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Two Of A Kind
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Two Of A Kind |
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Mysteria 
since 2001-03-07
Posts 18328British Columbia, Canada 
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~*~ Two of a Kind ~*~The river swirled and eddied round the stone piers as it swept under the old stone bridge; the gray-green flood eternal and unchanging. Only the rosy glow of the setting sun imparted warmth of light to the cool waters. John Harness leaned on the parapet puffing his pipe and thinking of nothing in particular. Or rather of everything; what man can remain in repose without thinking of something, past or present, or simply daydreaming? Ever since his wife had joined that darn bridge club he had seen very little of her this time of the evening. As he cared not at all for card games and could not read books all through is spare hours, he would start off for a pleasant walk, which was enjoyable though somewhat lonesome. After his day at the office, pouring over bookkeeping records in routine both dull and unimpressive, he needed something to balance the sedentary occupation, and this appealed to him better than sitting round a card table. His two children were old enough to take care of themselves now, so this became his nightly outlet. A slight, though clattering noise on the pathway startled John out of his reverie. Glancing down he saw that the cause of the sound was a cigarette lighter in a metal case. This he promptly retrieved and offered to the person who had evidently dropped it. She was a very attractive young woman, wearing a trench coat of an old-fashioned type, which did not really look as if it belonged to her. “That was negligent of me,” she said, giving John a wide, beautiful smile. “I had forgotten it was in this old coat and that the pocket had never been mended. I thought it might shower tonight in spite of the lovely sunset, so I grabbed it as I came through the hallway on the way out. It is still fine, however, and perfect for this view, don’t you think?” “Yes, it is indeed most pleasant,” he said. “I often walk this way to the bridge and watch the swirling water. I sued to come here from school by the bridge a long time ago, and it has remained one of my favorite walks.” “My name is Cathy Spencer,” the girl said, offering a cigarette but taking one herself as John waved his pipe, but he took back the lighter in her hand for a moment to light it for her. “I’m John Harkness,” he said, deciding to be friendly like her. They were just two people enjoying the evening view. "I love this locality", she said dreamily. "But of course I don’t get much time to admire it. You see, I’m an airline stewardess and my flights prevent me from having many spare hours for the local scenery. Those I do have free are spent in other countries, which of course I find exciting, in a way, that is. I don’t think I could ever settle down again to lead a humdrum life such as one must do in a place like this." "It has its compensations," remarked John. "In my business of buying and selling antiques, I might be just in the next country or I may have to fly over to Paris for an important auction at any time. Many famous people entrust me with commissions to acquire particular treasures for them. Sometimes, however, I can just stay around home, and swim in the pool, or putter in my rose garden taking life easy. I never know what is coming up next." "That sounds awfully exciting," Cathy murmured with a touch of envy in her voice. "You must find it terrifically interesting?" The envy was probably quite genuine, as Cathy worked as a secretary in a large factory on the outskirts of town and was desperately fed up with her job and wondering if she could work up the nerve to try for an airline hostess job with a view of seeing the world. Tonight she had found it absolutely stifling doing her usual chores of washing and ironing, preparing supper, and cleaning up afterward. Work could wait for once, so in that mood she set off for this walk. "He doesn’t sound like an unmarried man," she was saying to herself while listening to John’s description of what she did not know was his supposed occupation. "Well, I didn’t notice the time," she brightly announced as she bounced back to reality and shook off her fit of wishful thinking, with a final remark or two. "I have to be off to Tokyo in the morning, so I’d better be going home to pack for the trip. The cherry blossoms in Japan are really something this time of year. I wish you could see them." "I’ve enjoyed our little chat," John said, puffing at his pipe again. "And I hope you will make many really wonderful trips. I’ll be thinking of you if I am ever in your direction, as I never know where my travel for antiques will take me. The next time we both meet, who knows, there are bridges and old mills in many other lands." Turning up the collar of his coat as he felt cool, John walked slowly and solidly back to his cramped apartment in an over-crowded working area of town; the same way he walked a thousand times before and would probably walk a thousand times again. The End ~I always have time to listen to someone talking from their heart~ |
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| © Copyright 2001 Mysteria 1997 - All Rights Reserved | |||
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Bec Member
since 2001-02-23
Posts 475Canberra |
Mysteria... You've captured the essence of human nature in this terrific piece! I'm sure plenty of people have done things like John and Cathy, never expecting to see each other again. Wonderful and true to life. Bec  The past is a foreign country - they do things differently there ~ Unknown |
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snowpants Member Elite
since 2000-09-16
Posts 2061KS |
Beautifully told story, Mysteria...the images and descriptions are outstanding...great write...I really enjoyed this... sp  tried to write a letter to tell you how I feel, but all I kept on writing was slipping on the tears from the day... [This message has been edited by snowpants (edited 10-03-2001).] |
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Poet deVine
Administrator
Member Seraphic
since 1999-05-26
Posts 22612Hurricane Alley |
Ah! Welcome to prose! I know you have more stories tucked away somewhere and look forward to reading them all. This is a wonderful story!  |
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Nan
Administrator
Member Seraphic
since 1999-05-20
Posts 21191Cape Cod Massachusetts USA |
Two of a kind - living separate but similar lives in different places at the same time together... Every life experience has its effect upon us, doesn't it?...I enjoyed this, Mysteria....  |
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Sunshine
Administrator
Member Empyrean
since 1999-06-25
Posts 63354Listening to every heart |
You have subtly placed two unhappy people into two fantasy worlds, each telling the other how much better their lives were, if only in their imagination. And haven't we all, at one time or another, wanted to live another life with the grass seemingly better on the other side... well done, my friend... |
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Mysteria
since 2001-03-07
Posts 18328British Columbia, Canada |
Well thank you so much for reading my little story, gee now that gives me encouragement to post some more, thank you. Live today like it was your last day on earth! |
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amusemi Senior Member
since 2001-12-08
Posts 1262A State of Disarray |
A "Walter Mitty" moment! Very well done. It is so nice to escape reality sometimes. |
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