Old Flame, New Fire

Valentine’s Day is known to be a day dedicated to love, friendship, romance, and desire. When we are in a relationship, all can be well with the world. However, when we are single, or not happy with our current status, the day may be filled with discontent and unhappiness. No one likes to be alone, but sometimes that is the best place to be. Those are the times when we can focus on ourselves. We can learn who we really are and concentrate on becoming who we want to be. Life changes for the better: On those days that we only have ourselves to depend upon, we become stronger. On those days when no one else is around to make us smile , we only have our own thoughts to make us happy. True happiness comes from learning to love yourself and not being afraid to make changes if needed.

Bookstore Encounter is a different style of writing for me. I thought I would play with the idea of writing a romance novel. Its not my normal genre, but a writer should never trap herself into a corner. The imagination is too precious to waste. After a few attempts of girl meets new boy, or man meets strange woman, I chose to write what I know best. The story is simple, but it allowed me to venture into a world that I never thought of before. I’m not sure if I will continue traveling along this avenue, but the detour was pleasant and I liked the scenery along the way.

Bookstore Encounter

She stood beside the bookcase, wearing her leather coat and skinny black jeans. The boots she wore were an impulse buy, but she loved them and they looked great on her. It had been awhile since she had felt this good about herself. Times were changing though. She was finally coming into her own. Losing those 50 lbs and keeping it off was definitely a struggle; but when she saw herself in the mirror now, it was all worth it.

She browsed the books on the shelf until she found one in particular. With a tender touch, she pulled it away from the others all nestled in nice and tight. Her hand delicately traced the cover. She stared at the novel and tears began to fill her blue eyes. This was her book. This was her story that she diligently wrote and rewrote for six years. Her heart raced and skipped beats as she held her baby in her arms. For the first time, her book was being distributed through a mainstream retail store. It was a dream that had turned to reality.

She opened the cover to look inside. There it was, her name in print and the words of her imagination pouring onto page after page for all to read. She remembered the day she began writing this saga. It was just the beginning of a fun little blog, but it got her creative juices flowing. Everyday after that, she wrote more and more. Many ideas and edits later, she had the makings of a true novel. She actually had two more to consecutively follow. Those would be published in the next few years. For now, she stood here in the shadows of tall shelves and wooden bookcases admiring her first published work.

"Alexa? Is that you?"

Alexa looked up from her book to see a man carrying a blue basket filled with assorted books. At first, she didn’t recognize him, but then the memories of his face came forward.

"Adam?"

He nodded, put down his basket and drew closer to hug her. With her book still in her hand, she returned the sentiment. When they finally separated, she looked closely at the man standing before her. His face had grown some laugh wrinkles around his twinkling hazel eyes; and there were a few grayish hairs dispersed throughout his honey brown hair and sideburns; but, all in all, he really hadn’t changed that much.

"I can’t believe I ran into you here." Alexa commented. "Its been so long. I don’t want to even think about how many years it’s been."

Adam laughed. "It’s been too long. I honestly didn’t think I would ever see you again. Once you moved away, I barely heard from you."

"Life does have a way of doing that. Although, I seem to recall that you getting married kind of pushed that scenario along too." Alexa mentioned.

Adam’s nodded. "You’re not entirely wrong."

"How is Monica, by the way?" Alexa asked. " And how are your kids? You have two boys, right? See, I didn‘t totally lose track of you."

Adam stopped smiling. "I guess you didn’t hear then that Monica passed away a few years ago. We lost her to cancer. It was a long struggle, but I’m glad she’s not in pain anymore."

Alexa reached her hand out to touch her friend‘s arm. "I’m so sorry, Adam. I can’t imagine how difficult that must have been for you. How are you holding up?"

"Well, it took awhile, but the boys and I are finally getting back in the groove now. They’re doing great. Michael is studying computer engineering in college, and David is in the Air Force."

A glimpse of Adam’s crooked smile started to appear again. "I’m doing better every day. I have my own landscaping business, so that keeps me extremely busy during the summer months."

He changed his tone and the conversation. "What about you? I heard from the grapevine that you got married too. Is he here with you?"

Adam looked around for another man standing near.

Alexa shook her head. "I’m actually divorced now. I signed the papers last year. He just wasn’t the loyal type, if you know what I mean."

"Oh, I’m so sorry. That’s rough too. You think you’re going to spend the rest of your life with someone, and shit happens. Life is crazy."

Alexa nodded her head. "It’s a rollercoaster ride for sure."

Adam leaned against the bookshelf. "I seem to remember that you weren’t always fond of rollercoasters. How’s that working for you?"

"Let’s just say, I don’t always enjoy the ride, but I do love the view from the high spots. That’s why I’m standing here by this bookshelf."

"You plan on climbing it to get a better vantage point? Any particular reason? Are you secretly spying on someone, or do you just like to pounce on people when they‘re not looking? " Adam’s eyes twinkled as he teased her.

Alexa shook her head and laughed. "Nope, spy business wasn’t lucrative enough for me. Too much travel and not enough sleep. Plus, I had to give up climbing bookshelves when I discovered boots. They just don‘t have the tread on them, like tennis shoes do."

She held out her book to her handsome friend. "This is the reason I’m standing here. To see my book on the shelf. This is mine. I mean, I wrote it. It’s is my first published book."

Adam set his basket down and took the novel from Alexa. His eyes brimmed with pride. "You wrote this?"

He turned the book over and over in his hands, opened the cover and flipped through the pages. Then he read the description on the back and stared at her picture.

"This is wonderful, Alexa. You always wanted to write, and now your dream has come true. You must be so happy."

Alexa nodded. "I am. I honestly can’t believe its true. I’ve been working on this for so long, it still doesn’t feel real."

Adam held up the book for her to see. "Obviously its real. You now have proof. You have undeniable evidence that what you wanted all your life is now in your grasp. That’s quite an accomplishment."

Adam glanced at the book once more. "I love your picture in the back. Very sexy for an author. Brown was always a good color for you. It accents your gorgeous red hair. You‘re looking really good, Alexa. "

"Thank you." Alexa blushed and tried to change the subject.

Sheepishly she whispered. "I’m so tempted to bring it over to the desk to buy it and see if the clerk recognizes me. Is that childish, or what?"

Adam burst into laughter. "It’s exactly what I would do! But you’re not allowed to buy your own book. Didn’t you know that?"

"What do you mean? There’s no rule that says I can’t."

Alexa tried to take the novel back from her playful companion, but it was no use. He stood almost a foot taller than her.

"You can’t buy it," Adam held the book high over Alexa’s head and played keep away with his short friend. "Because I’m buying it."

"You don’t have to do that, Adam." Alexa studied all the other books in his basket. "I don’t know if you would actually enjoy my story. Looks as if you’re interests lie elsewhere. Although I didn‘t realize you liked those kinds of stories. I always thought you enjoyed mysteries and biographies."

He smiled and picked up his basket. "Oh, these aren’t for me. They’re for my friend. She has an insatiable appetite for trashy novels and self help books. I told her I would bring them home for her."

Alexa bit her lip. "A friend, huh? And you know exactly which romance novel to buy that she enjoys? Sounds like she’s a little more than a friend."

Adam couldn’t stop laughing. "She is more than a friend. She’s my next door neighbor - my 96 year old next door neighbor. She can’t drive anymore and is almost house bound." Adam pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket. "She gave me a list with specific names and authors. Sorry to say, your book was not mentioned. But maybe I’ll loan it to her, after I read it!"

"I’m embarrassed now." Alexa apologized. "It’s none of my business what you read and who your friends are. I’m sorry. Old habits die hard, I guess."

"No need for apologies. It was fun teasing you again. I didn’t realize how much I missed that, or how much I missed you." He stepped closer to Alexa. "Plus I love the shade of pink your cheeks turn when you blush."

Alexa could feel her face burn a little warmer when he said that. She tried to change the subject again.

"Well, I guess I should be going soon. I’m suppose to meet my editor. We’re discussing my book tour."

Adam looked impressed. "A book tour too? My, you are at the top of the ride now, aren’t you? Is that why you came back home? Is this a step on your grand journey of being rich and famous?"

Alexa nodded. "Well, I don’t know about being rich and famous; but this was my favorite bookstore when I was growing up, so I wanted it to be my first stop. I’ll be signing my books this weekend. I’m hoping that if that goes well, they’ll fill the shelves with my novel and continue to stock all of my stories."

"There’s more than one?" Adam sounded even more impressed.

"The book you have now is the first of a trilogy. The rest of them will be coming out next year and the year after. At least that’s what my editor said. Then I’m not sure what will happen."

Adam put Alexa’s book in his basket. "I guess I have some serious reading to do before this weekend then. I can’t have my favorite author signing my book without knowing what she wrote."

"You don’t have to wait until this weekend. I’ll sign your book now, if you like. That is if you’re really buying it."

Adam confirmed his actions. " Of course, I am really buying it. But I don’t want you to sign it until I have read at least a part of it. That way we’ll have something to talk about when I take you out for dinner to celebrate. Is that okay with you?"

Alexa smiled and teased him too. "I guess I can fit you into my schedule. What time do you want to get together?"

Adam answered with another twinkle in his eye. "Well, I’m not doing anything now. How about we get some coffee and discuss our plans? You can tell me all about what’s been going on in your life, and I’ll share the intimate, boring details of mine. Are you still a fan of orange pekoe tea?"

Alexa nodded. "Sounds perfect."

Together they walked to the sales counter so Adam could make his purchase. He purposefully placed Alexa’s book with the picture side up to show the salesclerk. Then he put his arm around Alexa.

"Did you notice the incredibly, good looking author on that book?" He said to the boy behind the register. The clerk shrugged his shoulders.

"She’s with me." Adam pulled Alexa closer.

Alexa smiled. Today was turning out better than she ever could imagine or write in a book.