I threw the basketball at Nick. I had offered to shoot some hoops with him when
he got back from…wherever he wandered off to. But he seemed a little
absent-minded. He had screwed up some easy shots that a first grader could
shoot no problem.
Nick caught the ball and slam-dunked it. For once he hadn’t missed
it.
"What is it?" I asked suddenly. He looked at me.
"What do you mean?" he questioned, retrieving the ball.
"You seem a little off today. Whassup?" I asked again,
concerned.
Nick waved his hand casually, "Oh, nothing. I just feel
tired, that’s all."
"Well, if you’re feelin’ tired you should lie down, not play
b-ball!" I pointed out.
"I’ll be fine!" he insisted, as he threw the ball at the
net. He missed for the fifth time. I looked at him, as if to say ‘I told you
so’.
"OK, OK!" he exclaimed, sitting
down. "Maybe I’m a bit too tired for this."
I sat down next to him. "Aw, c’mon, Nick!" I persisted.
"What’s wrong?"
"Well, you’re gonna think I’m mad but…."
Nick proceeded to tell me about this stranger at the hospital the
year before who he believed cured his blindness. I paused and looked at him for
a second when he had finished.
"You were sort of right before, you know," I informed
him.
He glanced at me sideways, "So you think it’s true too?"
"No, I meant about the bit where you said I’d think you’re
crazy."
"Oh," Nick realised.
"But you say you met her at that bar," I continued.
"So go and ask her about it!"
"I was gonna but she left before I could ask!" he told
me.
"Ah, tough luck, huh?" I replied. "Lets go inside,
I’m thirsty."
I was trying to change the subject to cheer him up a bit. He
seemed very disappointed at that last fact; not being able to meet the girl,
Jennifer, straight away. But he’d get to sometime. I mean, it’s not like she
was goin’ anywhere…. was she?
"OK, but don’t think I don’t know you’re trying to change the
subject!" he stated. I grinned. He knew me too well.
"But I think I should go back sometime soon, because the guy
at the bar said she’d be back at about ….hmm…." I paused to look at my
watch. "12:30, and it’s about 11:50 now. I’d better go and see if she’s
there. It takes a while to get there."
"Good Luck, man!" Brian called to me as I left to go to
the bar.
I drove back to the exact same spot. As I got out of my car, I
heard a lot of noise coming from the bar. It sounded like someone was trying to
strangle a cat. I rushed in, to see two large men having a punch up.
"Hey, I told you about fighting in here!" she bellowed
over the dim of the two fighters. "This is the third time! If you two
don’t stop, I’ll have you barred from here!"
They both ignored her completely and continued their brawl across
the room. I had to jump out of the way as one of them was thrown into the table
next to me. Jennifer seethed in rage, clearly unafraid.
"That’s it! I’m having a word with Karlos about you two, and
he won’t be pleased!" she yelled.
The victor of the two picked up the loser and hurled him straight
at Jennifer. Acting swiftly on instinct, I dashed across the room and pushed
her clear out of the way.
The unfortunate loser only had a barstool to break his fall. He
stumbled upright and ran out of the bar, mumbling insults to his enemy.
I stood upright and helped Jennifer up.
"Hey again!" I greeted.
"Oh, Nick! Why do you always seem to come out of
nowhere?" she asked smiling at me.
I laughed and shrugged. She proceeded to turn angrily to the other
man who was fighting and lecture him about damages. He scowled and skulked off.
We both watched him leave,
and Jennifer turned back to me again.
"So what can I do for you?" she asked, heading back to
the bar counter.
"I just came across to talk with you," I claimed.
"You sure like to talk a lot," she commented, smiling at
me enchantingly.
I grinned, and sat down.
"Can you excuse me while I call someone?" she asked.
I nodded and leaned back on my chair. At least one chair hadn’t
been destroyed.
I heard Jen come back from making a call.
"Just had to call Karlos about those two guys. So, what did
you come to talk about?"
"Oh, well, it was about yesterday, when I heard you-"
She looked at me, nervously, "What? What about
yesterday?"
"Well…." I paused when I saw the panic in her eyes.
She didn’t want to talk about this. I knew it, but I had to know
what really happened. Then again, I didn’t want to ruin my chances with her
before I even got to know her.
"Oh, nothing. But I was wondering, is it alright if I sorta…
hang out here and talk to you? I’m sorta local and I’d kinda like to get to
know you….."
I waited anxiously for a reply.
"Well, I guess…." She answered finally.
"Thanks, I’d really appreciate that," I thanked her.
My cell rang, and I picked up.
"Yep!"
"Hey Nick! You wanna hang out shoot some hoops or
somethin’?"
It was Brian on the other end.
I hadn’t spent much time with him because of all the tour details
we each had to sort out.
I hung up and put my cell away.
"Must dash. I have to go hang out with a friend of
mine." I claimed.
"That’s cool," she commented. "Come back
again!"
"I will!" I smiled as I got up to leave.
As I drove back, I could help but remember the hint of doubt in
her voice when she agreed to get to know each other better.
***