He parked in the same spot as the previous morning. Having just opened, the coffee shop was quiet, but it wouldn’t be long before caffeine-starved customers filed into the store eager for their morning shot of Java.
Ryan ordered a Tall coffee and sat in the corner near the window where he could observe the parking lot. Recognizing the woman shouldn’t be a problem. When she arrived, he would allow her time to place her order and then wait until she stopped at the condiment bar before approaching her.
By six o’clock a steady flow of customers were drifting into the store. At 6:15 a.m., he saw her. He watched as she made her way to the counter and ordered four coffees—two Talls and two Grandes. She paid for the coffees and headed for the condiment bar. He stood and moved in close behind her—not too close—just close enough to take in a deep whiff of the familiar, sweet fragrance of her perfume.
Ahhhh
…
that’s
it
.
He moved to her right, now standing shoulder-to-shoulder at the condiment bar. Pretending to have just purchased his coffee, he took a stir stick and swirled it in his half-filled cup of coffee. He drew in another slow, quiet breath, encouraging the fragrance to consume him. “So I see your relatives are still in town,” he said, hoping to delay her.
She looked up at him, pausing briefly before saying, “Oh, yes. You held the door for me yesterday morning. How could I forget?”
Ryan felt a sneeze building, ready to explode. He quickly turned his head away from the woman. “Ahhh…chooo!”
“God bless you,” she said.
“Thank you.” He had to act quickly before being overcome by the impending allergy and melting into a drippy mess. He needed the name of the perfume in case he never saw the woman again.
Fighting to hold back another sneeze, he said, “I wondered if you might tell me the name of the perfume you’re wearing today. I think my wife would love it.”
“It’s called
Angel
…been around for at least ten years. I’ve been wearing it since it first came out. Having my name on the bottle makes it special.”
“That’s very interesting. If you don’t mind me asking, where did you buy the perfume?”
“Are you from around here?”
“Yes. I live in Buckhead.”
“I purchased mine at Macy’s in the Lenox Square Mall. They have a large display on their front counter. You can’t miss it.”
“Thanks.” He turned his head away from Angel. “Ahhh…chooo!”
“God bless you.”
“Thank you…again.”
“I hope it is not my perfume causing you to sneeze. If so, you might want to rethink your gift for your wife.”
“No…it’s probably something else. Thank you, Angel. I’ll be sure to pick some up. I love the fragrance.” His eyes were starting to burn and itch. He covered his nose. “Ahh…choo!”
“God bless you,” Angel said.
“All I need is some fresh air,” he lied. Ryan held the door for Angel as she managed her tray of coffees. “Have a wonderful day.”
She placed her tray of coffees on the roof of a large four-door Mercedes-Benz sedan. He questioned whether he should offer to help. “Ahhh…chooo!” Maybe not.
She opened the door, retrieved the coffees from the roof, and leaned in and placed the coffee carrier on the floor in front of the passenger’s seat.
She
must
be
relatively
wealthy
.
As she backed the Benz out of the parking spot, he noticed a Georgia license plate with the peach in the center and MORGAN County on the bottom.
“Ahh…choo!” The allergens were fast at work racing through his bloodstream preparing him for what he hoped would be another time-traveling dream into the past. If not, he could safely assume that the mystery of his
other
life was without a doubt only a dream within a dream. However, if miraculously the sweet smelling potion spun him into another life, he could easily purchase more
Angel
perfume.
When he arrived home, Keri was sitting at the kitchen table sipping coffee and reading her Bible.
“Ahhhh…choo!”
“God bless you,” she said.
He rubbed his burning eyes. “Ahhh…choo!”
“My goodness! I hope you’re not getting sick?” She looked at his face. “Your eyes…”
Déjà
vu
.
That
is
exactly
what
she
said
yesterday
morning
.
“No. I think it’s an allergic reaction. I’ll be fine. I need to lie down for a minute.”
“Can I do anything for you?”
“No. I’m going to lie down and let this stuff wear off. I should be okay in time to go to church. Just give me an hour or so to sleep it off.”
Ryan wasted no time washing his face, blowing his nose, and getting in bed. He had purposely stayed up late the previous night hoping to enhance his sleep quality—assuming he would find the woman and ingest the perfume.
Within ten minutes he began feeling groggy.
* * *
The condo was empty. He glanced at his watch—four-thirty, seven-thirty Atlanta time. His mom would be expecting his call. He always called her on her birthday regardless of where he was in the world. He imagined her sitting in her favorite chair, working her needle like a skilled surgeon, bringing a drab piece of canvas to life with one of her heart-felt scenes—each with its own special meaning about life.
He grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge, took a seat on the sofa in the den, and dialed her number.
“Hello?” she said.
“Happy birthday, Mom!”
“Ryan, so happy to hear your voice! How are you doing?”
“Good. Did you have a good day?”
“Well, at my age, they’re all good.” She chuckled.
Ryan pulled the phone over by the sofa, leaned back, and propped his feet up.
I’m
dreaming
.
This
is
not
real
.
It’s
happening
again
.
I
can
change
my
life
.
The lucidity of his dream was exceptionally brilliant. He had not only lived this experience in his past life, he was living it now.
This
is
awesome
!
He could ask his mother anything. She would obviously not be aware of his current reality outside of his dream, because she had not lived it, but she would be fully aware of the imaginary reality within the dream.
She said, “Guess who I got a birthday card from yesterday?”
“Who?”
“Keri. She always remembers my birthday.”
“Keri Hart?” Ryan sat up. “What did she say?”
“Not much. Just that she loved me, missed me, and wished me a happy birthday. She’s so sweet.”
“Where is she now?”
“She’s in Florida… Ft. Lauderdale. Did I tell you she’s a flight attendant?”
“Yeah. You mentioned it in one of your letters.”
“I wish you two could get together.”
“She is an amazing woman, isn’t she?”
“Yes, she is. The two of you would be so perfect together.”
“Mom, I miss you.”
“I miss you, too. When are you going to come visit me?
“Soon…very soon.”
“Well, you better not dilly dally or you are going to lose that sweet little thing.”
“Does she ever ask about me?”
“I keep her up to speed with what is going on in your crazy life. We don’t see each other much anymore. Just a few letters every now and then. Do you remember that night before you left for the Academy?”
“How could I forget? She dumped me cold…but I know her mother was the mastermind behind it.”
“I never told you, but the next day, she came over and we had a long heart-to-heart talk. I’d never seen her so sad. She was a mess. And you were right; Barbara Ann
did
encourage her to break up with you.”
“I knew it!”
“Keri hated herself, but felt trapped. The poor little thing was so befuddled. I hated seeing her suffer. She loved you more than life itself. She said she would do anything to take back that night. I told her not to give up, that you would understand. She decided to write you every day. But you know, it takes two to keep a relationship alive and you weren’t exactly the best at writing.”
“You don’t have to rub it in, but in my defense, they were busting my chops. I barely had time to brush my teeth.”
“Ryan, you could have…”
“Okay Mom, I know. I blew it...should’ve written her more...I screwed up. But I’m going to fix all that now.”
“Why don’t you write her now? She knows you're in California. I think it would be nice. I know she would love to hear from you.” A moment of silence followed.
“I’ve got a better idea. Do you have her number?”
“No. We agreed not to call, only write, because I really can’t afford long distance, and I don’t want her wasting her money. Let me give you her address.”
He grabbed a notepad and a pen. “What is it?” He scribbled it down. “Mom, you were right about everything.”
“What do you mean?”
Mom
won’t
understand
what
I’m
about
to
say
,
but
I
need
to
tell
her
.
“Mom, I should have listened to you and done what you said. I made a mess of my life. Things turned out okay, but I could have avoided a lot of pain and misery if I had only listened.”
“Ryan, you are still young. You have all of your life ahead of you. Don’t focus on the short past. Remember, learn from the past, embrace the present….
Ryan cut her off. “I know, I know…and hope in the future. The needlepoint you made says it all.”
“Yes it does, and it’s hanging by the door so I’ll always be reminded.”
The
needlepoint
is
actually
hanging
in
our
house
,
but
she
wouldn’t
know
that
because
she
had
not
given
it
to
us
yet
.
“Mom, I love you.”
“I love you, too. You sure are sentimental. Anything I need to know?”
“Just know that not a day goes by that I don’t think of you, wish I could be with you, and talk to you more. My memory of you always brightens my day.”
“You act like I’ve died. I’m still here…at least for now.”
“It’s hard to explain,” he said. “But everything is fine…actually it is fantastic! Things are going to be different now.”
They said good-bye.
He went to his bedroom and pulled out some paper and began writing:
Friday
,
May
13
,
1983
Keri
,
It’s
been
a
long
time
.
I
learned
from
Mom
you're
living
in
Florida
.
She
tells
me
you're
a
flight
attendant
.
Sounds
exciting
.
I
also
hope
to
be
hired
by
the
airlines
,
once
I
complete
my
commitment
to
the
Navy
.
Probably
next
summer
.
The
Navy
keeps
me
busy
,
and
out
of
touch
with
everyone
.
Even
Mom
complains
.
I’m
ready
for
a
change
.
Maybe
we
can
talk
sometime
and
do
some
catching
up
.
Mom
didn’t
have
your
number
.
Mine
is
619
-
231
-
1515
.
Please
give
me
a
call
or
write
.
I'm
living
with
a
Navy
buddy
in
Del
Mar
,
a
small
beach
community
north
of
San
Diego
.
I
look
forward
to
talking
with
you
.
All
my
love
,
Ryan
This
time
,
I’ll
hand
-
carry
the
letter
to
the
mailbox
.
As he licked the stamp, he heard the condo door close. “What’s up, buddy?” Rex called, as he made a beeline for the fridge.
Oh
boy
…
the
jerk
is
home
to
ruin
my
life
.
Well
,
not
this
time
.
Ryan moved into the den. “Rex, did I ever tell you about Keri Hart?”
Why
am
I
wasting
my
time
telling
Rex
about
Keri
?
I
know
where
this
is
going
?
Sprawled out on the sofa, half-way through his first beer, Rex said. “Not sure.”
“I haven’t seen her since we split up back in high school, but my mom tells me she is living in Florida and is a flight attendant.”
“Hey, dude, you’d better not go there. No telling what she looks like now. She could be bald, bucktoothed, and the size of a baby whale—a real swamp donkey.”
“You’re crazy! I know for a fact she is drop-dead gorgeous.”
“Not worth the chance. Too many babes out there for you to waste your time thinking about some woman you might not be able to recognize on a beach full of sea lions. Yo, mate, let me grab my harpoon.”