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“Not unless we have no other choice,” she said. “We must be dressed this way for a reason. Perhaps we’re meant to move in polite circles in this time. Besides, I’ve never worn something so pretty in my life! It’s incredible!”
Ben sighed.
“Come on, let’s see what we can find out. There must be all kinds of relevant information in a bookstore. Let this be our first stop.”
Thus decided, they went inside. Ben held the door open for Annie as she sailed in ahead of him.
Once he stepped over the threshold as well, she leaned close to whisper, “I don’t think you’ve ever held a door open for me before, Benjamin Larkin. Where have you been hiding this most attractive side of chivalry?”
Ben leaned back, acting as though he took affront.
“I treat you like a queen, Annie Mae. Don’t pretend I’m not the most gentlemanly of modern men.”
Her snort was all the reply she gave as she began casually browsing the shelves and long tables stacked with books and knickknacks.
Ben took a few moments to study Annie as she, in turn, studied her surroundings.
His best friend since he was eight-and-a-half, his longest friend actually, was objectively a beautiful woman. Even before she hit puberty, anyone could see that she had an ethereal loveliness and grace, oversized sweaters and baggy sweatpants notwithstanding.
She was tall, especially for a female of this time period, and her slim yet curvaceous figure made any outfit look the height of fashion. Her costume here included a form-fitting dress that buttoned from the top of her neck to the bottom of her tailbone in the back. Folds of cloth draped artfully behind her, likely propped up by a bustle of some sort, reminding Ben of the shape of a wasp.
Tiny waist. Accentuated bosom and bottom. And tailored sleeves with skintight, elbow-length gloves.
Her hair was spun into an elaborate do (and he wondered whether they could pawn off any pins that were likely hidden in the auburn waves). A jaunty, stylish hat sat perfectly on top. The epitome of elegance.
He didn’t know whether he should be glad or sad that he’d never fancied her. Not even a little. Not even under the passionate bombardments of his own teenage hormones. He didn’t particularly look at her as a sister either.
But sometimes, when Ben witnessed the love between his grandparents Tal and Ishtar, his parents, Inanna and Gabriel, and his “Uncle Ere” and Sorin, he yearned for his own Destined someone.
He was only nineteen; he was in no rush. But he couldn’t shake the feeling that finding the love of his life was already long overdue. Perhaps it had to do with the past life or lives he suspected he possessed.
There was an emptiness inside of him that waited to be filled. A core of soul-deep pain that sometimes made him want to crumble to his knees and beg for relief.
He didn’t understand it. He simply knew that it was there.
And that Annie wasn’tthe onefor him.She was simply his best mate.
“Come listen, Ben,” the object of his musings said, taking his hand in hers and pulling him along with her.
“A lady is giving a storytelling. It’s quite good!”
Ben started to say that they didn’t have time to pursue frivolous entertainments while they were on a universe-saving mission. But Ere had told him before that the quests had a timeline all their own.
Go with the flow, my boy,he could almost hear Ere whispering in his ear.Let your instincts guide you.
What was the harm in listening to a storytelling for a few minutes?
He and Annie joined the small circle of children gathered in a corner of the shop. They stood in the back with the parents, nannies and maids while the little ones sat enraptured on the plush rug spread upon the wooden floor.
In the middle at the front, sitting on a cushioned bay window, was a bespectacled young woman with rosy cheeks. She was already deep into the heart of a story, her voice lyrical and warm.
There was something about her that drew Ben’s attention right away. Though her form was true (not that he expected otherwise), there was a vibrant energy within her. Like a small sun pulsing with light from the inside out.
Whoever she was, she was much more than she appeared.
“…Titania awoke in a wondrous place,” she was saying. Her eyes looked unfocused behind her glasses, as if she herself had been transported to a different plane.
“She’d never seen the like. The woods around her were alive! Their branches and leaves swayed with the breeze, rustling a warm welcome in a language all their own. Oaks, Ashes and Hawthorns. Willows, Hazels and Birches. She recognized many of them, and yet they looked entirely different, their leaves tipped in gold, silver and copper. Some sparkling in the sunlight like crystals and gems.”
