Chapter Six- A familiar stranger

Katerina held Rebecca’s arm gently as they walked into the popular Raven Court grill. It had been a week since the accident at Wickery Bridge. She was gradually recovering. Not just physically but mentally and emotionally. 

She had been discharged from the hospital a few days ago. Rebecca had insisted on staying with her for now and that evening, Rebecca decided to drag her out of the house.

Rebecca suggested that going out and seeing people would lighten her mood. 

Katerina agreed, though a small part of her wanted to stay cuddled up in bed, watching TV, sipping coffee and pretending the world outside didn’t exist.

“Slow down, Katerina! You’re going to trip and fall,” Rebecca laughed.

Katerina chuckled, but felt her stomach fold inward. Don’t fall. Don’t fall. Her thoughts travelled briefly to that night- the cold water, the panic, the unbearable weight of the car pressing down on her chest, stealing the air from her lungs.

She shook the thought off. It’s fine. You’re fine, Katerina. She said to herself. She had been having random panic attacks.

“I won’t. My foot feels really weird today, you know,” she said, adjusting her red sweatshirt, tugging the sleeves down as if that could ground her.

Both girls walked to a table at the edge of the grill.

Katerina looked around the bar where she had worked a few years ago, before her life changed forever.

 The place still carried the same gentle, familiar smell- coffee, sugar, its usual warmth smell. A scent she remembered from countless shifts and quiet evenings she spent working there. 

It made her chest ache in a way she didn’t fully understand.

They sat down, waiting for the waiter or waitress to attend to them.

Rebecca laughed again, carefree.

“Seriously, we’ve got to get you out of the house a lot more. You’re like a piece of furniture at home. No offense.”

“None taken,” Katerina said with a small smile, tapping her foot lightly against the floor without realizing it.

Rebecca noticed her unease.

“Are you feeling okay?” she asked.

“Yeah. Just a little tired is all,” Katerina replied.

Rebecca smiled, holding Katerina’s hands in hers.

“It will be okay. That’s why we’re here Kathy, to get your mind off things.”

Katerina nodded.

Just then, the waiter walked towards them. Katerina ordered a strawberry smoothie, and Rebecca ordered hot chocolate.

They kept talking and laughing as they slowly enjoyed their drinks. For brief moments, Katerina almost forgot the tightness in her chest, almost forgot how fragile she felt. She almost forgot how her life nearly ended a week ago.

“Maybe we could find you a date,” Rebecca said teasingly. “You know, someone to take you out. Kiss all that tension away from you.”

Katerina gasped.

“Rebecca!”

They both sat quietly for a while, sipping their drinks and enjoying the quiet.

Rebecca scanned the café again, for what felt like the tenth time since they arrived.

“You see that guy at the bar? The one at the end,” she said, leaning closer.

“He’s been staring. Turn around and look but don’t make it obvious.”

Katerina raised an eyebrow. She turned slowly, just as her cousin instructed, trying not to make it too obvious.

Then her eyes met his gentle eyes.

He was staring at her too. His gaze wasn’t sharp or hungry like she expected. It was quiet, almost calming, and that confused her. She didn’t understand why a total stranger’s gaze could settle something restless inside her.

His blue eyes held hers longer than they should have. And somehow, the calm she felt seemed familiar.

She turned away, then glanced back once more. Their eyes met again before she quickly faced Rebecca.

“He’s cute. That’s all. Tall. A bit pale. Handsome, pretty blue eyes.” she said casually.

Rebecca teased her again.

“Maybe we should set you up with him. He seems calm. Like sweet danger.” She laughed.

Katerina laughed. She loved being around Rebecca. The room always felt lighter when she was. She seemed happier too.

“I keep dreaming and thinking about that evening,” Katerina said, keeping her focus on Rebecca.

She frowned.

“It’s as though I heard his voice. It felt familiar,” she continued.

“Like I might recognize it if I heard it again.”

Rebecca paused.

“Do you actually remember hearing it? Or is it more like a dream thing?”

Katerina looked puzzled.

“I don’t know. It feels like a dream. And his voice felt familiar, but I’ve never heard it before.”

Rebecca’s expression softened.

“Trauma has a way of doing funny things to the mind,” she said carefully.

“You don’t have to force it, Kat. If it’s real, it’ll come back on its own.”

Rebecca knew what her cousin was going through, the trauma. Not being able to explain or understand what happened, how she got out, what she had felt those few moments, watching air exit her lungs. 

Katerina nodded. Rebecca was right. Whatever it was, if it were real, she would eventually remember. Maybe not immediately but one day the memories will come back and they will actually feel real.

The grill began to fill with people, noise rising all around them. It was getting late so people all around the city usually come there after work or just to relax 

“Can we leave now? Maybe stop by the supermarket,” Katerina suggested.

Rebecca smiled.

“Great idea. I’ll drive.”

Katerina hadn’t driven since the incident. She wasn’t ready, or maybe she was just avoiding it. Rebecca understood and was very supportive. She had told Katerina it would take time for her to feel like herself again, and that she shouldn’t rush her recovery.

They stepped outside the café, walking toward the car. Rebecca ahead of her.

Then Katerina heard a voice. 

“Careful miss.” His voice was sharp, young, with a heavy accent.

A voice she thought was familiar to the one she had been dreaming about. The one she thought she heard that evening at the old Wickery Bridge. 

Her body reacted even before her mind did.

She turned too quickly.