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It was a tremendously pleasant morning. An unaided awakening. A quiet surfacing, emerging from the unconscious unhurriedly through the layers. A deliberate and slow rising of the mind and the soul, while the body lay inert, maximizing the rested energy.

She hadn’t experienced an awakening like that in quite some time. She lay calm, realizing her long, slow breathing. The soft cotton sheets pressed lightly against her skin, and she stretched her legs. Her eyes fluttered open to find the room shaded in the early morning light. There was a rhythm on the roof. She closed her eyes again, drinking in the sound. Rain was falling heavily. No thunder, no lightening, just rain. A durable, steady, purposeful downpour.

She took a deep breath, sighed and rolled over. There were no other sounds in the house.

She thought of the cabin, now so many years removed. The little, one room wooden structure on the edge of the woods that had neither running water nor electricity. His bed was tucked in one corner, under a small blown glass widow, an obscured view with its bubbles and waves. They spent the morning inside, listening to the heavy rain from under the bedcovers. They had nowhere to go and nothing to do. She rested in the crook of his arm, molded to his body, tracing the scar along his right side, a wound leftover from childhood. He kissed her forehead and cheek, resting against her. It was fresh and new, without any complications. She would later find out about his omissions. The other woman. His lack of passion for her. The disturbing reality she could so easily be left behind.

She took another deep breath, tucking the memory into the back of her mind. It could not come out again unless called upon. Lying still, she focused on the space above her, drinking in the steady hum. There was a faint smile. She liked the sound of falling rain.