Awakening

by Karice Bolton

  Promising myself that I wouldn’t again lose my cool, I let the excitement ripple through me at the thought of getting to meet him. I knew what I was feeling was in my head. There was no way other people could make you feel this way. The lack of sleep was not doing me any favors. I spun around and quickly marched to the bar. As I waited for the next order to come up, I excitedly embraced this new feeling of energy and exhilaration that was finally beginning to creep up on me.

  “Hey Ana,” the bartender spoke interrupting my thoughts, “Order’s up.”

  “Thanks Ben.” I quickly grabbed the gravy and cheese covered fries, otherwise known as poutine, and trudged over to the table to drop it off so I could get over to the newcomer.

  “Is there anything else you need or are you all set?” I asked unable to hide my grin. They nodded their heads and were all set. Finally, I was about to arrive at the table of life. The euphoria was beginning to set in as I saw a glow radiating from the table. Prismatic colors were dancing off the walls around them. Recognizing another side effect of my sleep deprivation, hallucinations, I just moved towards them. I had to meet the newcomer. It was like a magnet was pulling me over to him. I was certain that the others at his table noticed, but I didn’t even care now. I went to the bar, grabbed some silverware as an excuse, and walked to the table of the night.

  “Is there anything else I can get right now for you guys or are you doing ok?”

  When the newcomer looked up at me for the first time, my heart began racing. He had the same hypnotizing eyes as the others. Only that was merely the beginning. His skin was an exquisite shade of ivory, showing slightly that he had missed a day of shaving. His features were so striking that they almost matched his startling eyes, which were outlined with such thick lashes that it made his green eyes stand out even more than the other two at the table. He was looking at me with such kindness and had the familiarity about him that I couldn’t place. Secretly wondering if he could have been in one of my dreams, I did my best to keep the foolishness at bay that kept creeping in at such a preposterous notion. I wanted to clear the room and sit in front of him and do nothing but literally stare at the exquisite being in front of me.

  I glanced at the couple to get my mind elsewhere only that didn’t work out so well. I still felt the charge. However, this time I was certain it was coming directly from him. He continued to gaze at me when suddenly I realized that he was talking. His lips were moving, but I had no idea what he was saying. His voice was the most soothing and comforting sound, like a song. I had to get control of myself.

  “I’m so sorry,” I spoke from an unknown strength from within, “I need you to repeat what you said.”

  I could feel myself start to blush, and at this point went with it. I obviously couldn’t be in control of myself around these people and gave up. It’s not like I would see them again. Plus, I wasn’t known for being the most eloquent anyway.

  “Hey, no sweat. We were hoping for a pitcher of Whistler Ale and three glasses.” He smiled at me as if he were half relieved, almost as if he were in on a secret I wasn’t privy to. I did my best, with lack of sleep, to try to place him from either one of my dreams or possibly around Whistler but fell flat. I was also mostly certain that I recognized a bit of excitement in his voice, but that didn’t make any sense either. Beer wasn’t that exciting and I surely wasn’t either. It must have to do with whatever they were speaking about before I arrived at their table, just an interrupted conversation I wandered into.

  “Sounds good. I will bring those right out.” I spun around and went to the bar, excited by this new communication and secretly hoping that they would be at the restaurant all night.

  CHAPTER 3

  I got home later than usual, but decided I should still call Karen to make sure everything was ok with her. It was quite unusual for her to leave a shift like she did. When I got the familiar beep of her voicemail, I left a message.

  “Hey Karen, hope you are doing ok. I’m worried about you. Give me a call when you get this. Time doesn’t matter. Talk to you soon.”

  I hung up and reluctantly went into my bathroom and turned on the shower. I was tempted to skip the shower and crawl into bed. I could hear the soft hum of Matilda, my English bulldog, snoring in the living room. If I had to place a bet, I was sure she was in her second favorite place right between the piano and the fireplace, also known as the chaise; her number one spot being on the bed with a freshly-fluffed goose down comforter.

  I kept my portable phone near me in case Karen called while I was in the shower. The steam was rolling out of the bathroom pretty heavily as I was in my bedroom daydreaming about the family I met earlier in the evening. I was able to scrape together that the girl was the sister of the latecomer, and the other guy was her fiancé, but besides that I didn’t get any further. I hoped they would be back in the pub before they left to wherever it was they permanently lived. I took all of my perfectly placed red velvet bed pillows off my bed and piled them onto the chest.

  I pulled my flannel pajamas out of the drawer and carried them into the bathroom and put them on the counter. As I grabbed a fresh red towel to hang over the shower door the phone rang, which startled me even though I was expecting a call from Karen.

  “Hey Karen.” I spoke into the phone louder than usual since I could only hear the shower running.

  “Uh, hey… This isn’t Karen.” A guy’s voice started. It was vaguely familiar to me and I couldn’t figure out why. “I, um, I apologize for calling so late. I figured I would take the chance you were still up since you barely got off work. Plus I really couldn’t wait until morning.”

  As the voice continued rattling off excuses, it dawned on me that it was the same wonderful melody that haunted me all night at the pub. The excitement was building into a full-blown explosion. “I hope I didn’t assume wrong.” The tingling sensation in all of my extremities hit me again. How could a phone call do this to me too? I turned off the shower and walked back into my bedroom, completely stunned.

  “No, not at all. I was actually about to hop in the shower.” Wait a second why was I telling a complete stranger this? My heart started to beat quickly again, but now I wasn’t totally tongue-tied because I had the distance of the phone between us. I congratulated myself on this little feat as I figured out that I might be able to actually handle myself since I don’t have to look him in the eyes.

  “How did you get my number? I know I didn’t give it to you.”

  “I had to bribe one of the bus boys, and it wasn’t easy.”

  “Easy enough, I see, if you are calling me.” I gave my best shot at sounding stern.

  “Well, you can’t exactly blame him. The price offered was pretty tempting.”

  I couldn’t believe he went to this much trouble to reach me. On one hand I was concerned, on the other, completely flattered.

  “Why didn’t you ask me for my number when I was serving you?” I asked trying to sound incensed but failing miserably.

  “You weren’t exactly what I would call coherent during our time together earlier if you remember. I really didn’t want to see what would happen if I did.” He laughed, his voice as soothing as I could ever hope for. “I thought the distance of the phone might work in my favor.”

  It was like he was reading my mind. How very unnerved I must have appeared. A tiny bit of hope began swelling in the pit of my stomach, but it was quickly squashed knowing how out of my league he was. He truly was the most gorgeous guy I had ever laid my eyes on.

  “You noticed?” I said jokingly. “Pretty astute of you.” I flipped the nightstand light on and bounced on my bed feeling my goose down comforter engulfing me and inviting me to enter in for the night. His smile was coming through the phone - that same smile that stopped me dead in my tracks earlier.

  “So, was there something I could help you with?” I was secretly hoping for something I knew wouldn’t happen, not with him. I glanced at the clock, which read 11:15 pm, wondering why I hadn’t hear
d from Karen.

  “This is probably a stretch, and I know it’s late, but I was wondering if maybe I could see you,” his voice rang over the phone and then paused for a split second, “tonight.”

  My stomach flip-flopped. I couldn’t understand what was going on. So many things were telling me not to. It was late at night, not much was open in the village, yet I was compelled to tell him yes. The thought of seeing him one more time almost made me lift off the ground. What if this would be the last time I saw him? I could literally feel my legs begin the Jell-O-like process again. It was dangerous, somehow, and so unlike anything that I would usually do. In fact, it was the exact opposite of anything I would do. Maybe that is why I was so intrigued.

  I was about to tell him that it wouldn’t be a good idea, when a light flashed into my bedroom. It was a radiant light, almost like a prism dancing on my walls. I was certain it was similar to the same lights I noticed at the pub. This time it was reflecting against my wall and looked as if it was coming from the direction of the window. It made no sense since it was completely dark outside. I was really getting tired of these sleep-deprived hallucinations. I was six-stories up, nothing should be reflecting. I shuffled to my window, looking down into the village where I saw him on the cell phone looking up at me with those almost glowing green eyes. Maybe it was a light from a cell phone to get my attention I told myself. Looking at him made my heart flop to my toes. I knew the only cure was to see him one more time.

  “I will be right down. I have to call my friend.” I couldn’t believe what was coming out of my mouth, and I hung up on him. This was meant to be. I dialed Karen’s number again, and this time she picked up. “Karen,” I spoke quickly, “is everything ok?”

  “Oh hey, Ana. I apologize that I haven’t called. I just woke up. I’m so sorry to have left you guys in a lurch at the pub tonight. I couldn’t continue. I needed to lay down. Something came over me. It was odd. It was like an immediate flu. I started serving that table with the couple...”

  I interrupted, “The Gods of the village?”

  “Yeah, that table. And it was almost like this weird spell came over me. It made me really sick. There is something wrong with those people. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but the closer I got to them the worse it got. I had to leave. I’m so sorry. I’m feeling better now, and I’m sure it must have been the flu or something. I probably sound crazy.”

  “Don’t worry about it at all Karen.” I spoke into the phone trying to sound calm and nonchalant but secretly wanting to hang up on her. “Well, another one joined that table you are talking about, and he was even more impressive than the others.”

  “I can’t imagine that, but I will take your word for it. I don’t want to run into them again. Like I said something wasn’t quite right. Sorry with leaving you with them. Did the evening go ok?”

  “Yes, actually it went amazingly well. I… um, never mind, I should let you get some rest.”

  “Ana, what aren’t you telling me?”

  “OK, don’t get mad or worried, but I’m about to go out with the guy who came to the table late. He asked me out.”

  There was a few seconds of silence before she began into me. I knew I wouldn’t get off easily.

  “Wait a second, Ana, I don’t like this one bit. You don’t even know these people. I don’t feel good about them. What’s his name? Where is he staying? This is so unlike you Ana. What is going on? You of all people are going to go out with a guy who nobody knows and happens to be in town on vacation? Come on Ana, they never found those hikers from October. I know no one in the village wants to mention this, but I think we all know that having six people coming into a mishap at once is a little suspicious. They wouldn’t all just walk off a cliff. It would kind of make sense it would take more than one person to harm the hikers, maybe a crazed family?”

  “First of all, Karen, you shouldn’t assume that the hikers are dead. You know from the papers that one of the theories is that they all faked their disappearance to avoid the financial issues back home.” I found myself getting snotty with her, which was completely unlike me.

  “I know it sounds over the top Ana. I’m sorry. Like I said something didn’t sit right with me, and I know it sounds crazy, but I just think you should be cautious. That’s all I’m saying.”

  The more she spoke the more I knew she was exactly right. This was careless and irresponsible. Nothing like I would ever do. Yet, I was going to do it tonight. I also, to my embarrassment, didn’t even know his name.

  “Hey Karen, I’m glad you are feeling better, but you need to rest. I will call you in the morning to check on you, and yes, I’m going out with him tonight. These guys aren’t dangerous.” I quickly hung up so she couldn’t talk me out of it, grabbed my coat, and headed to my front door. I glanced at Matilda who was still snoring soundly by the fire. I was sure she wouldn’t miss me for another hour or so. She had made one of her famous nests out of the chenille throw that fell off of the chair and obviously had no plans to move.

  This was going to be a great night. I could feel it.

  CHAPTER 4

  I impatiently waited for the elevator and almost jumped out of my skin when the doors opened only to have him staring back at me with his sparkling green eyes.

  “Ok, how did you know what floor I was on and which elevator to take? That is a bit creepy.” I lied. Nothing he did could possibly be creepy.

  “I figured by the time you pushed the button I could be on the same elevator. I get bored easily.” His eyes caught mine and did not let go. My cheeks began burning up again. I hoped he didn’t notice. I couldn’t bear to let go of his gaze.

  “So, where are we off to in the village that sleeps by midnight? Unless we are clubbing it?” I giggled, stepping into the elevator, realizing that his presence was, once again, overwhelming. I wished I had the phone between us. There was no way he was going to find this endearing.

  “I’m not actually into the whole clubbing thing. Hope you aren’t disappointed,” His words were music to my ears, “I thought we could go to the Mallard Lounge at the Fairmont. Do you know it?”

  “Yah, that’s a great spot.” I wanted to tell him I knew it well and almost bought a residence at the Fairmont, but that would probably open up too much conversation since I’m a waitress and shouldn’t be able to afford such a place. My residence at the Westin was hard enough to explain.

  As the elevator opened to the lobby level, he wrapped his arms around my shoulders and guided me out. Right before me stood his sister and her fiancé. I tried to stop myself from freezing in place. A family affair, that’s better for safety. Things were looking up. The red flags started to diminish, unless Karen was right about the hikers needing to be taken down by a group. Looking at these people, I knew that was an absurd thought and followed his lead.

  “Man, Athen! I can’t believe you were able to find her. That really sucks.” I looked up at the man I could now call Athen, and he saw the confusion in my eyes.

  “Finding you doesn’t suck, losing the bet he placed with me sucks. He owes me $100 cuz he said I wouldn’t be able to jump on the right elevator to find you. Obviously, he was wrong,” He hugged and kissed me on top of my head as if I had been declared his long ago, “You are my good luck charm already.”

  We walked towards the lobby exit, and I gazed at the many couples coming in to retreat up to their rooms, and for the first time ever, I wasn’t looking at them with envy. Even if this was a fleeting moment at least I was experiencing it for once, and I was going to eat it up as much as I could, every morsel of it. As the doors opened the cold air blasted my face, and I reached for my hood, secretly hoping that my movement wouldn’t make him drop his hold on me. Instead he squeezed even tighter. I was in heaven.

  While walking next to Athen I saw how happy his sister and her fiancé were. Holding each other tight, only letting go to grab the occasional fistful of snow and throw it at each other. I wondered what on earth had made me so jittery earlier.
They all seem like such a sweet and fun loving unit - something that I had yearned for as long as I could remember. It made me feel a little silly for how I behaved earlier. As if Athen could sense my feelings, he wrapped his other arm around me.

  “You look cold.” He pulled me even closer. I looked up at him, noticing how much taller he was than I. The top of my head came only to his chin. My hood fell off, and I didn’t care. I was secretly hoping for another kiss on the top of my head.

  “So, I gathered that she is your sister, and he is her fiancé, but I don’t know their names, and I only know yours because your future brother-in-law called you by it,” I took a deep breath in and kept going, “I want to set the record straight and tell you that this is unlike anything I have ever done before. That being said, you better fill me in on a few facts before I start to listen to the red flags I see waving in my head right now and decide to go lock myself in my room.” I started to slow my pace as the words left me, wishing a little that I could take them back.

  We were almost to the middle of the village by now, about fifteen minutes away from the Fairmont. He stopped immediately as did his sister, turning to look at me. He grabbed my face gently with both of his hands. I looked up at him, melting a little and wishing I hadn’t attempted to lay down the law because I knew in my heart everything would be fine. For some reason it already was. His eyes were piercing, full of concern, looking at me with an otherworldly sense, reminding me briefly of my dreams. He almost looked sheepish for a split second.