Page 13 of Vapor's Blaze

“It’s something to do with how far away the street is and the angle of the road.”

We both stand near the edge and gaze at the city below. Everything is black with a myriad of sparkling lights spreading from one side of Las Salinas to the other. The wind is blowing, causing the branches of nearby trees to sway.

“The view is absolutely breathtaking,” Trix gushes. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”

“Yeah, that’s one of the reasons why I love to come up here, especially at night. It’s the best vantage point to see everything all at once.”

“It seems peaceful and serene here,” she says with a sigh.

“It’s quiet because of the altitude. No matter what time of day or night I come It’s relaxing. I’ve never come up here and not been able to clear my head.”

She turns to me, looking a little awestruck. “How did you find this place.”

“My brother and I found it together. When we were in high school, we fancied ourselves as trendy urban explorers. We found every interesting, abandoned structure in the whole city during our exploits.”

“That sounds fascinating. I’ve always wanted to try urban exploration.”

I gesture for her to sit beside me, and we continue talking as we gaze down onto the cityscape below.

“If you’re really interested in exploring, I’d be happy to take you out one day. There’s a salt mine not too far from here that has fifteen levels carved out underground with an abandoned salt cave.”

“Sounds amazing. I’ve always wanted to try a salt cave because it’s also supposed to be relaxing, kind of like aromatherapy only with other benefits.”

“Are you into healthy lifestyle stuff?” I ask, curious to know everything there is to know about this woman.

She nods. “Absolutely. I just turned twenty-two, three months ago. I’m gonna have this body for a very long time so I might as well take care of it.”

I slapped my bicep with one hand. “I feel the same way about trying to stay healthy. Only I never gave growing old and a healthy body any real thought. For me, it’s about wanting my body to be strong and healthy enough to engage in all the activities that I enjoy most.”

“You should try chia seeds. Aztec warriors used them as an energy booster when running long distances.”

“Noted.” She’s close to my age, so I ask, What high school did you go to? I don’t remember seeing you around.”

She freezes for just a second and then her arms come up to wrap around her stomach in what I always thought of as a defensive pose. “My parents died when I was young, then I got bounced around a lot. It resulted in me moving schools and doing online learning.”

“That must have been a lonely experience,” I say sympathetically. That probably means she didn’t get to go to prom or do all the other high school stuff. Something about that makes me sad for her.

Trix just shrugs her shoulders carelessly. “Yeah, missing out on friendships and all the traditional milestones that happen during high school was difficult. But not as difficult as losing my parents.”

“We don’t have to talk about that if you don’t want to.”

She glances away, toward the city lights. “Thank you. Talking about it brings up a lot of bad memories for me. I’m still not over a lot of what happened in my childhood.”

Trying to think of something that might make her feel better, I pull out my iPod. “You wanna listen to some music?”

“Sure,” she says, sounding a little happier.

I smile at the thought of sharing the music we love. This was the very first thing that bound us together. I hand her one of my air pods and pop the other in my ear. We lie back and stare up at the stars as we listen to some new releases I downloaded.

Suddenly a shooting star cuts across the sky.

“Did you see that?” she asks excitedly.

“Yes, of course I did. I think we’re supposed to make a wish now, and you can’t tell anyone until it comes true.”

Trix glances over at me, and we look into each other’s eyes. I feel a connection with this woman, something deep and meaningful. A slow, warm smile spreads over her face and she laces her fingers through mine. I know what my secret wish is, and I would give anything to know hers.

I reach out and tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. Desperate to keep the conversation rolling, I bring up the issue of her name. “So, your name is Trix? Is that right?”

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