Final Exam

by John Foltin

  Actually, I took a look in the mirror, then one look at her. Talk about polar opposites.

  If only I could know her name, if only I could hear her voice, then I could move on with my life. But alas, she was still a mystery to me. A mystery I needed to solve.

  Days went by, and this time, nothing could drive her image from my head. If never I saw her again, I would never forget her.

  A few days later, fate would bring us together again. I was sitting in the park, minding my own business. Suddenly, her beauty flashed before my eyes as she ran past me. She looked as beautiful in her running suit as she did in her sweatpants.

  She was gone before I had an opportunity to say a single word.

  That night, I got out a pencil and paper. Now, I had no artistic skills, but I could draw her face from memory with great detail.

  A few days later, this beauty came before me in an unlikely place.

  I went to my doctor to get my flu shot. A female was walking with a nurse to have a mammogram. Suddenly, she tripped and fell face first to the floor. The back of her gown came undone, showing her thong underwear.

  While others stopped and stared, I turned my head. As embarrassing as this moment was for her, she didn’t need people gawking at her.

  As I turned my head, there she was with a little girl. Again, before I could speak one word, she was gone.

  Why does fate deal me cruel blows so many? What do I need to do to get to know this object of perfection?

  The next day, yet again, fate dealt me another cruel blow by placing her just out of my reach yet again.

  Today was the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. I had never missed it, going back to my childhood. This year was no exception.

  As band after band, float after float passed by, I waited for Santa Claus. But just before I saw him, I got my gift.

  This nameless angel appeared on a float with the same girl I saw her with yesterday in the doctor’s office. At least now I knew one thing about her. She volunteered her time with Big Brothers and Big Sisters.

  I yelled out three simple words to her. “Who are you?” She could not hear me over the crowd.

  After that, I gave up all hope of ever getting to know her. So many opportunities, so many failures.

  The next day was Black Friday, and I was out like everyone else looking for sales. After searching at a few stores, I hailed a cab to go to Bloomingdales.

  As the cab pulled up, I heard a voice in the background. “Hold that taxi!”

  I looked back to see the anonymous wonder of beauty. I wasn’t going to fight her for this cab, but he stopped for me. I offered to share the ride. Reluctantly, she agreed. She was going to Macy’s.

  Six blocks later, I finally worked up the nerve to introduce myself. She ignored me. “And you are?”

  “Not interested.”

  I tried to pry a bit of information from her, anything that could open the door to let me in.

  “Look, I don’t know you. You don’t know me. So, why are you following me? Stop the taxi!” As he did, she got out and sprinted from the cab.

  I was heartbroken. I should have stuck with my feelings an hour ago and not given her a second thought. But I just couldn’t.

  As I put my hands down after wiping the tears from my eyes, I felt something on the seat. “What’s this?”

  I picked it up. She had left her cell phone on the seat. She must have been in such a hurry to get away from me that she didn’t know it was missing.

  I could have gone through everything to learn as much as I could, but that would be invading her privacy. I did go through enough to learn her number, her address to return it, and, most important to me, her name. Karen Dockery.

  Later that day, I took a cab to her address to return her phone. I just hoped she wouldn’t accuse me of stealing it.

  I rang her doorbell. After a minute, she answered the door.

  She Said

  Today was just an overall bad day for me. They had me running ragged at work. I was just glad to get today over with.

  I know it sounds a bit weird, but to relax, I went to the laundromat to wash my clothes and to drop off my dry cleaning. I was able to catch up on my reading.

  As I was leaving, some guy just leered at me. It creeped me out.

  That was nothing compared to the next day. I was going into Starbucks to pick up two Caffè Americanos, a Green Tea Latte, and a Salted Caramel Mocha Frappuccino.

  As I walked into the establishment, who was walking out? Yes, that same creepy guy. Was he stalking me? I was just glad he didn’t follow me.

  I was a nervous wreck all day after this experience. I was ready to call the cops.

  A few days went by, and things got back to normal. I hadn’t seen that guy since Starbucks.

  Then, I went shopping at Bloomingdales. Lo and behold, I saw that guy again. What do I have to do to get this guy out of my life? I just hope he didn’t see me.

  I had lunch with my girlfriends later that day. I mentioned how this guy kept popping up everywhere I go.

  “That sounds kinda scary. Once is a coincidence. Three times means restraining order.”

  “Well, I can’t get a restraining order on him because I don’t know his name, nor do I want to.”

  A few days later, I was going for my usual afternoon run through Central Park. I ran past a bench. As I looked over, there he was. Frightened, I looked for the nearest police officer.

  I told him about this guy who had followed me everywhere I went. By the time I brought him back to the bench, the guy was gone.

  Was I losing my mind? Did I imagine him? Why can’t I get him out of my head?

  I went to a therapist for some answers. She tried to explain that he was a figment of my imagination, but I knew this guy was for real.

  I was afraid to leave my house. I called off work for the next few days.

  I couldn’t stay locked away forever. I had agreed to be part of the float for Big Brothers and Sisters in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade. At least here, I knew I was safe. I mean, if he was there, there were hundreds of others around to see him, to keep him from making a move.

  As the float turned onto Herald Square, I heard a voice yelling at me. I couldn’t make out what that person said. When I looked over, there he was. I acted like I didn’t see him and kept waving to the crowd.

  Enough was enough. I wanted to get my phone out to take a picture of him, but the float had moved on. Next time, I was getting my proof and taking it to the cops.

  Armed with my Droid, I went out looking for Christmas presents on Black Friday. I got a cashmere sweater for my sister, a gift card for my boss, and a bottle of perfume for my friend Zoe. All I had left to buy for was my mom. I knew what I wanted to get her and where to go.

  Cabs were hard to find, especially today. When I saw one pull over in front of me, I ran towards it. I didn’t care that someone else hailed it; I wanted it. “Hold that taxi!”

  I saw the man’s face turn as I yelled. It was him. As soon as I saw him, I took out my Droid and took his picture. He offered to share the cab with me and cover the fare.

  I was still scared, but there was a sincerity in his voice. Against my better judgment, I agreed to share the ride to Macy’s.

  I tried to ignore him as much as possible, but I couldn’t with him staring at me. Six blocks later, he spoke to me.

  “My name’s Sean Rickman. And you are?”

  “Not interested.”

  A block later, he asked me why I was going to Macy’s.

  “Look, I don’t know you. You don’t know me. So, why are you following me? Stop the taxi!”

  When he stopped, I got out of the cab and looked for the nearest policeman. I had his name now and his picture.

  Outside of Macy’s, I found one. I told him how he had followed me to all those places. I gave them his name. I reached in my purse for my phone. It was gone
. What happened to my phone?

  The last place I saw it was when I took his picture. He must have taken it. The cab was long gone, and I didn’t catch the name of the driver. I told the cop he stole my Droid.

  I got home after buying Mom a Keurig single-cup coffee maker. I tried to relax and hoped the police could find him and my phone.

  As I drank a glass of wine to calm my shaky nerves, I heard a knock at the door. It startled me. I spilled a bit of the wine on my blouse.

  Now, I was in a very foul mood. I answered the door.

  They Said

  As she opened the door, Karen saw Sean. She slammed the door. He knocked again.

  “I just wanted to return your phone.”

  She looked through the peephole in the door. He held up her phone. She could see he was telling the truth. She opened up the door.

  “You left your phone in the cab and I just wanted to return it to you.”

  “Thank you.” She proceeded to shut the door again.

  “Wait, please. I have something I need to tell you.”

  She was still mad at him, but the fact that he returned her phone showed possibility that she could be wrong about him.

  “Okay. You have two minutes, and not a second more.”

  This was his chance to open up and spill his heart to her.

  “Everywhere I looked these past two weeks I saw your face. At first, I was blown away by your sheer beauty. I was intimidated. By the third time I saw you, I could draw your face from memory.

  “I thought to myself, ‘Is this fate? Is God giving me a sign that this is who I am supposed to be with?’ And yet every time I saw you, you were always just out of reach.”

  She was unimpressed.

  “Then I thought to myself, ‘This is such a strong, confident woman. What lies behind such a flawless face? Does she feel the same way about me?’ Well, I got my answer today.

  “A woman like you only comes along once in a lifetime, and you only get one chance to make a first impression. I know I blew that opportunity now.

  “All I wanted to do was to put a name to go with that face. Now that I have returned your phone, I will leave. I would really like to know more about what kind of a person you really are. If you never wanted to see me again, I understand. I will stay out of your life forever.”

  With that, he walked away.

  She wanted to call the police to let them know her phone was returned and that she didn’t want Sean arrested.

  When she did, she saw there was an unread text message. She opened it.

  “If you want to see me again, just say ‘yes’.”

  She sat down. His story moved her. Most men she came in contact with only wanted one thing from her. He was different. He sounded sincere and genuine. He made her feel special. She could tell he was not just throwing a line out there with the hopes of scoring with her. He genuinely wanted to get to know her. She had him all wrong. He wasn’t a menace.

  As he left the building, he heard his phone ring. He saw a text message. He opened the message.

  “Yes.”

  He was overjoyed. His first thought was to race back up there and knock on her door again, but that seemed like an act of desperation. He wanted to play it cool.

  Instead, he called her. All they did was talk and talk for over an hour. The only reason they stopped talking was because his phone died.

  When he got home, he plugged his charger into his phone and called her back. The next day, they met over coffee. They talked every day.

  She was everything he could have ever wanted in a woman, and he was everything she always wanted in a man.

  This had all the makings of a fairy tale. Sean found his princess. Karen’s frog turned into her prince.

  And they both lived happily ever after together.

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