chapter 8
Uri sat in the Japanese garden, much like the one in San Francisco, waiting for Heather to show up, as he knew she would. Sitting in the Lotus position, his eyes were closed, and he stilled his senses, willing an answer to come.
Why exactly was he here? What was he supposed to do with Heather? What was her destiny?
He felt a whisper of wind on his skin and tried desperately to filter out the sounds and smells of the city so he could focus on the sounds and smells of the garden. He tried to hear the trickle of the water flowing over the rocks in the man-made river,\ over the sounds of traffic in the distance. He finally managed to concentrate on the scent of the cherry blossom trees and other flowers and grasses instead of the exhaust and smog of the city.
Feeling a focal center, finally, he asked his questions again, only to hear her instead.
“Hello there, Uri.” It was Heather. He had been so focused on his meditations that he hadn’t felt the white-hot heat, but it was there now.
He opened his eyes, to see her standing over him, in front of the sun. It made a slightly disconcerting halo around her black hair, making it shine almost blue.
“Hey there, Heaven.” He said, rising to stand in front of her. “You out walking Taco?” Of course she was, and he knew it.
Her eyes squinted at him quizzically, as if questioning something. “Yeah. Are you meditating?”
“Yeah, I was.” Looking around, he said, “This is a great place for it, don’t you think?”
She looked around too, as if seeing the place for the first time. “I guess. I don’t have much time for meditation, though. And I’m not sure Taco would leave me alone long enough to get any real ‘zen-ness’.” She smiled as she looked down at her chihuahua, and bent over to let him off his leash. The tiny canine took off with a jump and ran to chase a couple of small birds that had landed in the grass a few feet away.
Heather laughed as she watched, and Uri noticed that her laugh was a low, throaty affair and quite pleasant to hear.
“Birds are Taco’s mortal enemies. He wants them all to stay in the air where they belong.”
“He’s good at it.” Uri agreed.
Heather started walking, silently, and Uri wondered what she was thinking. He walked beside her, also silently. The Boss had told him to get to know her, and she wouldn’t see him outside of work. The club made him uncomfortable, though, so he had decided to ingratiate himself to her here. Sometime soon, he would need to talk to her, to tell her why he was here.
Except, he wasn’t quite sure, himself.
“Have you moved here recently?” She broke the silence.
“Yes. Why do you ask?”
“I haven’t seen you around before, and suddenly, I see you all the time. It’s not like this is a small town to be running into the same people.” She shrugged, then looked at him meaningfully.
“I’m new here.” He knew the look she was giving him. It said ‘I know you’re not telling me something.’ Uri decided to be as honest as he could with her. “But, I’ll admit that I want to know you better, and I’ve been contriving ways to see you again. I know that you don’t see people outside of the club, and I can completely understand the reasoning behind that. But I don’t intend to go to Bottom’s Up anymore.” He suppressed his disgust at the idea of the club. “So, I have been trying to see you in a different environment. Once I figured out that you came here often, I thought, ‘why not?’” He shrugged. It was worth a shot.
She seemed to think a little bit, which gave Uri hope that this wouldn’t be as hard as he feared. She was protective of herself. Finally, she stopped walking and looked at him, holding out her hand.
“My name’s Heather.”
Surprised, he shook the hand she offered, noticing how smooth her skin was. It was warm, too, and a jolt of something raced up to his elbow. “Are we starting fresh?” She nodded, hesitantly. “Okay, then. My name’s Uri. It’s nice to meet you.” He flashed her a smile, hoping to ease the obvious nerves that she had.
Her face flushed, and she smiled back at him. It really was a lovely smile. Reminiscent of the Mona Lisa, Uri thought. The breeze ruffled her hair, and he watched longingly, as she swept a tendril off her face. Uri caught himself wondering if it was a silky as it looked.
“How long have you lived here?” Heather asked. He noticed she was staring at his mouth, and it made him feel flustered for some reason.
“Just a few days.” Uri responded, licking his lips, his mouth suddenly dry.
Her eyebrows rose, and she drew her eyes up to his. “Where did you move from?”
He allowed her to ask the questions, knowing that the more she knew about him, the more at ease with him she would be.
“Cupertino, California.” He answered her truthfully. “I move around a lot for my job,” he offered.
“Self-help guru?”
He shrugged, a noncommittal gesture. Whatever name she felt comfortable putting to it.
They walked in silence for a while, Heather occasionally calling to Taco, to keep him near them.
Eventually she broke the silence. “You said the other day you wanted to be friends. Were you serious about that?”
Her question surprised him. Honestly, humans were so distrusting. “Of course. I have no interest in you, romantically, if you’re worried about that.”
Almost imperceptibly, her face fell, and Uri stifled an urge to touch her, to reassure her somehow. Maybe he had worded that wrong. “I mean, you are an attractive person, I’m just not looking for a romantic involvement.” He wished he knew what she wanted to hear. “I just need a friend in this new city. Someone to show me things, I guess.” Trying to gain her trust, Uri was attempting to act nonchalant. He would have thought he'd be better at it.
She seemed to think about it a minute, her eyes flashed through different emotions that he was familiar with seeing, disappointment, longing, resignation, and eventually, relief. He studied her face, watching her reaction. Uri had to admit, Heather's features were classically beautiful --- her vivid green eyes, alabaster skin, and dark, glossy hair.
Could it be that he was actually attracted to her? Was that what all these strange sensations were that he got when he was around her? Granted, he certainly felt impulsive around the girl, but surely he wasn't attracted to her? Uri wasn't created to be attracted to a woman. That would mean that he'd be able to develop feelings that would skew his judgment, hinder his ability to do his job. And the Boss had made sure that he'd always be able to do his job.
“I’ve got to go, get ready for work.” She looked at him, uncertainly. “Um, do you have a phone number? We could swap numbers, and get together later, maybe.” He could see she was trying to be casual, and he hid the disappointment he suddenly felt at her imminent departure.
Smiling to hide his embarrassment, he reached into his pocket and retrieved his phone, handing it to her. She input her number and handed it back. She then retrieved her own phone from the bag over her shoulder, and handed it to him.
“Um…technology’s not really my thing. Can you do it?” He was familiar with her iPhone but utterly useless with it. He had one himself, although it was mostly for appearance’s sake. A friend had given it to him, as a thank you gift, sort of a joke. But he carried it around, because everyone had one.
Heather laughed at him. “Not really your thing…” She typed his number, as he recited it to her, and then slipped her phone back into her bag. “I’ll text you later, okay?”
“Sure. Have a good evening, Heather.” Saying her name aloud gave him a little thrill and a sense of relief. At least she trusted him enough to tell him her real name. And she agreed to see him again. He had made a good start. Finally.
Soon, he could tell her.