seven- On the Willamette

“I’m driving up to Seattle tomorrow! I’m getting out of work early so I can meet Henry at Sea-Tac when his flight lands at around 8 p.m. So…”

“No.” Nick shakes his head slowly. Through his dark Balorama sunglasses, he watches her slip away from him. The girl he loves, sitting next to him on a bench on the waterfront, her almond eyes glowing, her perfect skin shining in the Northwestern sun, her hair like brown waves sweeping across her face angelic. He stares longingly at her pouting lips of strawberry red.

“Oh c’mon Nick! I still haven’t fixed the flat tire on Sally!” She renamed her beat-up ’67 Mustang “Sally” so that people would stop asking why she named it “Ladybug”. At one point, the car used to be a fading red with black and brown rust spots all around. The name came before the new paint, a very royal blue.

“I need my truck this weekend. I’m going to the coast. Wait, why are you picking him up from the airport?”

“He’s in San Diego right now for some management conference. The company he works for flew him out last minute. He thinks they’re going to promote him to general manager! Anyway, they bought him a ticket to Sea-Tac because it was cheaper and it made me sad thinking about him alone on the train back to Portland.”

Nick zips up his track jacket, runs a hand through his thick black hair, and crosses his arms almost defensively. The sun starts to set, painting the sky amber; a breathtaking sight from their seat overlooking the Willamette River. If this were his last day, Nick wouldn’t want to be anywhere else. He gazes across the river, remembering all the sunsets he witnessed from that very bench. He thinks of his childhood, his mom, and walking with her down the waterfront to see the cherry blossoms filling the trees pink and white. It is a memory as beautiful as it is spiritual and the most vivid of its kind. Indeed if this were his last day, Nick would be content to surrender his life here as the sun sets over the Willamette with visions surrounding of perfect cherry blossoms. But instead of his life, it’s something more important that he has to surrender here.

“Audrey… I’ll come over tomorrow morning with a new tire.”

“Nick! You’re amazing!” Audrey jumps to her feet, clapping her hands in applause of Nick’s gesture. Her heart abounds with excitement for her Henry, who is only a day away. The smile on her face, long stored away like a winter coat she outgrew in high school, finally fits again, naturally. And her name, her first name, the name her mother left her, she lay at the feet of her father the last time they spoke. It was years past, when she was still in college and she experienced for the first time the painful consequence of love given selflessly and without conditions. There are certain incontestable duties required of a father. He failed her when she needed him most, taking the side of men over his little girl… But that’s another story. Now, her name suits her again; a name that implies happiness, it resonates charm and graceful beauty. Dylan is a name written on the label of a box recently brought up to the attic. Audrey has come out of hiding.

Sitting back down, her thoughts rewind to Nick’s previous answer. Her smile closes and she bites her bottom lip. Her eyes squint prepared to inquire.

“You’re going to the coast? What’s her name?”

“Why does it have to be a girl? I could be going with Tim or Jake or Tim and Jake!” Nick crosses his arms tighter, clearly in defense.

“Tim and Jake are your only friends besides me. Tim is working overtime this weekend so he can buy a new bike and Jake is driving down to Humboldt State for a reunion thing. So… what’s her name?” Audrey grins, having caught Nick in a lie.

“Alright, it’s a girl. Well, it’s two girls.” Nick sees Audrey’s eyes and mouth open wide like big O’s, her eyebrows rise like tents. He laughs.
“Hey, take it easy! Sophie Clarimonde. She’s a good friend of mine. We went to Portland State together. She got a job on the East Coast after graduation, but we stay in touch. Anyway, she’s in town for two weeks.”

“And you guys are going to the coast? Sounds pretty romantic…” Audrey smiles clownishly, though a part of her feels strange, almost jealous. She shakes her head at the thought and continues to interrogate Nick.
“Is she pretty? Did you guys go out in college? You did didn’t you? Has she come back to rekindle the flame?”

“Yes, very pretty. No. No. No. We were on line at Pine State Biscuits yesterday and we started talking about what she should do before going back east. She mentioned hiking in Tillamook, so I suggested that we leave Saturday morning, stop in Tillamook for some cheese and light hiking, then head to Seaside and hike to the Head. She thought it was a great idea.”

“I see. But who’s the other girl?” Audrey has great memory.

“It’s her sister. She lives here in Portland and whenever Sophie flies in she tries to hook us up. I only like her as a friend. She’s great, but we’re not each other’s types.” Nick blushes, knowing that he just lied. Sophie’s sister is gorgeous, successful, and confident. Though he’d give all of himself to be with Audrey, he’d give a couple of limbs to be with Sophie’s sister. Most straight men would give a couple of limbs to be with Sophie’s sister. She can make the most courteous gentlemen stay seated when she enters a room.

“Are you satisfied? Any more questions?” Nick sneers teasingly.

“I’m quite satisfied.” They both chuckle.

“Actually, I do have another question! Your friend Sophie, her name sounds so familiar. Is she famous?” Again, Audrey has great memory, though it’s not always accurate.

“Sophie? Yeah. She works for a fashion magazine in New York, flies all over the place and tells people how to dress. She also has a fashion blog with thousands of followers. I think she’s been on T.V. a few times too. But it’s not Sophie you’re thinking of. You’re thinking of her sister.”

“Wait, don’t tell me!” Audrey closes her eyes and focuses on the name, Clarimonde. She realizes that she hears it everyday, every morning on the television.

“She’s the weathergirl!” Audrey digs deeper. “On channel 8!” She can see her now, standing in front of America, pointing out the giant clouds and suns attacking major cities. She can see the name, a blur, right before Clarimonde, stretched across the bottom of the screen. In her mind she takes a napkin to the screen where the name is hidden behind the blurry cloud. Suddenly it’s all clear.

“Chloe! Chloe Clarimonde! Damn, Nick! How can you not like her? I’d sleep with her and I’m only half joking!” Audrey feels it again, that strange feeling, but like before it goes away as quickly as it came.

“Well, I will on Saturday! Well, I’ll sleep next to her… in the room next to her’s!” Nick laughs. He notices Audrey doesn’t.

“I love you Audrey…” Nick releases the words, holding back the passion and the feeling that inspired them. He’s afraid of losing her completely to Henry, and doesn't want to push her with his confession.

“Aw, I love you too Nick! And I love Henry, and this view! I’m so loving life right now! Oh god Nick! I’m becoming one of those high-on-life hippies hanging around the Square. Are you gonna stop being friends with me?” Audrey gives Nick a pleading look. He looks past her, down the waterfront, at the cherry trees glowing in the new night, the white blossoms waving like thousands of white flags.

“No Audrey, I will always be your friend.”

Photo: Cherry blossoms in Tom McCall Waterfront Park, Portland, Oregon. Attributed to flickr useratul666