TWO

“Last call for the passengers in the eight o’clock flight to Minnesota.” The lady on the intercom announced.

Jason rushed to Gate 32, wearing his backpack and his camera around his neck. He had already left his other luggage at the check-in. He started to board the plane, pushing himself through the crowd. He was greeted by one of the flight attendants, and then he made his way down the isle, searching for his assigned seat. He plopped down next to a woman who was glancing at her compact mirror, applying another layer of lipstick.

 

Kate looked at her reflection on the glass as she waited for Jason’s plane to land. She fixed her hair, wanting to look good for Jason. She tried to cover the bags under her eyes as best as she could with concealer. What would he see? Had she changed too much? Would he think that the young girl from fourteen years ago was still here?

Kate rushed to Gate 27 as the plane landed and people were filing out. She scanned the faces, looking for any guy who had a slight similarity to the old Jason, and had a camera around his neck. Then, she saw him. He was scanning the crowd too, fidgeting with the strap of his camera.

“Jace!” she called. “Jason!”

He didn’t hear her. He ran his hand through his thick brown hair. His features were sharper, now. He was still tall and lanky, but he had a slight build. He recognized him even more with his habit of stroking the small light scar he had on his arm.

“Jason!” she called again, rushing over to him. “Jason!”

 

Jason heard a voice calling him and immediately turned towards it.

“Jason!”

His eyes met another pair. “Kate?”

Kate looked totally different. Her hair was longer, the tresses falling on her shoulders in a casual array. The figure was slender and her skin was smooth cream. The only way he recognized her was through her long lashes and rosy cheeks.

She stood two feet away. “Hi.” She said.

“Hey.” He smiled, and then glanced at his watch. Eleven-thirty. “So, how’s about some lunch?”

Her smile faltered, but still managed to stay on. “Sure.”

“Anything in mind?”

“Hmmm… I’m in the mood for some pizza. You?”

“Sure, pizza’s fine.”

Jason followed Kate to her car and put his luggage in, then again followed her towards the pizza parlor they ordered one whole pizza and some drinks and sat on their table to wait.

“Thanks again, for coming, Jace.” Kate said.

“Don’t mention it. I’m really glad you called. I haven’t heard from you in a while.”

“I’m sorry we lost touch.”

“Hey.” He smiled. “At least we’re here now.”

The waitress came and put their order on the table. They both grabbed a slice and started eating. Kate took a bite, crust first, and made her way to the tip. Jason started picking off the pine apple slices and olives and putting them on his plate. Childhood quirks.

Jason chuckled as he noticed their eating habits “Old ways die hard.”

Kate smiled. “So I see. I hear you’re a photographer now. I see you pictures sometimes. I’m glad you followed your dream.”

“Yeah. How about you?”

“I’m a singer at one of the restaurants in town.”

“A singer, eh? I should have known. You love music.”

Kate chuckled, and then became serious. “But I’m thinking of getting a new job. The pay isn’t that high, you know?”

“How’s about I help you? You know, while I’m still here.”

“Sure.” She smiled. “I’d like that. By the way, how long do you plan on staying here?”

“A couple of weeks, maybe a few.”

“Oh yeah, Michael and my parents want to meet you.” Kate said, taking a sip from her coke.

“Michael? Little Mike?”

“Yeah.”

“How old is he now?”

“Twenty-four.”

“Oh yeah. He was ten when I left, right?”

“Yup.”

They had just finished their second slice. Kate started to dab at the corners of her mouth with a tissue.

“Finished?” Jason asked.

Kate nodded. “I’ll go to the bathroom first.”

She stood up and went to the ladies room. Jason’s heartbeat slowed down. Could it be that after all these years, all his feelings for her were still locked up inside him? Did he secretly store them away in the corner of his heart? Jason picked up his glass and rubbed it on his face, letting the condensation cool his skin.

 

Kate splashed her face with the cold water from the bathroom sink. She dried herself and looked at herself in the mirror. Who was this woman? Her appearance was similar to Kate’s but her cheeks were flushed and her eyes were sparkling.

This is wrong, Kate. She thought to herself as she opened the door and went out.

 

Jason opened Kate’s car door and waited for her to get in. then he opened the passenger door and went inside.

“My place?” Kate asked, her grey eyes questioning.

Jason nodded.

Kate pointed some of the buildings they passed. Some were old, the others were new. She even suggested a good motel that was close enough to her house.

When they arrived, Kate parked the car out front, and they both went out of the car. Jason let Kate lead and waited beside her as she opened the door.

 

Kate invited Jason in and he stepped inside, surveying the room. Should I tell him? She debated with herself.

“Nice place you got.” He said.

“Thanks.”

Jason’s eyes landed on the picture of Jackson beside the telephone. He approached it and picked it up.

“This is him?” he asked.

“Yes.” Pause. “Jace?”

“Hmmm…?” he said, turning.

“Press the play button.’ She said, motioning to the answering machine. “I want you to hear something.”

Kate had erased the three other messages, only Jack’s was left.

Beep. “Kate? Kate, I know when you’re hearing this I’ll already be gone…”

 

Jason listened in disbelief as the message played and drifted to an end.

“That’s all I really want for you…” Beep.

“That was him?” Jason asked.

No answer. Quiet sobs were heard. Jason turned. Kate was on the floor, her face in her hands, her back trembling.

“Oh, Kate…” he whispered, and walked towards her. He knelt down and wrapped his arms around her.

 

Kate felt Jason’s warm arms embracing her. She tried to stop from crying, but could no longer hold back and broke down.

She cried. She cried for jack. She cried for Jason. She cried for herself. She cried for jack’s sickness, and her helplessness. She cried till there was nothing else to cry for, till the tears and her energy had run out.

“Save your tears, Kate.” Jason whispered in her ear. “Save them for another day. Cherish your smiles, Kate. Happiness. That’s all he wants for you.”

 

Kate was half-asleep, exhausted from giving herself in to her sorrows. Jason positioned himself and put Kate’s arm around his neck. He braced himself and lifted her up in his arms. He walked slowly up the stairs and searched the doors in the hallway for the bedroom, and then carefully laid her down. Her face was at peace, even if her eyes were slightly swollen; her mind at ease, away in the place filled with her dreams.

He went downstairs and took a Post-It from beside the phone and wrote his name and number on it, then stuck it on the phone. He walked towards the door and locked it as stepped outside.

He walked towards one of the nearby stores he had noticed earlier and stepped inside.

“Do you rent motorcycles?” Jason asked the attendant.

“Yeah.” He said, bored, chewing on a piece of gum. “Over there. Go ahead and pick one.”

Jason headed over to the line motorcycles on display. He picked one of the new ones, a Ducati. He wheeled it over to the guy and paid the amount for three weeks.

He drove the Ducati to the gas station and filled the tank, and then drove to the motel Kate had recommended and rented a room. His phone rang as he entered the room. He answered it.

“Hello?” Jason said.

“Jace?” a croaky voice said.

“Yeah, Kate, it’s me.”

“Where are you?”

“I’m at the motel.”

“Oh.” She said, clearing her throat. “How did you get there?”

“I went to Vehicle Rentals and rented a motorcycle. Then I drove here.”

“I’m sorry I fell asleep.”

“S’okay. You had to let it out.”

“Right. About that. Sorry you had to see that. Especially on your first day.”

“No need for sorries, Kate. That’s why I’m here. If you’re okay, I’m okay.”

“Thanks, Jace. It’s getting kinda late. Will you come by tomorrow?”

“Sure, Kate. I promised you, didn’t I?”

 

A few minutes after Kate put down the phone, it rang again.

“Hello?” Kate said.

“Kate.” The voice said in relief. “It’s Julie.”

“Julie!” she smiled. “How are you?”

“I’m fine. Though I could ask the same for you.”

“Better. I called Jason.”

“Jason?”

“My childhood best friend. He’s here, ‘Li.”

“There? At your house?”

“No!” Kate laughed. “I mean here, in this town. Here in Minneapolis. He flew in from New York.”

“And you haven’t seen him since…?”

“I haven’t seen him in fourteen years.”

“Years?”

“Years.”

“And you suddenly called him out of the blue?”

“Yup.”

“And he’s here in this town?”

“Yup.”

“And he’s�"��"�”

“Julie?” she interrupted.

“Yeah?”

“Am I in interrogation here?”

“I’m sorry, Kate. Just curious about the deets. Sheesh.”

“Don’t worry; I’ll let him meet you sometime.”

“Sure, Kate.”

“Bye.”

Kate put the phone down. Same old Julie, she chuckled. Julie was her best bud, and it was lucky they worked together. They first met when it was Kate’s first day at the restaurant, Julie was the first to approach her, and they got talking. They clicked and had been friends ever since.

Kate went to the kitchen and started to make her dinner.

 

Jason grumbled as he walked down the hallway and out the motel doors. He made a mental note to buy some groceries. He strolled down the sidewalk, looking for a cheap but decent place to eat his dinner. He finally found a small Italian restaurant with a mini bar. Good, he thought, I need a drink.

He ordered some pasta, and when he finished, he went straight to the bar.

“Whiskey, please.” He said to the bartender.

“Sure, mate.” He said, pouring him a glass.

“J.C.?” a voice beside him said. “Jason? Is that you?”

Jason turned his head to the left and saw a young man, still in his twenties, peering at him closely, scratching his thick head of hair.

“Do I know you?” Jason asked.

“Jace! It is you!” the young man said, his face full of joy. “It’s me! Michael! Lil’ Mike!”

Jason looked at the man’s features: same thick black hair; same smooth pale skin; same light grey eyes.

“Oh, God, Mike! That is you!”

“I knew you were coming. But I didn’t expect to see you here. I guess I should have guessed.” He said, motioning to the glass.

Jason chuckled. “Riiight.”

“Have you gone to see my sis’ yet?” Mike said, taking a long swig from his bottle of beer.

“We ate lunch together this afternoon.”

“Yeah?” said Mike, the word slurred.

Jason looked uneasily at mike. “How many bottles have you had?”

“Hey. A girl is different from a girl when he’s drowning his sorrows.”

“Too much, I presume…” he mumbled to himself.

“What’s that?” Mike asked, already tipsy.

“How’s about I bring you home?”

“Sure. Just let me get another bottle, for the road.”

Jason chugged down the last of his whiskey.

“Hey bartender!” Mike shouted, slamming his pay on the table. “Slide me another one!”

 

 

                                      . . .

 

Kate’s phone rang, interrupting her from her tasteless dinner. She crossed the floor to the living room and to the telephone.

“Hello?” Kate answered.

“Kate?” Jason’s voice said.

“Jace?”

“Yeah, it’s me. I’m at the motel, with your brother.”

“Mike?”

“Uh-huh. We bumped into each other at the mini bar in the Italian restaurant at the corner.” Jason grunted. Kate heard some slurred words in the background. “Sure, Mike.”

“And?” Kate asked.

“He’s drunk. I want to take him home but I don’t know where he lives.”

“Don’t worry. I’m coming over.”

 

Kate drove to the motel I her BMW. Ah, Mike. She thought. What’s wrong with you? She parked in a nearby empty space and walked briskly towards the motel entrance. She saw Mike and Jason seated in the lobby.

“Hi.” She said.

“Hey.” Jason said, relieved.

Mike was already out, leaning on the back of the chair.

“C’mon.” Kate said. “Let’s take him to the car.”

“Wait.” Jason said. He got the beer bottle that was sitting beside Mike and finished it till the last drop. “I needed that.”

Kate rolled her eyes and put one of Mike’s arms around her neck. She patted him repeatedly on his cheek.

“Mike.” She said. “Mike!”

“Wha…? What?” Mike said.

“Mike, we’re taking you home. Can you at least stay awake till we get to the house?”

“Mmmyeah…” he mumbled.

“Get his other arm.” She told Jason.

They grunted from Mike’s weight as they lifted him up from the chair. Slowly, with a bit of Mike’s help, they were able to get to the car. Kate opened the car door and Jason seated Mike inside.

“Guess you’ll be meeting my parents then.” Kate as they both got into the car.