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Authors: E.M. Tippetts
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on passengers. It'd be really early, but, you want to do that?”
“What time?”
“
Six a.m.
Really early, but I dunno when sunrise is? The views should be amazing.”
It did sound nice. I hadn't been on the tram in years, not since a class trip in middle school.
“If that doesn't appeal,” he went on. “My sister's taking over as chef at a restaurant and the family's all going there to celebrate the night before. You're welcome to-”
“Tram sounds nice.” Way nicer than meeting all the Vanderholts at a family event.
“All right, cool. I'll call you later this week, then.”
“Sure.”
“Bye.”
“Bye.”
I put my phone down on my nightstand and rubbed my temples to clear my head. The air in my room was thick with moisture, I was sure, but I couldn't really smell it because I'd woken up in it. If I left and came back, I'd probably want to crack open the window.
Going up on Sandia Peak at the crack of dawn with a guy sounded romantic. It sounded like a date. Had I just agreed to a date?
On Thursday, I missed Jason's call because I was in class. “Hey,” went his voicemail message. “Okay, so... I know this is seriously early, but we should be at the tram at a
quarter to six
. I can come pick you up if you give me your address. Call me?”
I dialed as I walked across campus towards home. It was a gloriously sunny day with the deep blue sky above and the warm brown, adobe style buildings of campus all around. There was the faint scent of roasting chile in the air, probably from one of the little groceries across Central. They'd have their big wire mesh roasters out, full of chiles, which they'd spin over an open flame. “This is Jason,” said a recording. “Sorry I missed you. Leave a message after the beep.”
“Hi,” I said. “It's Chloe.” I tried to think of what to say next. Should I cancel? Say that something had come up? As tempting as that was, it wasn't very nice. Not if he'd already talked to the guy who ran the tram. I'd have been annoyed if someone had done that to me. I couldn't help but wonder, though, had I missed the opportunity to hint that I was not interested in him? Did he mean to tell me, by asking me on this tram ride, that he was single? Or a player? “Why don't I just meet you at the tram?” I said. “I'll see you there at
5:45
.” And maybe I'd figure out an intelligent way to parse the subtext of this situation before then.
I called Matthew.
“Howdy?” he answered.
“Hey.”
“What's wrong?”
“I did something stupid.”
“What?”
“I kind of agreed to go on Sandia Tram at the crack of dawn with Jason Vanderholt.”
“What?”
“There might be other people there. Or... not.”
“Chloe!”
“He called right when I woke up. I'm an idiot.”
“What did he say exactly?”
“Just asked if I wanted to hang out. I think he said hang out. I don't remember. It was the tram or dinner with a group at a restaurant-”
“Oh, naw, you're good. He said 'hang out'.”
“I am?”
“I think so. But no blaming me if I'm wrong.”
“Would I do that?”
“How does this happen to you? Of all the-”
“I know, I know.”
“You want to go to the movies sometime?”
“Yeah. Sure. There something you want to see?”
“Victorian period drama?”
“Okay, I'm game.”
“This weekend I've got a ton of homework, but if we go Sunday evening, that'll be my incentive to get it done.”
“Works for me.”
“Cool. I gotta run to class. I'll see you.”
“See you.”
Saturday morning, I woke up bright and early and jumped in the shower before my brain could snap into gear. I figured the best way to handle this morning was to just go with it. Odds were, Jason would bring some other people, and I'd be laughing at myself for ever having worried about this being anything but a friendly outing.
The Sandia Tram parking lot had a few cars in it when I pulled up. I got out of my car, wearing a long sleeved shirt,
“What time?”
“
Six a.m.
Really early, but I dunno when sunrise is? The views should be amazing.”
It did sound nice. I hadn't been on the tram in years, not since a class trip in middle school.
“If that doesn't appeal,” he went on. “My sister's taking over as chef at a restaurant and the family's all going there to celebrate the night before. You're welcome to-”
“Tram sounds nice.” Way nicer than meeting all the Vanderholts at a family event.
“All right, cool. I'll call you later this week, then.”
“Sure.”
“Bye.”
“Bye.”
I put my phone down on my nightstand and rubbed my temples to clear my head. The air in my room was thick with moisture, I was sure, but I couldn't really smell it because I'd woken up in it. If I left and came back, I'd probably want to crack open the window.
Going up on Sandia Peak at the crack of dawn with a guy sounded romantic. It sounded like a date. Had I just agreed to a date?
On Thursday, I missed Jason's call because I was in class. “Hey,” went his voicemail message. “Okay, so... I know this is seriously early, but we should be at the tram at a
quarter to six
. I can come pick you up if you give me your address. Call me?”
I dialed as I walked across campus towards home. It was a gloriously sunny day with the deep blue sky above and the warm brown, adobe style buildings of campus all around. There was the faint scent of roasting chile in the air, probably from one of the little groceries across Central. They'd have their big wire mesh roasters out, full of chiles, which they'd spin over an open flame. “This is Jason,” said a recording. “Sorry I missed you. Leave a message after the beep.”
“Hi,” I said. “It's Chloe.” I tried to think of what to say next. Should I cancel? Say that something had come up? As tempting as that was, it wasn't very nice. Not if he'd already talked to the guy who ran the tram. I'd have been annoyed if someone had done that to me. I couldn't help but wonder, though, had I missed the opportunity to hint that I was not interested in him? Did he mean to tell me, by asking me on this tram ride, that he was single? Or a player? “Why don't I just meet you at the tram?” I said. “I'll see you there at
5:45
.” And maybe I'd figure out an intelligent way to parse the subtext of this situation before then.
I called Matthew.
“Howdy?” he answered.
“Hey.”
“What's wrong?”
“I did something stupid.”
“What?”
“I kind of agreed to go on Sandia Tram at the crack of dawn with Jason Vanderholt.”
“What?”
“There might be other people there. Or... not.”
“Chloe!”
“He called right when I woke up. I'm an idiot.”
“What did he say exactly?”
“Just asked if I wanted to hang out. I think he said hang out. I don't remember. It was the tram or dinner with a group at a restaurant-”
“Oh, naw, you're good. He said 'hang out'.”
“I am?”
“I think so. But no blaming me if I'm wrong.”
“Would I do that?”
“How does this happen to you? Of all the-”
“I know, I know.”
“You want to go to the movies sometime?”
“Yeah. Sure. There something you want to see?”
“Victorian period drama?”
“Okay, I'm game.”
“This weekend I've got a ton of homework, but if we go Sunday evening, that'll be my incentive to get it done.”
“Works for me.”
“Cool. I gotta run to class. I'll see you.”
“See you.”
Saturday morning, I woke up bright and early and jumped in the shower before my brain could snap into gear. I figured the best way to handle this morning was to just go with it. Odds were, Jason would bring some other people, and I'd be laughing at myself for ever having worried about this being anything but a friendly outing.
The Sandia Tram parking lot had a few cars in it when I pulled up. I got out of my car, wearing a long sleeved shirt,
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