Crystal Bella

by Marty Christopher

  Ethan sat there, looking around. He felt cool today, it was the charm of the day and just being in a place with a cool vibe. After a few minutes with the waitress’s being very busy and missing him, he decided to get up. He also wanted to have a look around and admire the new place he had found. Ethan walked to the counter, nearly bumping into a couple of people on the way through. He glided his way past. Nothing could touch Ethan Christie when he was in this zone, like magic within, to magic on the outside. It was an electric current that emanated from within and that light could change the outside reality. The people he walked past could feel it.

  As Kali walked down the footpath she saw the same cafe where Ethan was. She was attracted by its white exterior and wooden features of an old classic building. It seemed to radiate its own energy and she knew she had to go in. She felt excited. She was on an unknown path, perhaps only on it for a coffee but it felt enchanting all the same.

  When she went through the front door a small breeze from somewhere hit her and made her hair move. The guests in the cafe noticed. She stood there taking a breath. She looked in that moment as girly as she had ever been.

  Every table was taken, but one. So she walked to the empty table. She loved the place. It was humming and busy and it made her feel excited. The ambient feel had the right mix between sophistication and warmth, with a zip in its feel. It was cool and she was about to find the perfect seat, the perfect table really, by the window which had an outlook of greenery, a tree, some buildings and deep down the path of the long street she could see the blue water in the distance. It was also Ethan’s table.

  She sat down and decided to face slightly away from the window so she would not have her back to the cafe, but on a slight angle where she could see both the view and the heart of the cafe.

  Kali noticed the key ring that Ethan had left on the table. It had the number seven on it. How cool she liked that number. It didn’t actually occur to her that someone may be sitting there, until Ethan turned up.

  Ethan returned to his seat and he saw Kali. It was all so sudden and unexpected that he didn’t have time to be nervous. His soul emerged and the beauty of Kali brought the best out in him. He looked at Kali in a powerful way. Almost like two big cats, a male and female lion coming together for the first time. There was power in Ethan’s eyes and Kali could see it. She opened her mouth, she almost felt shy. She wanted to say, It’s you, who are you? You’re beautiful!’ But she remained quiet as Ethan walked up.

  “Hi,” Ethan said.

  “Hi, did I take your seat?” Kali asked, politely in a shy way.

  “Yes.” Still like two lions coming together.

  “What to do?”

  “Considering the view that follows behind you, the light that shines right now, I feel you are exactly where you’re meant to be.”

  The view was amazing but it was like a back drop of Kali’s beauty, it simply had to be there, like a match. Then Ethan’s intensity shifted and he became lighter.

  “Though I will have to sit with you. Are you by yourself?”

  “Yes I am.” Kali said.

  Ethan sat down, looking at Kali.

  “Perfect place really,” he said. “you chose your seat well. You see, we can both see the view and the space of the cafe, both. Because we’re on a slight angle, it makes me sit in the perfect, correct angle too.”

  “I don’t like to face walls and I like to see the view but I also like to see what’s coming.”

  “Me too, I’m the same. Though I did leave my key ring on the table to guard it against any rough types.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes, I left them there on purpose, but I had a feeling someone may turn up. But I also had a feeling she would have to have some special powers to be able to sit here. You know, with the key there. A symbol of protection, I know some big angels you know.”

  Kali laughed. He’s gorgeous, you’re an angel she said to herself and Ethan heard her thoughts and it just made him glow even more.

  “You know I have seen you before.”

  “I know, (matter-of-factly) you walked past me in the hall at college yesterday. It’s an intense stare you have.”

  “Sorry about that in the three seconds that we had, I was trying to read your thoughts.” Kali cracked up and a couple from the table looked over hearing her angelic, loud, impulsive laugh. Ethan continued. “I’m glad you remembered though. I got a whole hour to look at you. You couldn’t see me.”

  “Really?”

  “Yeah, I was a student in your class of course, I wasn’t just randomly watching.”

  “Oh that changes the dynamics, you’ve heard me talk for an hour.”

  “It was a little unfair. You couldn’t really see me as there was a girl in front of me and I kinda liked being anonymous. Only for that moment.” Ethan paused then leaned forward slightly. “I’m not usually like that. I needed an unfair advantage, only at the beginning.”

  “Like a golf handicap?” Ethan tried not to laugh.

  “No... not like that. It’s like having special powers and just using them at the beginning, and a bit later too maybe.”

  “Okay I‘ll let that one slide. Maybe I have special powers.”

  “I’m sure you do.”

  “You have a lovely accent.”

  “Thank you, I spent a couple of years as a teenager in New Zealand, my mom got a job over there, beautiful place. Some of the words or the sound of the words still remain.”

  “How cool.”

  “You’re cool.” It just came out of Ethan’s mouth.

  “You are.”

  “You are.”

  The words were just slipping out. Ethan almost said the cool bit in his head but they just came out. Kali made him flow, everything was coming out easy. He could say anything. He had to be careful. She was bringing out the essence in him but he knew he had to take it slow, that in life he had been taught already.

  The waitress came over and they ordered their coffees.

  “Aren’t you meant to be at class?” Ethan asked.

  “Yes and you too I’m guessing?”

  “Yeah but it’s a little more chilled for me, I’m not the professor. Crazy morning, alarm didn’t go off, every street is blocked.”

  “Me too!” she said.

  “And we end up here, and here you are. The same time, in one big city and you’re in front of me again, just a little closer this time”

  “I am.”

  They stared at one another. It just felt so right for Ethan. She was gorgeous and he wasn’t afraid. He knew if had met her earlier in life he would be afraid. Her beauty was powerful but now he just felt addicted without any pinning from the mind, like two peas in a pod, they fitted and both were fascinated with one another.

  “So you’re okay just not turning up for a class today?” Ethan asked.

  “I normally would be concerned by this, but at this moment I just don’t care. I look honest, I’ll make up a good lie.”

  Kali meant every word, she didn’t care. Nothing else seemed to matter right now, like discovering a new wonder world. All Kali wanted to do was stay there.

  “I understand,” he said, “I’ll tell them I was watching you for a whole hour and confirm whatever you tell them.”

  “What should I say I was doing?” Kali asked then remembered she didn’t know his name yet. “Oh before you answer that...what is your name?” Angel boy I bet, she thought to herself and Ethan again could sense her words in her head. He was sure he could hear them.

  “Ethan.”

  Beautiful, sounds like ether. A world she had read up on, a world of love that she knew existed. He was love, maybe he was Ethan from the ether. She couldn’t wait to tell him everything one day.

  “Tell me the story please,” she said.

  “You were driving to college, you saw a car coming the other way, coming right at you. You took a risk, you went onto an unknown ramp, you know those ones in movies where they head down often, with road signs a
nd stuff? Yeah that’s you, death was close. You come to a dead end and drive off into the water, you come out drenched, you look really good, sexy if I may say. You remember you picked up a hitchhiker that day, that’s me of course, so you rescue me, do mouth to mouth. I wake up, we both enjoy it, and in my semi-conscious, delirious state, I say I love you.”

  It was a story but it was also a path Ethan’s soul knew existed in the future.

  “Wow, that’s a big story,” Kali replied.

  Ethan liked how he could use a character to say ‘I love you.’ He couldn’t tell her now but to say the word released the emotion.

  ~~~~

  The time had come to depart and get to their next class. Ethan was paying the bill at the counter with Kali next to him.

  “I’m going to borrow that waitress’s pen and scribble your number down,” he said to Kali while he walked over and grabbed a pen from the waitress. “I can do that?”

  “Yeah, you can, Ethan.”

  Ethan wrote her number down, as he looked up briefly he saw Kali’s beautiful essence, then he returned to the paper and pen, and he saw a glimpse of her wedding ring on her finger.

  Ethan tried to block it out. Usually he would be cool as it could indicate true friendship without any distractions. But because of the intensity of the moment together and how beautiful it felt he could not help for that moment to feel initially upset. He felt that disappointed. But mixed within that was the purity he felt, the love she made him feel and then that took over. Nothing else mattered. He had never had an emotion transform so fast. She was gorgeous beyond this world and her past was hers. She couldn’t change herself to who she was prior to their meeting. Kali’s past was hers, not Ethan’s and he started to uplift. This was his challenge, he was going to have to love her unconditionally. Humans sprayed that message, but never delivered it and at that moment Ethan knew he could master unconditional love.

  At the front of the entrance to the cafe they said goodbye. Kali had sensed Ethan’s observation of seeing her ring. She had it covered during their coffee with her positioning and her hand bag. She didn’t want it to be there. Her behavior was surprising herself. She was married, and the man in front of her made her feel like nothing she had ever experienced before. She also sensed how Ethan had observed the ring, but remained beautiful. Not a moment of judgment. She knew he was pure. She also had found herself not wanting anything from Ethan, but feeling a love that was free. It was like she had entered a new sphere where any human elements had been removed. They were both unconditional. Unconditional from day one, the best and only platform to find true love.

  They stood in front of one another and said bye and Kali kissed Ethan on the cheek, softly for one tenth of a second too long.

  ~ CHAPTER SEVEN ~

  A COPPER IN THE MIX

  Ethan, Carl and Christian walked together as they entered their class. There was an exam today and the three rocked up with a rebellious look in their eyes. Ethan scanned for the best position. He knew what would be the best seat, the seat next to Lenard. He spotted Lenard and also noticed that there was one empty seat next to him. Carl and Christian went their own way and Ethan sat next to Lenard.

  Ethan was quite prepared for this exam but he knew there would be a couple of questions that he may struggle with. Lenard was smart, super smart and Ethan thought he may just be the man to help him out. Ethan always had an eye for what was coming in vogue, who would make it big and who was super bright. He knew Lenard was a genius and he wanted to learn off that.

  Ethan walked up to where Lenard was. Ethan was wearing a jacket that fell in between a trench coat and a standard jacket. He had skinny jeans on with a couple of rips and a chain dangling from his jeans pocket. He gave Lenard a smile.

  “Hello, Lenard.”

  “Hello, Ethan.”

  “Lenard, I know you’re super bright. I just need some understanding on a few things.”

  “Fair enough.”

  Lenard decided to help Ethan and gave him understanding on the academic parts he was struggling with. Lenard appreciated his directness and was happy to help.

  The lecturer commenced the exam and everyone had their heads down concentrating on their paper. Ethan started sketching a picture of Kali. He showed Lenard.

  “It’s a good luck picture,” Ethan said.

  Exam finished and class was up. Ethan got up quickly and walked out with Christian, leaving the Exam room and headed down the corridor. Carl was talking to a girl and they left him to it.

  “How did it go?” Christian asked.

  “Perfect, there were a couple of questions I knew I would get stuck on. That’s why I sat next to Lenard, he’s a genius. He gave me the understanding I needed. Sometimes you just have to head towards the support.”

  “I should have sat next to you.”

  “And get Carl next to you. Answers going through the chain, a Dandelion chain.”

  “Sounds like a children’s story.”

  “Oh yes, when I said I had something to tell you at the poker game, I did mean it.”

  “I remember, I thought it was just part of your strategy to bluff.”

  “No, it’s about Chuck, the first feeling when I met him, I just knew he was a cop. I get those feelings as you know.”

  “Fuck, really?”

  “Yeah, really man, just letting you know.”

  Ethan could see Kali coming down the corridor towards him and realized he had to shoot the gap and be with her.

  “I have to run, here she comes. I will talk to you later,” Ethan said.

  Christian walked off thinking about what Ethan had just told him and Ethan walked right up to Kali. There were people everywhere walking around and for Ethan to see her pop up out of the blue at college made him feel light on his feet, with a spring step. Again she radiated, the pull was electric. Ethan felt for a moment almost fearful, in the way her beauty gave him nervousness. She was so gorgeous to him that she nearly gave him insecurities.

  “Hi,” Ethan said.

  “Hi, you look quite cute carrying those books.

  “Thank you,” Ethan laughed. “were you okay missing class the other day?”

  “Oh yeah fine.”

  They kept chatting, Ethan leaning in with Kali resting against the locker. It was like they needed some time to warm up after the intensity of seeing each other again, and when Ethan could feel normal again he would bring it up, the situation with her wedding ring. A couple of minutes in and he was ready.

  “I saw it the other day, not that it matters in some ways. You have a wedding ring on, so I assume you are married, though it would seem he’s not here with you.” Ethan looked at her as he said it and saw the layers of her beauty in her face, the full lips, the high cheek bones and the love in her face. The way she looked he felt he could tell her anything and she could understand. Her vivacious face seemed to tell him everything, like it glowed and listened with just her expressions. It was like he could just face her and say nothing and she would understand. When he looked at her he felt his eyes nearly water. It was the depth of her, the depth of him. Her beauty was nearly making him cry. He blinked a few times to reduce the water.