Meet Me at Taylor Park (20 page)

Brandon strained his eyes to see who it was, but the darkness obscured his vision.

The figure gestured to Brandon to meet him at the front door.

Brandon felt adrenaline pump through his body. He turned around and headed to the front door, which was now lit by a pale light.

The door was already open.

“Katie,” Brandon began, “What hap….”

In mid-sentence, he realized that the person looking at him was not Katie. It was not even a woman.

The man had black bangs and wore nerdy glasses. He crossed his arms and looked at Brandon like he was a cockroach.

“So you must be Brandon.” The man scowled.

When Brandon realized who this person was, adrenaline overwhelmed his system, making him sweat.

Brandon drew himself up to full height. “And you must be Steven.”

Steven glared at him. “Stay away from my woman.”

“She was mine first. And she still is.”

Steven sneered. “She doesn’t want you.”

Brandon laughed. “She must not have told you yet. She’s running away with me.”

Steven laughed even louder. He reached into his pocket and took out something.

Brandon looked closer and saw it was a photo of him and Liz that night by the pub.

Brandon felt like he had been hit by a truck. “Where…how…..”

Steven smirked. “I had an old detective friend follow you. No one gets in my way.”

He made a fist and held it in the air. “I always get what I want.”

Brandon curled his hands into fists and advanced on Steven.

Steven took out something from his other pocket pointed it at Brandon.

Brandon froze in his tracks.

It was a revolver.

Steven cocked the gun. “Now be a good little poor man and go back to your little shack. I don’t want to have to use this.”

Brandon looked into Steven’s face. It was aglow with victory.

Brandon took one step back. “Let me talk to Katie.”

“Get away from here.”

Then, another voice came from behind Steven.

“It’s OK, Steven. Let me talk to him.”

Katie emerged from behind Steven, wearing a lace nightgown.

Steven looked hesitant. “Are you sure?”

Katie touched him on the arm. “Yeah. This will only take a minute.”

Steven glowered at Brandon. “Don’t you try anything funny.” He retreated into the background.

Katie came out of the front door with her hair tousled. She looked like she had been deprived of sleep for days.

Brandon tried to hug her, but she backed away. She held up one hand. “Don’t.’

“Let me explain. Liz was really into me, so I kissed her to prove that there were no feelings there.”

Katie shook her head.

As Brandon took in his first love, he realized that she did not look angry. Just disappointed. Sad. And resigned.

“I don’t want to hear it.” Even her eyes were tired. “You’ve hurt me for the last time. I’m not going to shed another tear for you.”

She looked subdued. There was no emotion in her voice.

Brandon felt like his entire body was going to collapse like a dilapidated bridge. “So you’re just going to marry that boring guy who doesn’t love you?” He pointed into the house.

Katie sighed. “Steven may be mild-mannered, but he would never hurt me. You promised me no more drama. I don’t need any more drama in my life.” She sounded like a robot. “I can’t handle your roller coaster anymore. These past few days, you’ve aroused so many emotions in me. I feel so overloaded.” Her face was twisted, as though she were in physical pain.

“But that just means that you still feel something for me.”

“I never said I didn’t. I just can’t live like this.” Katie looked thoughtful for a minute. Then, she said, “Even if you love someone, it doesn’t mean you have to marry them.”

Brandon held out both hands. “What about us?”

“There is no us.” She took out the photo of Brandon and Liz. “This was the same girl you used to hurt me with. I can’t take this anymore. I’m done.”

Brandon approached and grabbed her hands. “I’m sorry. I was just a stupid kid back then. If I could take it all back, I would, so that you would never have to hurt again.” His voice was low and pleading.

Katie wanted to let him hold her, but she felt that even just one more ounce of drama would push her into a realm of insanity.

She batted his hands away. “It’s not about the girl. It’s about you and me. Our timing has never been right. Maybe we weren’t meant to be.”

Brandon wanted to drop to his knees and beg for her forgiveness. Instead, he said, “What about taking care of each other?”

Katie actually laughed. It was more of an abrupt and shallow inhalation of a breath. She waved the photo of Brandon and Liz around. “It looks like you’ve taken care of yourself first.”

She stepped back and slammed the door in his face.

Brandon stood back, trying to process what had happened.

So he was right. Someone did take a picture of him and Liz that night.

Brandon shoved the thought out of his mind.
 

He vowed he would get Katie back somehow.

He peered into the windows, but they were all tightly drawn.

He looked around.
 

It was pitch black.
 

The moon was gone, gobbled up by ravenous clouds.

*

Chapter 16

The next day, Katie sat in her room, looking out the window at the streets. The sun was shining on the cherry tree, the cars parked along the street, and all the children playing.

She wished she could appreciate the scenery.

A gentle knock on her door roused her from her thoughts. She turned around, and her mother, Catherine, walked in.

“Beautiful day, isn’t it, baby?”

Katie merely bobbed her head.

Catherine put a gentle hand on her daughter’s shoulder. “I think that the sun is a sign.”

“Of what?” Katie asked, still staring outside.

“It’s an auspicious sign that means you’re making the right choice.”

Katie kept her eyes on the cherry tree in the front yard. The branches were billowing back and forth. Leaves were ripped off, spiraling to the ground.

“How come it doesn’t feel right?”

Her mother sat down on the bed. “My dear, feelings are overrated. Never trust your feelings. Emotions are volatile. I know they’re telling you to be with Brandon, aren’t they?”

“Hmmm.”

Her mother straightened her bob hairstyle. “Don’t ever trust your emotions. Logic says that Steven is a wealthy man that can take care of you. As a former science teacher, I’ve taught this so many times. Humans evolved logic for a reason. It allowed us to be at the top of the food chain of the entire animal kingdom. Do you know how?”

Katie turned to face her mother, and then shook her head.

“Because it lets us make plans and see into the future.” She held out her right hand. “Steven can take care of you. I know you don’t make such money as a kindergarten teacher.”

She held out her left hand. “On the other hand, Brandon is a poor charity fundraiser. I’ve been told that he’s in debt too. What kind of future do you see with Brandon?”

Katie looked at her mother, who had on a serious expression. She shrugged. “I really don’t know. It can’t all be about money.”

“It’s not, but look at how he treated you. Stopping you from achieving your dreams, and then the cheating.”

“He did it impulsively. I don’t think he meant to.”

Catherine clasped her hands together. “I had a first love too. He was my high school sweetheart but I married your father.”

Katie gave her mother a puzzled look.

Catherine held out a palm. “I know what you’re thinking. Your father cheated on me later on. It was partly my fault. I wasn’t the best wife, but that’s not the point. The point is that he was a good man and provided for us.”

“Did you love your high school sweetheart?”

Catherine waved a hand dismissively. “You can’t always make decisions based on your heart. Feelings are volatile and change on a whim. You have to be more practical. It’s not up to me, but if you marry the stable guy, then I think you will have made the right choice.”

Katie pressed on. “But did you love the guy?”

Catherine looked thoughtful, as though she were in another place, another time. She looked like she wanted to cry, but she did not. Instead, she cleared her throat and sat up straight.

“Yes,” she finally said, her voice devoid of feeling. “In many ways, I loved him more than your father.”

She got up. “But this guy later descended into drugs. He was emotionally unstable. He now lives in a mental hospital.”

Her mother smoothed out the sheets on the bed. “Most people don’t end up with their first loves. It’s just not done.”

She looked up. “I’ll leave you to your thoughts.”

She headed toward the door and turned back. “But just remember that life isn’t a fairy tale. I read you a lot of Disney classics when you were growing up, and I regret it now. I think it might have made your expectations about love and marriage unrealistic. Just remember that most of us don’t find our princes charming. Very few do, so don’t expect anything.”

With that, Catherine left Katie’s room.

Katie thought about what her mother had said. It was true. Watching all those Disney movies during childhood made her expect a lot of things when it came to men. Watching those Disney movies made her want her very own prince charming to sweep her off her feet.

She laughed wryly. She now understood that it was all crap. Princes charming did not exist in real life. They were merely fictional characters in fantasy stories. They were merely fantasies.

Katie played with Steven’s ring on her finger.

Earlier that morning, she had woken up and found Steven’s ring on her finger. Brandon’s ring had been on the kitchen table. She had put it in her pocket before going upstairs.

She took out Brandon’s ring and read the inscription one more time.
 

To Katie, my love. Be my princess. I’ll be your prince. Brandon.

She sniffled.

There are no princes and princesses, she thought.

She chucked the ring across the room. It landed beside the bookshelf.

*

That evening, Brandon sat on a stool in Marine Pub. He had not ordered a drink, but he was seriously thinking about it. It could wash his pain away, numb it out and then he would not have to feel it anymore.

From behind the counter, Harry the bartender looked at him suspiciously. “You know, if you wanted to order some drinks, there’s nothing I can do to stop you, as long as you’re not driving.”

Brandon looked at him. “It’s fine. I don’t need alcohol. Just Katie.”

Harry nodded knowingly. “Ah, it’s about a chick, isn’t it?” He scratched his balding head.

Brandon nodded.

Harry polished the beer glass in his hands. “That’s what I thought. What did you do?”

“Something stupid.”

“It’s never too late.” He adjusted his bartender bow tie and looked up at Brandon.

Brandon was intrigued. “What do you mean?”

“I believe in fate and destiny. How strongly do you feel about this girl?”

“I can’t imagine myself with any other girl.”

Harry put down the beer glass he was polishing. It hit the counter with a loud bang.

The bartender on focused on Brandon, staring at him squarely in the eyes. “Now I know you’re serious.”

Brandon suddenly felt self-conscious. He looked around. Everyone was chatting, drinking and having a good time. He felt like he had been singled out.

Harry pumped a fist in the air, as though he were going to war. “If you love her, you will stop at nothing to win her.”

Brandon scratched his head. “But she doesn’t want to be with me.”

“What did you do?”

“She saw me kissing another girl, but I was just trying to break it off with her. I wanted to prove that there were no feelings there.”

Harry picked up a rag and started wiping the counter. “You apologize?”

“Yeah.”

“Do it again. And then if that doesn’t work, you’ll need a symbolic gesture. You need to sacrifice something, something that proves that you really love her.”

Brandon put a hand around his neck. “I do have something. I have a whole farm full of her favorite spice.”

The bartender looked at Brandon quizzically. “Does she know about this already?”

“She once said she doesn’t want to marry a farmer. She wants someone more ambitious.”

“Oh.”

Brandon paused. “She’s engaged to another man. They’re getting married soon.”