Nice To Meet You

It didn’t matter where she went. She just had to get out of the house. Being holed up for three days had made her half-crazed. Fortunately, the snow had stopped, the sun had come out and the streets were clear. She had a full tank of gas and, since it was Sunday, all the time in the world to drive with no destination in mind.

She was on her way up Rt. 303 when the light turned red. She barely heard the honking over her radio. But out of the corner of her eye, she could see the man waving at her, trying to get her attention. Although she hated when that happened, she pressed her window button down just low enough to hear him say, “I need directions, please.”

“Hang on a second,” she said as she turned down the radio.

“Could you tell me how to get to ‘The Dockside?” he asked, pleasantly.

“Yeah, it’s straight up this road on your right.” she said, squinting against the sun.

“How far?”

“About two miles. You know what … just follow me. I’m heading right past it.

“Thanks a lot.” he said as his window slid up.

The light had already turned green and the driver behind her was growing impatient. Every so often, she checked her rearview mirror to see if the man in the dark blue sedan was still there.

Ever since the blizzard, the days and nights had merged into each other. There had been no need to wear a watch. But being out made her feel connected to the world again and

more in touch with her senses. So, with the pangs beginning to stab deep in her stomach, her hand flicked the signal light on as she approached “The Dockside.”

He parked a few rows away from her in the busy lot. Waiting for her by the entrance, he asked, “Is something wrong?”

“I just got hungry.”

“Oh. So, have you ever eaten here? I’ve heard it’s good.”

“It is.”

They stood awkwardly for a moment.

“Well … I’m Eric.”

“I’m Stephanie. Nice to meet you.” she responded, politely.

“Nice to meet you, too, Stephanie. Listen, I don’t mean to be forward, but since we’re both alone, I was thinking that if you’d like to join me, we could have lunch together.”

She looked down where they stood, the asphalt in front of the steps covered in worn, green carpeting. “I’m afraid not.”

He nodded in understanding. “That’s okay. I mean, we don’t know each other, and I shouldn’t have put you on the spot like that. Why don’t I just walk you inside.”

“Sure. That would be fine.” she said, stepping ahead of him.

As Stephanie was about to be shown to her table, Eric said graciously,

“Hey, thanks for getting me here.”

She turned her head over her right shoulder and smiled ever so slightly.

“Oh, you’re welcome. Have a nice lunch.”

“You too, Stephanie.”

There was something about the way Eric said her name. He was almost possessive. She was disturbed and curious at the same time. But she knew better than to pursue a stranger.

Eric sat at the bar and watched her as she ate pasta salad and drank iced tea with lemon. She couldn’t see him. That was the point. He had never found one with her combination of vulnerability and suspicion.

He moved his car to the side of the restaurant, waiting patiently for Stephanie to finish her lunch and pay her bill. He watched her unlock her car door and turn on the engine. As she pulled away, he followed her from a safe distance. “Stephanie,” he said aloud, amusing himself. “Where are we going next?”

Beth L. Block In addition to Ascent Aspirations Magazine, Beth's work has appeared in Cautionarytale, Red Booth Review, Pemmican Press, Identity Theory (Editor's Choice), The Dogwood Journal, Doorknobs & Bodypaint, Long Story Short, Simply Haiku, Amarillo Bay, River Walk Journal, and is forthcoming in PEARL Magazine. Many of Beth's haikus are published in the anthology, Across The Long Bridge.

Email: Beth L. Block

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