Annette's Dilemma

"After all your hard work, day in and day out, you deserve a treat". Annette's best friend read from an eye-catching color brochure. "Be inspired. Find out what's blocking you, and keeping you tied to that treadmill called-a life." Her voice hummed like a well-rehearsed television ad. "Well, I'd say the block is that tightwad you work for."

"Ha!" Annette threw her head back. Her loud guffaw resounded through the room. Though she had to agree, she was grateful Jake hired her twenty years ago when her husband deserted her with four kids to raise alone. The restaurant had glistened with leading-edge appliances, furnishings and accessories. The remote mountain village had counted on the ski crowd, abundant with energy and wealth, to place them on the map. The dream perished when the state rerouted the road around them, snatching the rich and famous away.

She strode over to the mirror hung on the back of the door. A tired, middle-aged woman, dressed in a uniform of brown cordoroy pants, a brown patchwork flannel shirt, thrown over a beige T shirt, stared back at her. She scrutinized her reflection as she tucked her bushy gray-streaked brown hair under a hair net. "My skin looks like an old garden boot, forgotten in the sun." She turned to her friend, slapping the bulges under her shirt. "How is just two weeks at this "#1 Most Beautiful Place in America" spa resort going to melt these jelly rolls off?"

"Jake is really letting you go on vacation?" her friend asked, changing the subject.

"Yes, can you believe it? I wrote it down on the calendar behind the bar and reminded him last week." She glanced at the clock on her desk and jumped. "Gotta go. My shift starts in a few minutes."

The mountains were cloaked in a syrupy fog. Her feet scattered the fallen leaves as she hurried along the hushed streets. It was as though a giant lid had settled on the town, leaving no trace, blocking her escape.

Just like the mythical town Brigadoon, she thought, the town that woke from its sleep every 100 years for one day. Myth was that if anyone left, the town would sleep forever. I'm that town, she thought, except I'll sleep forever if I don't leave.

She crossed the gravel parking lot to the restaurant. Cars lined up in front of the building, nosed in like cattle at the trough. Annette thumped across the wood planked sidewalk to the door. She stepped inside. The cigarette smoke hung in sheets like the fog outdoors. The lights burned low, casting gentle shadows on the worn decor in the room. She briefly closed her eyes, envisioning the hot, bright sun of the Arizona desert spa resort.

A few faithful patrons dotted the bar curving around the back of the room. They waved as she appeared.

Jake glanced at his watch, one eyebrow quirked.

She mouthed "sorry", grabbed her menu pad and greeted her first customer.

As the last customer settled his bill and left, Annette rubbed her eyes. They burned from tiredness and smoke. She yawned, her ears crackling. After she wiped the tables and stacked the glasses, she approached Jake to remind him she was leaving in the morning.

Jake stared at her as if she had two heads. "No, I can't spare you, Annette."

"What? . . . Now listen, Jake, I gave you plenty of time to fill my place. This has been planned for months." Her heart pounded in her ears.

"You can postpone your vacation, can't you? I have a chance to fly to Tahoe . . ." He rubbed his hands together like a kid. " . . . good business connections. I need you . . ." his voice trailed off.

Annette's face blazed with anger. Sweat beaded above her brow. She could understand if someone fell off the mountain or something, but this was a Jake trying to make it rich tour. "Not this time, Jake." She slammed her tray on the counter. "I've worked for you twenty years without complaint and now when I want a real vacation . . .," her voice grew hoarse. " . . .this is too much. My plane leaves tomorrow, and I'll be on it."

"Well, if you do, you better stay there. You won't have a job when you come back." Jake's chin butted out.

Annette's eyes widened. She gasped, a sharp pain shot through her ribcage. Her eyes narrowed. "Fine," she snapped. She spun on her heel and stomped out into the wisps of fog that still crawled along the streets. Its fingers clutched at her boots crunching the gravel underfoot. He was bluffing, she thought. Her vacation was overdue.

The night passed with no word between them. She stared at her open suitcase. Was this vacation really more important than a job? She must be crazy. She lifted one item out of the suitcase. "I better think about this," she said aloud.

The phone rang, shattering her thoughts. Her hand shook as she answered the phone. It could be Jake.

"Stop unpacking," her best friend yelled in her ear.

Annette laughed, falling backwards on her bed. "How did you know?"

"Girl, get those clothes back in that bag. Your life is just beginning. Sleep quick because I'll be at your door at the crack of dawn."

Annette woke to sunlight filtering through her bedroom blinds. A knock resounded through the house. She squinted through the blinds to see her friend waiting at the door. The fog had lifted, revealing the towering mountain range surrounding them.

Within the hour, Annette wedged the last piece of baggage in the car and plopped into the front seat beside her friend. "Let's do it," she said, grinning. A lump settled in her throat as they got near the restaurant.

"Look!" her friend pointed to the building.

Jake leaned on the wooden railing that followed the sidewalk. As they roared by, he blew her a kiss and a wink. Annette pressed her nose against the car window, crossed her eyes and waggled her tongue, until he disappeared from view.