Crossroads

Ok, ok, ok... I know it's been a while. (I've been busy with that whole "job" thing, so cut me some slack....) As a result I haven't had a lot of creativity lately. This morning, however, my mind drifted back to my law school days in South Royalton, Vermont, as it typically does this time of year. Remembering fondly the summers I spent there with my small group of friends (you know who you are, but I will not use your names in order to protect the innocent... and not so innocent), images of the small town in which the school was located filled my mind. You know me though, I can't just write a happy go lucky tale. I tried once, and I ended up killing off the main character anyway. As usual, something dark and twisted crept its way into my mental imagery and the following was born.  

This story takes its name from the bar in town where we used to gather, and the setting is accurate to the actual town in which I spent a good three years of my life. So with that, I bring you... Crossroads.

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            He sat there, trying to drown the cacophony that surrounded him with what few drops remained of the glass of scotch in his hands. Drifting from her voice to the drumming of the crowd noise in the bar and back again, the noise in his ears was deafening. No matter how much he drank nor how hard he tried, he could neither shut out her voice nor muffle the mindless chatter that seemed to mock him.

            “I told you this would happen,” she said, over and over. He closed his eyes and held them tightly shut as he gripped the glass in his hand so firmly it nearly shattered.

           

            “Goddamn it,” he whispered to himself as he slammed the glass down on the bar in front of him. “Can I get another?” he asked without opening his eyes. He waited for a moment, but received no response. Then it hit him. Silence.

            “Doug?” he said as he opened his eyes. The usual regret he felt as a result of being on a first name basis with the bartender was absent from his voice, the tones of fear and anxiety filling it instead. Glancing around the bar, he could see that not only was it silent, it was empty. Thoroughly and completely empty. Gone were the dozens of patrons that had been laughing, drinking, and eating just moments before. He could hear no loud, hard crackling as cue balls struck their targets on the pool tables nor the heavy thunk as darts plunged into the dart board on the wall. No orders were taken as there was no longer any wait staff to be found. Even the strumming of the guitar that filled the background behind the chatter was absent. There wasn’t even a single glass or plate on any table.  As he looked down, even that glass he had been holding in his hand had disappeared. It was as if something had come in and wiped the place clean. Except for him.

           

            “Hello?” he called. No answer. Terror washed over him. He stood so quickly the bar stool upon which he had been sitting tipped and clanged to the floor, echoing through the now vacant space. Spinning around he confirmed that he was, in fact, very alone. Panicked now, he ran for the door and thrust it open. So too was the parking lot empty. The only sound he could hear was the rustling of leaves as a gentle breeze blew through the trees.

            “Hello!” he yelled at the top of his lungs. Still no answer. Growing feverishly frightened, he ran across the tracks and out to the town square beyond. Everyone had vanished. “What the hell is going on?” he asked himself as his eyes darted back and forth, searching for something. Someone. Anything. Anyone. He breathed deeply and was trying to calm himself when suddenly he saw her standing in the gazebo at the center of the square.

            At first he thought she was an illusion. Unable to quite make out her face, all he could tell was that she had long, blond hair and was wearing a white dress. Looking around again to confirm that no one else was present, he approached her cautiously. As he drew closer he could see that she was stunningly beautiful. Her golden hair cascaded down across her slender, tanned shoulders that showed beneath the straps of the flowing summer dress she wore. Though there was a chill in the air she seemed unaffected.

            Her crystal blue eyes were accentuated by a hint of silver eye shadow and framed by her statuesque, angular cheekbones and perfectly sculpted eyebrows that were just slightly darker than the rest of her hair. His eyes traced down her figure to her thin but toned legs, stopping at the white sandals she wore on her feet. She was indeed a vision, whether real or imagined. He could feel his cheeks flush as she smiled at him, and she remained still as he stepped up into the gazebo.

            “Hi,” he managed to say. Instinctively he held his body sideways, preparing to run at the first sign of threat. There was none. Again she smiled.

            “I’ve been waiting for you,” she said simply.

            “Why? What’s going on?” he asked.

            “Don’t you know?”

            “If I did, I wouldn’t ask.”

            “We have a journey ahead of us,” she replied. She laughed as he raised an eyebrow inquisitively. Her laughter was strangely comforting. “Come, come with me, please,” she said as she offered her hand. Without hesitation he took it, suprising himself, and marveled at the softness of her skin. “Come,” she said again.

            Leading him out of the gazebo, she walked slowly towards the bank that sat beside the railroad tracks he had crossed over earlier. The warmth of her tenderness radiated over him as they strolled. Then, abruptly, his comfort morphed into confusion. The bank that they approached was no longer a bank, but instead and been restored to the rail station it had been prior to conversion.

            “It’s ok, come,” she whispered softly in his hear. Her nearness set his spine tingling. There was something about this strange and alluring woman that captivated him. As much as he wanted to fear and flee his predicament, he felt oddly at ease as they stepped inside the station. It too was devoid of any other soul save the two of them. He almost didn’t recognize it without the tellers' stations and aged walls that divided the bank’s lobby from its small offices. His companion took no notice of his disorientation and continued to lead him with a firm but reassuring grasp. They stepped out through the door to the rear of the building he never knew existed and onto the platform beyond, where a train that couldn’t possibly had been there previously was already waiting. The sight of it gave him pause and he pulled his hand away.

            “Stop. Please, stop. I’m not taking another step until you tell me what’s going on,” he declared. Again, she smiled so invitingly that he literally swooned and almost lost his balance. Without a word she glided towards him, touched her hands to his cheeks, and placed a soft kiss on his lips.  He felt as if a charge of electricity had coursed through his veins. There was a familiarity in her kiss that soothed him. She spoke as he opened his eyes.

            “Let your mind trust me,” she requested. “Your heart already does.” There was no denying her words. Something about here compelled him to trust her. “We’ve someplace else to be, you and I.”

            Releasing himself to her, he took her hand once again and they climbed into the train car before them. Taking a seat on the left side of the train facing the square, he watched the small town slip away as the train pulled out as silently as it had arrived. The beautiful woman next to him rested her head on his shoulder and held his hand in her lap tightly with both of hers. He sighed deeply, closed his eyes, and for a brief moment allowed blissful ignorance to overcome him….

© 2012 J.J. Goodman. All rights reserved.