Merriton

“God, tourists everywhere,” Sierra thought to herself as she walked into Mt. Zen Cafe. Just as quickly as she brushed the thought from her mind, she remembered herself, sitting in this very restaurant last year. Last winter, she was the tourist. She was the irritating woman who sat at a table all day and drank only a cup of coffee and ate only one inexpensive egg dish. Sierra’s eyes scanned the room. A quiet ski jacket sat at the table that Sierra hadn’t noticed since she moved there. Last year… I was HER.

She ordered her Egg Thing and coffee from one of Angie’s winter girls and stood next to the woman in the ski jacket at the table furthest from the counter. “Want some company?” The ski jacket looked up from her computer. Without a word she motioned to the seat across from her. “I haven’t been able to get online this entire trip. Thank god for this place.” Sierra crinkled her brow, “Where are you staying?” The woman looked confused and Sierra remembered how things are in the city. Just because you’re sharing a table doesn’t mean you talk to each other. Don’t break the protective cocoon of privacy even though you’re two inches apart on a train. The ski jacket responded, “Junco Resort.”

Sierra smiled. Junco was the most expensive resort in the area. “Junco, they’ve got the best skiing. Why aren’t you on the slopes?” The ski jacket turned away from her computer again. She looked resigned to talking with Sierra. “I’ve got to get some work done.” Sierra nodded, remembering all the briefs and deadlines she had rushed off. They seemed unimportant to her now. In fact, the two most important deals she had ever negotiated were done pro bono. “Need me to leave you alone?” The ski jacket sighed and closed her laptop. “I need a break anyway. What’s your name?”

“I’m Sierra McCain. I live in the Bowen house down the way.” She silently shook her head. She had gotten so used to introducing herself to the locals that way that she had forgotten that this woman wouldn’t know the Bowen house from any other. For some reason, her house had become enough of an explanation for her. She was living in the house that no one stays in for more than a year or two. The nice people befriended her despite that and she was happy to avoid the others.

The ski jacket introduced herself, “My name’s Robin. I’m from Connecticut. So, you live here? God, how do you do it?” Sierra smiled, “One day at a time like everybody else.” The ski jacket shook her head, “No, seriously. How do you make money here? There’s NOTHING for miles. What do you do?” Sierra felt guilty for the ease of her situation. Ever since she had been a child, she had worked hard. She worked hard on her parents’ farm. She had worked hard in school to get scholarships. She had worked hard in college to get into a good firm. She had worked hard in the firm trying for a partnership. Now, suddenly all her work had been taken away from her. Taking care of the five sheep in her barn was the hardest thing she did every day. Just thinking about it made her want to strap on her running shoes.

“Well, my husband used to run this online company and we sold it. We bought a farm here to escape all that.” Sierra pointed at Robin’s laptop. Robin smiled, “Escaping sounds nice. That’s why we fly out here. I end up spending half the time looking for wifi.” Angie brought over Sierra’s food and Robin rudely asked for a refill on her coffee without really even seeing her. Angie grabbed a pot of coffee off the burner and filled the woman’s cup.

“How are you holding up, Angie?” Sierra asked. “Need ten extra hands, but the girls quit as quickly as I can hire ‘em. By the way,” Angie lowered her voice and pulled in close to Sierra, “I’ve been told to watch how often you go for a run.” Sierra’s eyes got big, but she pretended it was a great secret and SO much fun to know it. “By whom?” Angie shook her head, “The strangest… Roscoe! Now why does he want to know how often you run?” Sierra smiled and scrambled to think of something funny to say, “Maybe I’m in line for the new ranger position when Jeff retires!” The two of them giggled together and Robin suddenly turned into a ski jacket again with a glare at Angie.