end and there were no smiles and no Jena. The redness all around her started to darken by the speed of a bullet as she felt the walls close onto her. She struggled as the red became black so black that she opened her eyes and stared at the darkness in the room. She stared for couple of seconds when she heard the sound �the sound of an alarm going off below. She turned to wake Jena but she was already awake. Like her, Jena�s eyes were open and she was staring bluntly at the ceiling.
�Jen�what is that?�
�Someone must be breaking in�� Jena replied with no emotion in her voice.
�Let me call the cops.� Olivia said trying to get out of the bed.
�No.� Jena said stopping her. �I�ll call.�
�Congratulation.� The Matron said standing in the middle of the women�s dormitory. �You have successfully made it through the 22 weeks of training in the Police Academy and each and every one of you will be getting a posting in the next two weeks, and you will be joining the ranks of New York�s finest.�
She looked around at the proud recruits whose smile reflected their pride on themselves.
�As you know the reason why there is no final exams is graduating depends entirely on merits you earned during your second half. That is the reason why in the coming week the classes you�ll be taking varies. If you are specifically weak in a particular class you�ll be taking it till the professor gives you a green light, and if you are particularly good at some you won�t have to take it.� She held up a blue folder so that everyone could see. �This holds the class schedule for everyone.� She put it on the nightstand closest to her. �I am proud to say that this time a woman has come second in the batch; which means she�ll be attending only one class this week. Congratulations Ms. Neill.� She looked directly at Jaq and said the last sentence.
�Now for the other matter. The first class for everyone tomorrow is Overview, and for which Lieutenant Rogers has sent over a case file of a local crime that took place about a week ago. It was solved just couple of hours ago and police has made an arrest.�
She held up a bunch of black folders that she was carrying with both her hands.
�He wants you all to discuss and brainstorm about the case just as you would do in future in a squad room. Then be prepared with evidence on whom you would be arresting. In these folders, there is everything that the real Police was working with and used to make their arrests. Good luck ladies.�
As soon as the matron left, the eight recruits that had survived the mid terms jumped with joy and took turns congratulating each other. Gina held both Chris and Olivia in a joint hug for longest time before the women recovered and started to take their folders.
Olivia was still reading through the folder that contained her class schedule when she heard Stacey�s loud voice exclaim.
�Jaq you are a suspect�.�
�Was a suspect�. look what Lieutenant wrote under it.� Stacey�s bunk neighbor said for everyone to hear. �If Ms. Neill is present in your dormitory then it is safe to assume she is not the one arrested. So, you have one less suspect to work with.�
As soon as she finished reading from the file, any one who hadn�t still opened the file was intrigued enough to do so immediately. Olivia too put down the blue folder and opened the black one when her eyes widened reading the heading of the case.
�Break in at Seven Eleven of 200 E 30th St, New York, NY�
It was the case about the break in that had taken place when Olivia was woken up by the alarm.