Long after Paul had left, Jacob wondered why he had not told Paul why he stared at the mystery woman. I have kept nothing from Paul, why now?
Jacob put the yearbooks in the box. It was time to let it go, but he knew it would always bug him. Who was she and why did she seem familiar?
Digging into the past would leave Jacob with a bad taste in his mouth. His ex-wife now there was an awful memory. Thank you, Paul, for that reminder.
The woman on the beach continued to haunt Jacob. Where he knew her from was on the tip of his tongue. She had to be someone in his past. He didn’t believe in fortune tellers, but going to one now seemed like it might help. Only if he could get a good nights sleep. This woman had kept him up most of the night. Wondering about her was like a toothache that would not go away until he did something for the ache.
After dinner, he would tackle the yearbooks. Then if he didn’t see the woman from the beach, he would let it go. Well, unless she appeared on the beach again. Then he would have to approach her and ask her name. Maybe her name would make him know how he knew her. Deep down, he knew something connected them. What was the connection that was keeping him up? How could I explain to Paul my behavior when I couldn’t explain it to myself?
*****
Something about school made Lila think of the golden man, as she referred to him. She attended a segregated high school and her first college. She knew the connection was in Miami. Am I here for him?
Lila continued to drive through Miami. She was on a mission but had no clue what it was about. When she jumped on the plane, she promised herself she would be open to whatever came her way. She knew the camera which was an extension of her would impede the whatever.
Daylight faded as streaks of purple filled the evening sky. Still puzzled of the quest, she drove back to the hotel. Her stomach reminded her she had not eaten in hours. Not wanting to deal with crowds in the packed restaurant, Lila went to her room to order room service. Twice she almost called down to cancel the order. There was the restlessness from before.
Why am I here? What did the dream mean? Maybe I have spoken with someone of I left home. The impulsive nature of her trip seemed silly. Lila was methodical about everything in her life. So why did she up and leave without even telling anyone where she was going?
The knock on the door brought her out of revelry. Room service was what she heard as she strolled to the door. A peep out before opening the door. She was still a cautious person. She opened the door and allowed the man to bring the cart in. She had forgotten to get a tip out. Sorry, just a moment. He nodded as he waited.
The tip taken care of; the guy left as quickly as he had come. She sat with the food, still in another place. It was as if the dream was attempting to invade her space at the moment. Lila had the dream intact when she woke two days ago. The pieces seem to have evaporated, and she couldn’t understand why she was there.
Lila ate without tasting her dinner. The golden man and his friend invaded her thoughts. Had his friend followed her? She had barely noticed the friend the night before. All of her attention had been on the golden man. She laughed. Calling him the golden man sounds like a Bond movie.
There was a draw to walk on the beach again tonight. But it was later than last night, and she was entirely out of her element so the walk could wait for tomorrow.
Tomorrow…
© 2019, Ivy Jade