Making my way downtown to the square I soon see why I miss coming down here. It’s full of life and laughter. I roll down my window as I drive through the center street where it seems busiest. The cafes and little street side bistros are lit up with fun, colorful lights and you can hear the sound of live musicians floating through the air. James and I use to come down here often on the weekends. I miss doing couple stuff. The thought of Brisban and I possibly coming here together makes me smile. He would love this atmosphere.
I park and make my way over to Jake’s, my favorite of all the cafes here. The bell chimes when I open the door and, as always, Jake greets me. I wonder if he ever takes a moment off from work because he always seems to be here.
“Good evening Ms. Candace, please have a seat and I’ll have your regular right out to you.”
I smile and nod. “Sounds perfect, Jake. Thank you.”
I like sitting by a window so I can people watch, so I choose a small two-top by the big window. Jake brings me a Cherry Coke with three fat cherries on top.
“Just the way you like it.”
“Thank you, Jake. How’s Anne? I haven’t been in here in a while. How’s she doing?”
His shoulders slump and I instantly feel bad for asking. “She has her good days but they just aren’t as many anymore.”
“Awe, I’m sorry to hear that. I’ll be sure and have you guys in my thoughts.”
He pats me on the shoulder. “Thank you, dear. Your food will be out soon.”
I’ve been coming here since I was a teenager. Jake’s a part of my life that I can remember far back to when I was just a kid begging my mom for cherries in my Coke. I rest my chin in my hand and gaze out the window. Couples are walking hand in hand, smiling and flirting I can’t wait to have moments like that with Brisban. We’ve spent so much of our time together behind closed doors. It’ll be nice to do normal couple stuff together. Right before Jake brings out my Italian Grilled Cheese, I get a text. It’s him. The corners of my mouth turn up and I smile from ear to ear.
Brisban: Hey beautiful. How was the rest of your day?
Me: Uneventful. Yours?
Brisban: What are you doing now?
Me: Eating…well, I’m about to eat. I’m downtown.
Brisban: Oh, well don’t let me interrupt.
Me: It’s just me. I needed to get out of the house for a bit.
Brisban: Come over.
Me: Now?
Brisban: Yes, now. Get it to go. I’ve thought about you all day. Come over, please.
How do I argue with that?
Me: Okay.
Brisban: Great, see you soon.
“Jake, I’m sorry but can I get this to go. Something’s come up.”
He comes around from behind the counter. “Sure, you want your drink to go, too?”
“Yeah, if you don’t mind.”
He takes my plate and drink and disappears into the back.
I leave a twenty dollar bill on the table for Jake and he comes out with my to-go bags.
“Thanks, Jake.”
“Don’t wait so long before you come back in to see me.” I wave and tell him I’ll definitely stop by more often.
The smell of the food fills my car and my stomach rumbles. I reach over and try to untie the sack and figure I’ll just eat it on my way to Brisban’s house. After a little finesse, I get the sack open but I can’t seem to get the container to flip open. I take my eyes off of the road momentarily to open the box and the blaring sound of a horn honking brings my eyes forward. I came up on the intersection and the light is red. I’m going straight through it. Before I can react, I hear a loud bang and see my drink flying through the air, soda splashing onto everything. My head jerks forward then backward and something hits me in the face, nearly knocking the wind out of me. Soon I realize it’s my airbag. I finally feel the car stop. My foot is practically one with the brake pedal now. My heart’s racing a million miles a minute. The first thing that comes to my mind is to get out of the car in case anything is on fire. I’m in flight mode. I look down at myself to make sure there’s no blood coming from anywhere but I seem to be fine. I try to push open the door but it won’t budge. I climb over to the passenger door and try to open it; as soon as I’m out of the car I remember to grab my purse. When I reach in to get it I hear someone yelling at me from behind. I spin around and see a man yelling at me.
“Are you crazy, lady? You ran that red light. We could’ve been killed. Are you okay?”
“I’m so sorry, sir. I know and I’m sorry. I looked away for just a minute. I think I’m okay. Are you okay? Is anyone else involved?”
I hear sirens and can see a scratch on the man’s forehead, a small trickle of blood coming down from it. My head is pounding and I feel nauseous.