A rolling gate opens behind the man. The sound of screeching metal startles him out of his stupor, causing him to drop the pair of moccasins in his right hand.
“Sorry!” A female voice calls from a distance as he reaches down to retrieve his shoes. He lingers in a crouched position for a couple seconds before taking a cursory glance across the boardwalk.
“You’re good.” He calls back to her, shaking the sand from his shoes.
The young woman cautiously approaches him. Her caramel-colored hair, tied in a loose pony tail, bobs against the back of her Rip Curl hoodie. She considers his disheveled appearance and the forlorn look on his face. “Are you good?”
He slowly lifts his hazel eyes to meet her alluring emerald eyes. Strands of swooping blond hair sway back and forth as he shakes his head. “Rough weekend.”
One day earlier
A metallic blue Jaguar parks in front of a split-level Cape Cod house on a docile street. The young man exits the car. He clicks the key fob, runs a hand through his swooping blond hair, and saunters to the front door of the house. He knocks rhythmically. A slim woman in her early fifties opens the door.
“Ian!” She smiles warmly. “Good to see you, hun.”
“Same, Mrs. H.” He smiles.
“Come on in.” She gestures. “Katie’s upstairs—”
“I’m coming!” A female voice bellows from above, accompanied by the sound of sneaker-clad footsteps thundering down a flight of stairs. A petite young woman jumps over the last step, landing with a forceful stomp. “Eee!” She shrieks at the sight of Ian, extending her toned arms to her sides.
“Kay!” He cackles as she approaches him.
Katie leans into him, raising the heels of her high-top sneakers. She wraps her arms around his shoulders. “You’ve been working out!” She beams, patting him firmly.
“Maybe a little.” Ian grins slyly.
“Good, then you can help me with these boxes.”
“Kayyy,” He half-heartedly protests.
She cuts him off. “Nope.” The curls of her auburn hair swoosh as she shakes her head.
“I’m jet-lagged.”
“No excuses!” She scampers back upstairs. He shrugs and sighs, then dutifully follows her.
Over the next two hours, Katie and Ian pack her belongings into two dozen cardboard boxes. She leads him into a small sun porch, where they help her mother move aside shelves and knickknacks. After placing the last box in the sun room, Ian and Katie convene in the kitchen. He takes a seat in a rattan chair and pinches his green shirt to fan away beads of perspiration.
“You want a drink?” Katie offers as she opens the fridge.
“Got any Gatorade?” He asks. She turns around and glares at him. “Water’s fine.”
She plucks two bottles of SmartWater from the bottom drawer, hands him a bottle, and slides into the chair across from him. Her navy blue Athleta top shows no signs of sweat.
“To Texas!” She declares, tilting the sealed bottle toward him.
“No.” He fires back, stone faced.
She reconsiders. “To… a summer of exciting new adventures?”
“Fine.” He taps his bottle top to hers.
Katie casually sips her water as Ian guzzles his. “So, how’d it go with Erin?” She asks.
“I don’t want to talk about it.” He grunts.
“E,” She prods him. “What happened?”
Five days earlier
Ian sits at a computer desk in a sleek studio apartment. An unedited video of him shares screen space with two YouTube channels, Expedia.com, and a website promoting the Arts and Ideas Festival in Vancouver, Canada. He presses a button on his phone.
“Brayden here.” A male voice answers.
“Bray,” Ian leans over the phone. “I need a favor.”
“A sexual favor?” Brayden replies with exaggerated suggestion.
Ian glares dumbfounded at the phone, then shrugs his shoulders and bobs his head in tepid agreement. “Well, it’s a favor that could lead to sex, so… maybe?”
“I see. And how can I assist you in getting laid, my dude?”
“I need you to cat-sit for me.”
“You don’t have a cat.” Brayden replies with confusion.
“Correct. I do not.” Ian states. “I need you to feed Erin’s cats for me.”
“You’re gonna go?”
“Yeah.” Ian relents as he glimpses a framed photo of himself, arms wrapped tightly around a slender blonde woman. “I’m gonna surprise her.”
Featured Guest ~
Linden Amphitheatre, 1 P.M.
 |
| Erin Sullivan ~ Social Media Entrepreneur |
Erin ascends an outdoor stage dressed in a white and silver top, charcoal grey pencil skirt, and ankle boots. She looks out at the hundreds of onlookers standing shoulder to shoulder, greeting her with polite applause. “Thank you, thank you...” She mumbles nervously into a microphone.
After a brief pause, she raises an arm and shouts “Hello, Vancouver!” eliciting louder applause.
She begins her introduction by citing her background as an Instagram model and YouTube content creator. “Which is exactly how my parents and professors expected me to apply my master’s degree in Psychological Science.” A chorus of laughter rumbles through the theater. Ian, standing near the back of the throng, grins and guffaws.
“But seriously...” Erin segues into the ways in which she uses her platform to promote cutting edge technology that can enhance cognitive ability, particularly to cure diseases such as Alzheimer’s and dementia.
Ian takes notice of the scores of observers intently listening to Erin’s lecture. He laughs with them as she shares some more humorous anecdotes. He cheers and claps at the successful conclusion of her discussion, joining the rousing ovation Erin receives as she descends the stage.
He weaves his way through the parting crowd and hurries to a grassy expanse with crisscross walkways and a large Paulownia tree. He halts at the sight of a slightly older man wearing a rolled-up dress shirt, cargo shorts, and white sneakers. The man slides his hands around the waist of a slender blonde woman. He pulls her closer. They kiss.
Ian stares transfixed at the couple. His face reddens. Just as he turns away, Erin notices him from a distance. “Ian?” She squints. “Wait here,” She instructs her companion. “I’ll be right back.”
“Ian!” Erin chases after him. “Ian!”
“Surprise!” He sardonically exclaims, raising his arms. “That was two hundred bucks well spent.” He mutters, turning his back to Erin.
“What are you doing here? I thought you had to edit content.”
“I thought this was more important.” He snorts.
“You know what? I’m glad you’re here.” Erin regards him earnestly. “Because you need to see that we – that you – can use your platform to inspire change and promote good, noble causes.”
“Erin—”
“You have a following of over four million people, more than this entire city, and you… have no message for them. You don’t do anything for them.”
“I entertain them.” Ian asserts. “I distract them from their daily problems.”
“Oh, yes, Ian-tertainment: distracting millions from solving important problems.”
“That’s not what I said.”
“You make loads of money from your video game playthroughs, and then you use that money to travel the world making skateboarding videos.” Erin scoffs. “It’s all so self-serving.”
“You’re really gonna lecture me about being self-serving, when you’re cheating on me with ‘dad bod’ over there?” Ian points in the man’s direction.
Erin crosses her arms and sardonically glares at Ian. “Oh, and you love me for my mind, right?”
“Go to hell.” He snickers and stomps away.
“Ian,” Erin calls to him. He ignores her. She shouts louder “Ian!”
“What?” He furiously snaps back.
“Did you feed my cats?”
“I’m shocked.” Katie shakes her head as she leads Ian to the L-shaped couch in her living room. “I’m just… flabbergasted.”
“Same.” Ian sighs as he plops himself onto the near side of the couch.
“I really thought you two were perfect for each other.” Katie stands, facing him. “You’re both talented and creative. She’s gorgeous and you’re…” Ian curiously tilts his head toward Katie.
“Your… names have syllabic symmetry. Ian and Erin, Erin and Ian.” She waves her arms back and forth in an impromptu dance. “Ian and Erin, Erin and Ian.”
“Please stop.” Ian whimpers.
“Sorry.” Katie quickly takes a seat on the opposite end of the couch.
“I guess we were kind of drifting apart.” He turns to Katie somberly. “Just like you and me.”
“What are you talking about?” Katie playfully tosses a pillow at Ian. “We’re not drifting apart.”
“I literally just helped you pack.” He tosses the pillow back to her.
“I’m not leaving forever.” She curls up on the couch, clutching the pillow to her chest. “I’ll be back for the holidays.”
“What, Labor Day? Patriot's Day? Rosh Hashanah?”
“No!” Katie smacks him with the pillow. They giggle and tussle until her back is pressed into Ian’s left shoulder. He gently lifts his arm and pulls her closer. She slowly leans into his embrace.
“Erin’s gonna regret dumping you.” Katie says, facing the ceiling. “But she’s right about one thing.”
“Yeah? What’s that?” Ian places his hands firmly on Katie’s shoulders and massages her.
She turns her body to face him, gently lifting his hands away. “You do need to try new things.”
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part 2 Thursday
Good work so far!
ReplyDeleteYou are quite the writer... and romantic. I think this might be the first romance story I've ever read.
ReplyDeleteI'm honored :D thank you!
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