the finished, winning story by the way, i forgot about this
I used to sort of know this girl. Well.. really, she was a woman. She was extremely dark. Dark hair, dark eyes; her whole demeanor was just dark. She was not your average woman at all. I was thoroughly intrigued. I watched her walk to what I assumed was work near every day for three years straight. I remember every detail perfectly. Her hair was long, halfway down her back. On her good days, the ends were spiral curled and bouncy and she had a glint of something light in her dark eyes. Other days, her hair was pulled back into a loose pony tail and she seemed worn. On rare occasions, I could tell she had been crying. I could describe every new outfit she got, every new pair of earrings, shoes, you name it. I know it sounds strange that I knew all this about a girl I had only seen through a window, but you really learn a lot watching someone walk down the same street, at the same time, through the same window, every day. There were weekends, of course, when I didn't see her.. but even then, I dreamt that I was watching her through the window. I think I'm getting ahead of myself. You see, her name is Jane. I know this because I once saw a guy mouth, "Jane!" in her direction. I heard their muffled conversation through the window. This was also the first time I heard her voice. It was a particularly bad day for Jane because it was raining outside and her perfect hair was going flat. She was holding several books and some folders while trying to balance her over-sized purse on her shoulder at the same time. She was flustered, but she smiled, nodded, and I saw her mouth, "Morning, Dave." I could not hear this part because she seemed much less excited to see Dave than he was to see her. I could see why. I imagined knocking on the window right as she walked by, and she'd smile and I'd see her lips form "Jimmy" right before she pressed her lips against the window. I'd press mine right back on my side of the glass, right there in front of the whole cafe, proudly. I could just see her lipstick print on the glass when I heard the the owner's voice.
"Jim?"
Don said my name as though it wasn't the first time.
"Oh, sorry.. huh?"
I looked up at him. He motioned towards a brand new cup of coffee replacing the old one. I grinned.
"You're somethin else, man."
I sipped at my coffee, loving the feeling of it burning down my throat. I glanced down at my watch. 8:21. Any time now..
I was beginning to wonder if seeing Jane was the only reason I had been coming to this cafe Monday through Friday for so long. I guess it was pretty obvious because I knew that if no one was around, I'd wait there all day just to find out what time she walked home.. so I could see her then, too. Maybe someday I'd even give her a ride. No, no.. that most certainly was out of the question. But the thing was, she knew me - or at least I felt like she knew me. Every morning, she glanced through the window at me.. and there I was. It was almost as if she was checking for my presence. Maybe something would go drastically wrong if I wasn't there? I thought of the butterfly effect and how one blink of an eye could change things around the world. I remembered one day I was extremely sick and could not make it to the cafe. I wondered how her day went then. I wondered if she missed me. It was all sort of ridiculous, and I knew that at the time.. but something about her kept pulling me into that cafe day after day after endless day.
I looked at my watch again. 8:27. She was late. She would be rushing because she should have walked by at 8:25. She was very precise with these things, you see. I waited and finished the rest of my coffee in one big long gulp. I tapped my foot on the floor and watched endless umbrellas pass by. She would have a pink umbrella. I knew this because the day after Jane got rained on, she brought a hot pink umbrella with her and did not seem as flustered as the day before. Her pink umbrella matched her pink earrings.
By 9:00, I had given up. It was not like Jane to miss her morning journey to wherever-it-was. I bent my neck far to one side, and then the other. I had a cramp in it from staring out the window for too long. I looked to my left. Don was in front of a table, setting a plate and a cup of coffee in front of a customer. It was strange because I hadn't even noticed someone entering the cafe. Don walked away and revealed a very tired, frail looking Jane taking a drink of her coffee. My heart stopped. She never came here. What did this mean?
I must have looked at her for quite some time before she looked up from her breakfast and noticed me. I was a little embarrassed, but it didn't seem to matter much. She sort of half-smiled in recognition. It took me a second to register what had just happened and before I could smile back, she was engulfed in her breakfast. In a sense, I blew it.
In another sense, I was satisfied. This half-smile by itself was a big lift off my shoulders. I was free from the burden of Jane-watching. I felt accomplished. I didn't need anything from her anymore. I dug in my pocket and left a crumpled ten dollar bill on the table. I stood up quickly and turned in her direction.
"I'm Jimmy and I know you're Jane and I hope you have a great day."
I didn't even wait to see her reaction. I didn't need to. It was all over now. Three years summed up in a matter of minutes.
I felt wonderful.
"Jim?"
Don said my name as though it wasn't the first time.
"Oh, sorry.. huh?"
I looked up at him. He motioned towards a brand new cup of coffee replacing the old one. I grinned.
"You're somethin else, man."
I sipped at my coffee, loving the feeling of it burning down my throat. I glanced down at my watch. 8:21. Any time now..
I was beginning to wonder if seeing Jane was the only reason I had been coming to this cafe Monday through Friday for so long. I guess it was pretty obvious because I knew that if no one was around, I'd wait there all day just to find out what time she walked home.. so I could see her then, too. Maybe someday I'd even give her a ride. No, no.. that most certainly was out of the question. But the thing was, she knew me - or at least I felt like she knew me. Every morning, she glanced through the window at me.. and there I was. It was almost as if she was checking for my presence. Maybe something would go drastically wrong if I wasn't there? I thought of the butterfly effect and how one blink of an eye could change things around the world. I remembered one day I was extremely sick and could not make it to the cafe. I wondered how her day went then. I wondered if she missed me. It was all sort of ridiculous, and I knew that at the time.. but something about her kept pulling me into that cafe day after day after endless day.
I looked at my watch again. 8:27. She was late. She would be rushing because she should have walked by at 8:25. She was very precise with these things, you see. I waited and finished the rest of my coffee in one big long gulp. I tapped my foot on the floor and watched endless umbrellas pass by. She would have a pink umbrella. I knew this because the day after Jane got rained on, she brought a hot pink umbrella with her and did not seem as flustered as the day before. Her pink umbrella matched her pink earrings.
By 9:00, I had given up. It was not like Jane to miss her morning journey to wherever-it-was. I bent my neck far to one side, and then the other. I had a cramp in it from staring out the window for too long. I looked to my left. Don was in front of a table, setting a plate and a cup of coffee in front of a customer. It was strange because I hadn't even noticed someone entering the cafe. Don walked away and revealed a very tired, frail looking Jane taking a drink of her coffee. My heart stopped. She never came here. What did this mean?
I must have looked at her for quite some time before she looked up from her breakfast and noticed me. I was a little embarrassed, but it didn't seem to matter much. She sort of half-smiled in recognition. It took me a second to register what had just happened and before I could smile back, she was engulfed in her breakfast. In a sense, I blew it.
In another sense, I was satisfied. This half-smile by itself was a big lift off my shoulders. I was free from the burden of Jane-watching. I felt accomplished. I didn't need anything from her anymore. I dug in my pocket and left a crumpled ten dollar bill on the table. I stood up quickly and turned in her direction.
"I'm Jimmy and I know you're Jane and I hope you have a great day."
I didn't even wait to see her reaction. I didn't need to. It was all over now. Three years summed up in a matter of minutes.
I felt wonderful.