Several days ago, I crossed paths with Petra in the middle of a 6-mile run. I hadn’t seen her in two months. Ever since she walked into the Rocket Bakery and caught me with I.P., she’d stayed away from the Manito Runners Club. She was very friendly though, smiled a lot, and when I suggested she come to our club’s run on Saturday, she said she was already planning on it.

When Saturday arrived, I mentioned to Joe and Franklin, who both really like Petra, that she was going to join us. However, as the time neared for us to head out, Petra still hadn’t shown.

“Go knock on her door,” Joe told me. I really didn’t want to do that, but I sprinted across the street anyway and climbed the stairs to her apartment.

The curtains of her front window were partially open, and as I walked past, I glanced inside. I couldn’t believe it! What a completely unexpected sight! Petra was getting dressed, and she was topless. Plain and clear. I froze in place for a second and then walked quickly to her door.

I felt like I’d done something wrong. As I waited, I hoped she hadn’t noticed me at the window.

When Petra answered the door, she greeted me warmly and said she’d be right down. I rejoined our group. A couple minutes later, she came down and went straight to a group of MRC girls.

Joe raised his hand to give a fist bump. “Good job, bro. I’m giving you a gold star.”

I was still worried by what I’d done. It hardly registered that Joe was talking to me.

“Dude…hello,” Joe said. “What’s wrong?”

“I saw Petra topless.”

Joe looked at me like I’d done something great. “You’re the bomb!”

“No way. I violated her privacy when I peeked inside.”

“Jim, we saw her glance out the window when you ran across the street. She saw you coming.”

I looked over at Petra. She was chatting with the girls and looked like she was in a very good mood.

“Whoa. That changes everything, Joe.”