CHAPTER EIGHTThe Significance of WordsThe reason for Eddie’s abrupt and discourteous departure is this: When he met Bryony’s eyes, he was nearly knocked down by the force of her soul. A sweet soul, to be sure, but a strong soul. A courageous and carefully optimistic soul, and a soul that would be forced to endure the most gruesome and unspeakable tragedy. She would be broken, and razored, and her pink lips and her soft fingers and the insides of her elbows, and oh, oh, oh! Her fate was carefully engraved onto the irises of her eyes with jewelers’ tools, and Eddie couldn’t deny what he saw. She seemed like such a nice girl, a delicate thing that had fallen down from the stars, and the horrors that would befall her were . . . they were too much. Eddie couldn’t do it again.Wait, what was that? Eddie couldn’t do it again, you wonder?Such a difference one little word makes. Such weight and significance that word carries. If Eddie couldn’t do it, well, then, certainly it could be und
CHAPTER NINEDisconsolationChad the Fish Guy almost regretted knocking the mysterious girl down and making her cry, except that he never really regretted anything. Chad did what he did and then it was done, and what a simple and unimposing world this was for him. This meant that he ate whatever he wanted to eat with no regard for his health, and yelled at whoever he wanted to yell at out on the street, which happened more times than even he would perhaps care to admit. When he found a particularly pretty girl (which happened more nights than not) he smiled his charming smile and took her out to dinner and then brought her home and then kicked her out. He never saw her again, and if her feelings were hurt and she cried into her teddy bears or whatnot, well, that didn’t really concern Chad now, did it?“Well, perhaps it concerned him, maybe a little bit,” you say, because you are a sweet and gentle reader, and are apparently hoping for the best. And that is very gallant of you to thi
CHAPTER TENOf Murder and FlowersThe very day that: 1) Chad threw a stuffed fish at her, and 2) Eddie ran away, Bryony landed a delightful little job assembling bouquets of flowers at the market.“Excuse me,” said a small round-faced girl with beautiful, dark almond eyes, “you seem very nice, and you also seem lost. May I help you somehow?”Bryony was quite taken with this child. “Why, yes. I am looking for a job. Do you know anybody who is hiring?”Suddenly every shop and station and table had a desperate need for more employees, sometimes kicking present employees out in order to make more space. Who didn’t want a tragically sorrowful girl who chose to wear a happy smile around? Human nature dictates that we want what we want, and we want what is scarce. We want to enjoy things before they are taken from us. And this girl was defying fate by standing there this very minute. She should be dead by now, she was already lost. They grasped onto her life like a string of pearls.The
CHAPTER ELEVENBroken Glass and Jonquils“I hate you, Bryony,” Eddie said.It absolutely wasn’t true, and Bryony wasn’t there to hear it, but it was good practice.Eddie stormed up the street away from Pike Place. He was looking for a bar, or a club, or somewhere he could duck out of sight and brood on exactly how much he desired to dislike Bryony. She with her wide eyes and sorrowful ambiance. He would find her one day in pieces, or not find her at all, and which would be worse? It was like the time—“Eddie Warshouski, I brought you some flowers. Now why don’t you like me?”Bryony offered the flowers to him as if they were a sword. He had never felt so threatened by jonquils before. He took a step back, nearly falling off the curb, and this made him angry.“Why are you following me?” he demanded.“I told you, I brought you some beautiful flowers.” Bryony shoved the flowers into his face. They smelled divine, or at least they would have if Eddie sniffed at them, but he didn’t.
CHAPTER TWELVEA Splendid Way to Go“Daddy? Are you there?”“My sweet girl! How is everything going?”“Daddy, I met him. I met him, and his name is Eddie.”“Congratulations! And he’s strong enough to handle you?”“I think he is, although he doesn’t know it yet. He’ll learn, though.”“Are you going to bring him by sometime?”“I will, Daddy. I want you to meet him.”“The desert has been howling for you at night, my dear. It’s pacing back and forth in front of the house, leaving footprints in the sand. You need to be very careful.”“I will. And Daddy? He’s going to love me. He’s going to love me until both of our hearts burst from it all. Wouldn’t that be wonderful? Wouldn’t that be an absolutely splendid way to go?”
CHAPTER THIRTEENA Dangerous PathNow you might think that Bryony lives alone because there was never mention of a roommate. It would be a wise thing, true. If those close to her tend to end up as casualties of the cosmos, it would stand to reason that she would choose not to inflict her delightful presence upon anybody else. However, this is Seattle, and as we all know, space is a precious commodity in any big city. Prices are high, and Bryony works arranging flowers at the market, not as the CEO of some prestigious and eyebrow raising company. Not that this is a path that she couldn’t take, because she certainly could if she had the time and the inclination for it, but quite simply, the desire isn’t there. She is happy to be a flower girl and spend her days watching cheerful people (and a few irritated ones) prancing through the market. She likes listening to Eddie as he plays his clever songs, and even sings once in a while. Above all, Bryony likes to be free. She always needs the
CHAPTER FOURTEENHer Fragile HandEddie woke up one morning and realized that he had fallen for Star Girl. He knew that it would come to pass, and although grudgingly displeased with it at first, he soon came to accept the idea. He watched her as she laughed with her friends at the market. He watched as she talked wildly with her hands, explaining something to Chad the Fish Guy. He fantasized about beating up Chad the Fish Guy, out in the parking lot, preferably. When the sun was down and the cops were all looking the other way. What he would really like to do would be to tie him up and throw him off the pier and into the sea, but Eddie realized that was going a little far. A man could dream, however.Speaking of dreams: A man walked by, eating a fresh miniature doughnut from the vender, and stopped abruptly when he heard Eddie play.“I like that song, boy. Did you write it?”“Yes, sir,” Eddie said politely. He could be extremely polite if he wanted to, and something about this ma
CHAPTER FIFTEENI See YouThe girl caught his eye immediately.She was new to running, new to the trail, and her cheeks were rosy in the misty light. There was something about her, something special, a wobbling beacon shining up to the sky, only she wasn’t calling down the stars.She was calling him.And being a man of great appetites he obsessed to satiate, he knew he would answer her. Because, you see, that is the way it works, and has always worked, and this man somehow knew the girl’s whole life had been leading up to this moment.Wonderful. Simply wonderful.