Stay Tuned

Chapter 42

“Let’s take the elevator,” Rick said, and motioned me to follow.

I hesitated and then peeked inside when the heavy metal doors heaved open. “This is pretty old and rickety. I can’t remember the last time I’ve been in here.”

Rick scoffed. “It’s fine.” He held the door open with his foot and I stepped over the threshold and leaned against the wall.

The doors slid shut and locked into place. The inside of the elevator was dingy and dark. A few cobwebs hung from the ceiling. It seemed I wasn’t the only one who never used it.

“Okay, now close your eyes,” Rick said.

“What? Are you playing some kind of joke on me?” I made a face.

“Trust me on this one. It’s a surprise. I want you to see something,” he said. “It’s not scary, I promise.”

The doors were already shut, I didn’t have much choice. I pushed aside a niggling feeling that I shouldn’t be in the elevator—alone with Rick—and shut my eyes.

One of the buttons clicked. I braced myself, but, instead of going down to the first floor, the elevator cranked itself upward, ever so slowly. We moved no faster than a caterpillar climbing a tree trunk. I opened my mouth to ask where we were going.

“Shh!” Rick stopped me. “We’re getting there.”

I thought about the different floors of the building and wondered what Rick was up to. A few had offices in them, but much of it was warehouse space for the television station.

The elevator jolted to a stop. Rick touched my hand as I heard the elevator doors groan open. “Here we are. Almost. You can open your eyes now.”

We faced a huge, empty space, windows on every wall. A few folding chairs were scattered around. Clumps of dust decorated the floor and light fixtures hung precariously from several spots on the ceiling. I didn’t step out of the elevator.

“This isn’t what I wanted to show you. We have to go a little further.” Rick explained. “Where’s your sense of adventure?”

“Back in the dressing room,” I said ruefully.

Rick scoffed and held a button so the elevator doors wouldn’t close. “I don’t believe that for one second. Come on.”

I followed him through the room, our feet silent on the carpeted flooring. We came to another door, which he opened. In the dingy light, I could make out about twenty stairs, which led up to another door.

“That goes outside, doesn’t it? On the roof?” I swiveled my gaze from Rick to the door.

Rick didn’t answer. He marched up the stairs with determination, leaving me at the bottom. When he reached the top, he pressed down on the silver bar on the door and pushed it open. A glow of light filled the dark stairwell.

When my eyes adjusted, I trailed behind him, taking my time. My footsteps echoed in the narrow space. Rick stood to the side of the entryway and held the door. As I stepped out, I saw that we were standing on a balcony, about twelve foot square.

The view amazed me. From our vantage point, one could see every building in the city, cars creeping along the streets, the tops of trees. The windows of the Crowne Plaza Hotel sparkled as the sun sank in the sky.

Rick put his hand on the small of my back. “Nice, isn’t it?”

I shivered from his touch and stepped away.

“Are you cold?” he asked. “You can have my jacket.” He started to take it off.

“No, that’s okay. That breeze gave me a chill,” I explained, though I wasn’t honestly sure whether it was the breeze or Rick standing so close. “It’s really pretty from up here. Thanks for showing me. I never knew this existed.”