Charming

by Susie Kaye Lopez

  “Of course! When would you like to come over?” Her voice sounded friendly and I relaxed a bit.

  “As soon as possible.”

  “Sure, that would be just fine. I have an opening at three this afternoon.”

  “Great! Thank you! Can I ask you how much you charge?” Not that I really cared, I would spend every penny of the money I worked for this summer to get to communicate with Charming.

  “Why, it’s your lucky day. I am running a special. Normally it’s 100 dollars a session, but for customers who will need multiple meetings it is half off. I hope that is within your budget, I know college students don’t have a lot of disposable income.” She laughed and so did I to be polite, but all I could think of was how could she know I was a student and that I would need multiple sessions. She gave me her address and I hung up, simultaneously nervous and excited.

  I was dying to tell Rylee about everything that was happening, but it would have to wait. By tonight I would have a lot more to tell. I looked up directions to Medium Melissa’s house and sat through Sociology before meeting Danica and Tiffany for lunch. We had a nice time talking about people they had already met in the dorms and a couple reality shows we all watched. The conversation was light and comfortable and I really liked them both. It was a little bit easier to pay attention in Art History, as this would be my major and I found the subject matter fascinating. When I was done with classes for the day I hurried back to the dorm. I traded in my backpack for my handbag and headed to the parking structure and my baby blue Volkswagen beetle. It was a gorgeous sunny day, but I didn’t bother with putting the top down. Melissa lived in Pacific Beach, which was only a short drive from campus. I was so distracted I didn’t realize her proximity to the ocean and the lovely view until I walked up to her porch. The home she lived in was older but beautifully maintained and when Melissa opened the door I saw the same could be said for her. She wasn’t young, but I wasn’t good at judging age. She was definitely a little older than my parents and they were in their mid forties. She was dressed up like she was going to a business meeting, although her greeting was anything but formal.

  “Hello Sophie! It’s so wonderful to meet you!” She took my hands in both of hers and gently pulled me inside. Her living room was completely white, white walls with white sofas, sitting on a thick white shag rug. “Please sit down. Can I get you anything? Water, tea? I’m sorry that I don’t have any diet soda in the house…” She trailed off and I wondered if she knew about my diet soda addiction.

  “No thank you, I’m fine. Thank you so much for finding time to see me on such short notice.”

  “I’m happy to. Would you like to tell me why you are here or would you like me to just jump right in?” She smiled and I smiled back nervously. I already knew I liked her.

  “Jump in. Please.”

  “Okay, well normally someone comes to me hoping to talk to a loved one on the other side. Sometimes I’m able to make contact, sometimes not. I don’t have a lot of control over the situation usually. Now you, Sophie, are different because you have brought your loved one with you.” She said the words matter-of-factly and as if it were no big deal that she could see Charming come through the door with me. Still, I wanted to make sure she really saw him.

  “Can you describe him for me?”

  “Yes, of course. He’s tall, about 6’1”and he has wavy blonde hair and blue eyes. He has the most adorable dimples when he smiles, and he must be about 21. Does that sound about right to you?”

  “Yes, that’s exactly what he looks like. I have only seen him in dreams though.”

  “Well, I am looking at him right now and I can see that he is in love with you. It’s completely obvious.”

  I felt my cheeks burn as I blushed. “Can you ask him what I dreamed about last night?” I wanted to make sure that she could communicate clearly with Charming and this seemed a good question to start with.

  She paused and looked directly at the spot where I felt Charming was and then answered. “He says you met in your old bedroom from the life you lived with him and he kissed you in front of the fire.”

  “Oh! You can really hear him!”

  “Yes, loud and clear. He says go ahead and ask him whatever you like.”

  “Ask him what my name was.”

  “He says you are Sophie to him now, but your name was Lily. His name was Charles or Charlie, but he likes the name you have given him - Charming.”

  “Were we married?” This question was one I was dying to know.

  Again Melissa hesitated and listened to the voice only she could hear, nodding her head.

  “Almost, he was killed the day before the wedding.”

  I felt shock and sorrow at those words. My heart ached with loss as if it were happening now. “That’s horrible! When did this happen? And what happened to me after he died?”

  “He says not to feel so sad. It was over 150 years ago and all that matters is that you are together now”

  “What happened to me after?” I asked again, knowing it wouldn’t be a happy ending.

  Melissa looked sad herself as she relayed Charming’s words.

  “After his death you were inconsolable. You refused to eat and couldn’t sleep. A few weeks later you got a simple cold and it turned into pneumonia. It took you quickly.”

  My heart tried to wrap my head around this information, but it was hard to comprehend the death of oneself in a past life. I felt more sorrow about his death than mine. I somehow knew I hadn’t wanted to live without him.

  “Did I have a family, any brothers or sisters, did he?”

  Melissa waited, listening intently, no hint of any emotion on her face. I felt impatient and annoyed that I could not ask all these questions directly myself. Then finally she spoke.

  “Sophie, he’s told me something that may be a shock for you, so I want to caution you that telling others about this may not be prudent. They probably will not believe you. Unless you find it necessary for them to know it may be better to keep it to yourself for the time being. Just think about it.”

  My heart lurched and thought to myself “what now?” but calmly said, “I promise I will. Tell me.”

  Charming was on my right side and I felt myself leaning in his direction wishing I could grab his hand and hold it tightly. He must have read my thoughts because he seemed to be solidly against my side. I could feel no space between myself and where I knew he was.

  “Charming says that you grew up on estates that bordered one another. He was three years older than you and until you were about fourteen he thought of you as a little girl, and quite the pest because you had a crush on him since you were tiny. You were constantly under foot because your dearest friend was his sister, Charlotte. What he told me that I thought would shock you is that his sister is with you in this life also.”

  I felt hot all over and wondered if this is what one felt before they fainted. “Where is she?”

  “Away at school. Charlotte’s name is now Rylee.”

  I think I knew before she said it. Who else could it have been? Rylee and I had been inseparable since preschool.

  I took a deep shaky breath. “Are there more?”

  “Yes, but only two. He says he doesn’t know Rylee’s parents in this lifetime or yours, but he knows your grandparents very well because they were your parents in the past. He says you were an only child then just as you are now and you had an incredibly close relationship with them.”

  I felt, well, I felt strange. Numb, almost. I must have been in shock. It was a lot to digest and I was so grateful to receive it. I was simply overwhelmed and I was embarrassed when tears began to blur my vision then pour unstoppable down my cheeks.

  “I’m sorry,” I blubbered. “I don’t know why I’m crying…”

  Melissa pulled me into a strong embrace then pulled back to look into my eyes.

  “Sophie, this is a shock, but Charming says he wanted to tell you here because you might doubt it in a dream. He thought knowing
they’d been with you might make you feel less alone in this strange situation. He also says he believes both Rylee and your Grandmother will believe you if you choose to tell them, but that your Grandfather will not. He says you have learned more than enough for today. He loves you and hopes to talk to you tonight in your dreams.”

  I nodded as I fought to stop the flow of tears. It was hard because I really wasn’t ready to stop. This was all so unbelievable and it still scared me.

  “I know it is unbelievable and scary.” Melissa spoke, repeating my thought. “It is also amazing and wonderful to see how the strength of love can work against all odds. Charming’s love is the purest I’ve ever felt and I’ve been doing this a long, long time - since before I was your age. Let’s stop now. Come back next week and we will find out what you want to know. Please remember to be patient. He’s been here all along and you had no idea. The dreams will come.”

  I didn’t see where I had any other choice in the matter. I reached for my purse and pulled out the fifty dollars I’d tucked in the inside pocket and handed it to her. It seemed so little for what I’d just received.

  “Thank you Sophie. It’s quite enough. Don’t give it a thought.” Melissa said, reading my mind again. “Let’s plan on every Monday at three o’clock if that works for you.”

  “Thank you for being so much help, Melissa!” I smiled gratefully as she hugged me goodbye. Then I managed somehow to get myself in the car, back to campus, and into my room before collapsing from mental exhaustion. I fell asleep for a couple of hours and slept, dreamless and deep. I awoke feeling refreshed and hungry and headed over to the dining commons where I ordered a burrito and french fries, adding a large diet coke and an enormous chocolate chip cookie to complete my purchase. I didn’t feel like watching what I ate tonight. I felt like I had burned a million calories today through sheer emotion. Who needed the gym?

  Chapter 5

  Seeing my best friend’s face on the computer screen that night made me realize just how much I’d missed her.

  “Sophie, this sucks! We should be roommates right now, not watching each other from a billion miles away. What was I thinking coming here? I hate Arizona, it’s like 116 degrees and look at my hair! I can’t do anything with it, the dry air has made it limp!”

  I had to laugh as the words tumbled out of Rylee so fast I couldn’t keep up.

  “You look great to me Ry, but I miss you too. I wish you were here. You’d love San Diego.”

  “How are the guys there? I haven’t seen a single guy as cute as Trevor here,” she said with disappointment.

  Trevor and Riley had broken up the night before she left for Arizona. She didn’t want to be tied down in a long distance relationship. Trevor was now away at school in Oregon.

  “They are great, I guess. I haven’t been paying too much attention. I’ve been having my own long distance relationship.” I said the words lightly but got the reaction I had expected.

  “What? Long distance? With who?!” The words screeched out of my computer speakers and I winced while turning down the volume.

  “Well, it’s a long, unbelievable story. You have time to listen to it tonight?” I asked looking at her shocked face. Her perfect, naturally wavy blonde hair did look limp. I thought about what Kara had said.

  “Of course I have time. Spill it.”

  “Oh, and Rylee, you might want to fill out an application to transfer here next semester. I don’t think you will be there all year.”

  “What? I’ve only been here two weeks! Don’t you want me to give it more time? You are usually the practical one, not me.”

  “Sure, give it more time if you want to. It’s just that this psychic I met told me you would only be in Arizona one semester.”

  “Psychic? Wait! Back up. Start at the beginning.”

  I decided to give her the edited version of events so as not to freak her out and calmly told her about my encounter with Spike, the chihuahua, and his owner, Kara, the psychic. I think she was relieved that someone validated the fact that she did not belong in Arizona. In fact, she was more into that part of my tale than the part about a second psychic seeing someone standing next to me. But then I really shocked her.

  “Ry, you know all my sketches of Charming? How long do you remember me drawing him?”

  “I don’t remember when you didn’t draw him, why?”

  “Okay, this is where it gets weird. Just have an open mind because you are going to think I’ve lost mine.”

  “Just tell me.” She was staring at me and I could see I had her full attention.

  “Kara said the spirit beside me is Charming.” I paused to let this sink in and the astonished expression on her face must be the same one I had on mine when I’d received this news.

  “Well, how did she know about Charming? Were you sketching when the dog started barking at you?”

  “Nope, that would’ve been too easy. She just asked if I drew a lot in sketchpads and described him to me.”

  “Okay, I’m freaked out. You have been drawing the ghost beside you all this time? That is creepy, Sophie.”

  “Well, actually, if you met Charming you would think it was romantic” I replied, not taking any offense to her words. “There’s a lot more if you want to hear it.” Of course she did and I filled her in on my dream and my visit to Melissa, all except the part about her being Charming’s sister. I wanted to tell her that when we were in person.

  “Sophie! No wonder you never like any guys! You’ve had your soul mate with you all along. That explains a lot. Wow, you are right, this is romantic!” Her enthusiasm grew as she began to believe my tale.

  “It is, at least, Charming is. But this not being able to communicate with him or see him unless I’m sleeping isn’t. Now that I know him I just want to be with him.”

  “I’ll bet! It is a little bizarre. How will you ever get married or have kids when he’s here but not really here?” She frowned with worry and I sighed.

  I hadn’t thought that far ahead. I hadn’t thought any farther than tonight’s dream and seeing him. Never being able to marry him, raise a family together, well that thought was beyond me, it was unbearable, confusing and heart breaking. I wanted all that, but only with Charming. Somewhere inside I was certain he was my only love, there was only him, there would always only be him. How could I be so certain after one dream and a conversation through a psychic medium? I don’t know how I knew, but I did.

  “Hey, Soph, I didn’t mean to upset you. Are you okay?” Rylee’s voice brought me out of my contemplation and I answered her honestly.

  “I don’t know. I need to go Ry. I’ll text you tomorrow. Okay?” I smiled to reassure her but she knew me better than that, she knew me better than anyone in either one of my lives, and suddenly, whether it was fair or not, I needed her to know.

  “Rylee, there’s something else. I was going to wait to tell you but I need you to know.”

  “What else?!”

  “In my other life I had a best friend named Charlotte, she was Charming’s sister.”

  “Should I be jealous?” Rylee laughed, trying to lighten things up.

  “No, not unless you envy yourself. You are Charlotte. You are Charming’s sister. You’ve always been with me, always been my best friend.”

  “Oh my god!”

  “But Rylee, if we’re both here together why isn’t he here too? I mean, all the way here like you and I. I want him here Rylee, so badly.”

  “He’s really my brother? My name was Charlotte? That’s crazy! Remember my Cabbage Patch doll?” she asked excitedly. That might sound like a strange question but I knew exactly what she meant. We had been about six when Rylee wanted a Cabbage Patch doll and her mom had taken the two of us to three toy stores and read her the names of each doll until finally she found the one she wanted. Her mom asked her why she had searched so hard for a doll with curly red hair. Rylee had looked at her, a serious expression on her little face and said, “I didn’t want one with red hair
, I wanted one named Charlotte.”

  “This whole thing is insane! I don’t remember any past life or any brother. You’d think if we had both lived in another time one of us would remember something!”

  “I know, right? I don’t get it either, but I believe it all.” I felt so much lighter just being able to talk about it with Rylee.

  “Sophie, you haven’t told anyone else any of this have you?”

  “Of course not, they’d put me in a mental hospital! I’m only going to tell you and Gran. What do you think she will say?”

  “Well, there’s only one way to find out and the worst that can happen is she doesn’t believe you. Knowing Gran, she will.”

  “That’s what I think too, but there is one more thing that I learned…”

  “More? Okay, just tell me.” She looked like she was waiting for someone to give her a shot.

  “It’s just that, well, Charming said that he didn’t recognize your parents or mine from our past life but that he did know gran and granddad.

  “Were they your grandparents then too?”

  “Nope, they were my mom and dad.”

  “Holy shit! Guess that explains why you have always been so close to them. I totally think of them as your second parents. Sophie, this whole thing is…I don’t even have a word for it.”

  “Exactly! Me either! I better go try to sleep. I have a lot of questions for Charming.”

  “Okay, I can’t wait to hear all about it in the morning. Oh, and does my brother have a name? He couldn’t really be called Charming could he?”

  “His name is Charlie.”

  “Charlie?! Oh my god, do you remember…”

  “Yes!” I said, cutting her off. “I remember your fish. Charlie one through 12!”

  “This is so bizarre!” she exclaimed.

  “Ya think?” I smiled and blew her a kiss. “Night Ry! I’ll tell him you said hello.” And with that I closed my computer and turned off the light.

  Chapter 6

  When my eyes opened the next morning I stretched lazily and glanced at my clock. 7:15, good I didn’t have to be at class until 9:30 so I wouldn’t need to rush. I lay there a few moments before it hit me, hard. Panic filled me as I realized I had slept soundly through the night. No recollection whatsoever of having a dream. Disappointment weighed me down and the tears began to pool, making everything blurry. Once upon a time I had rarely cried and now all of a sudden I was getting pretty good at it. I concentrated hard and felt Charming right beside me. I rolled over facing his direction. Whispering aloud, although he could easily listen to my thoughts, I said.