“…everyone was staring directly at me. And when I say everyone,” Michael whispered, pausing for dramatic effect, “I mean, everyone. I thought my heart was about to fall right out of my chest but I wasn’t going to look back or chicken out. I just stared at her, and kept on staring until she smiled. And that’s when I knew I would be able to make that jump.”
The women around him sighed dreamily. Michael nodded his head, expecting this reaction to his grand, romantic tale, and letting it spur him on. “There was nothing quite like that smile. It was everything to me. I felt like the sun got a little brighter in the sky when she was happy. It was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”
“So what did you do?” asked the woman to his left. She was much older than him, probably in her late forties, and his story was being soaked up like a sponge by her more than anyone else. She was nearly clinging to his side, eyes wide behind her thick-framed glasses as she waited for him to go on.
Michael was more than eager to continue. If not to spur this woman’s own fantasies, but for the others who stood around him, hanging on to his every word. “Well,” he said. “I reached my hand out, never looking away from her eyes. I don’t think I would have been able to even if I tried. She didn’t move at first and my heartbeat sped up a little bit. I thought to myself, ‘What if she leaves me hanging?’ But then, she reached out and took my hand. And her smile grew a little bit wider. I can’t ever forget the way she smiled at me. And then, together, we leaped out of the plane.”
The sighing around him grew in volume. Some of the women put their hands to their hearts, smiling at the romance. Michael grinned.
“So, where is she?” one of them asked, the youngest of the group. Young enough that she was still captivated by tales of love, and the realities of life hadn’t hit her forcefully quite yet. Not as they had hit Michael.
“She’s gone.” The sadness in his voice wasn’t all fake, but he heightened it a bit, watching all their faces fall with surprise and pity. “She left me. She said I was too much for her. She couldn’t handle my ‘energy,’ whatever that means, and she found someone who was a better match for her.” He shrugged through the pain of his words, not all of it as embellished as he would have liked. “I suppose it just wasn’t meant to be.”
“Oh, you poor soul.” The older woman next to him embraced him like he was her own child. One by one, the others surrounded him, wrapping their arms around each other in one big hug.
“You’ll find the one, okay?” another woman said. “Just hang in there.”
“I’m keeping the faith,” Michael told them with a soft smile. Just then, the intercom buzzed with the final call to board the flight to Naples. “Alas, I must be off! Thank you for allowing me to unburden my heart on you beautiful ladies. I assure you, it has lightened my load.” He winked at the older lady, and she blushed furiously. “You all take care now!”
They gave him similar farewells, each of them reluctant to leave. As he turned away, he could hear them murmuring to each other about how sweet and handsome he was. The older woman even said it was a pity she was married. Michael couldn’t help but grin a little wider at that.
Marcus walked up next to him, pulling his own luggage. “I’m never going to get used to you doing that.”
“Doing what?”
“Misleading women and making a spectacle of yourself.”
Michael’s jaw dropped open in shock and he stared at Marcus as if he just said the world was ending. Marcus ignored the look and calmly handed over their tickets to the woman at the counter. “How could you think that?” Michael gasped. “I would never lie to a woman. Ever. They’re much too precious and should always be treated like valuable treasures.”
The woman at the counter smiled at his words, and when he flashed her a grin, she blushed. Marcus shook his head, heading towards the terminal gate. Michael hurried to catch up.
“You expect me to believe that all that crap you were spouting back there was true?” Marcus asked in disbelief.
“Honest as the day I was born, dear Marcus.”
The other man grunted. “Just keep your good spirit for tomorrow when it’s time for your first show.”
Michael didn’t want to think about the show, but he supposed it was a better alternative to nasty memories he had pulled up while he spoke to those women. “God, you know I hate touring. How long will we be in Italy, you say?”
“The schedule is in your bag. Read it.”
“Jeez. Bossy, much?”
Marcus rolled his eyes but kept silent as they boarded the plane and put their things away in the first-class section. He didn’t say anything, not until they were both seated and Michael was done charming the air hostesses for another glass of champagne. “A month,” he went on. Michael purposely didn’t check his bag for the schedule because he knew Marcus would tell him anyway. Annoying him in tiny ways like these were small blessings. “You’ll be performing at most of the major theaters in Italy. If you care to take a look at the schedule, you’ll know which. We’re going to see how Italy goes, and if you can handle that, we’ll schedule more European dates.”
“I’ll look at that later,” Michael said with a dismissive hand that was sure to annoy Marcus even further. “I don’t want to have to think about that right now. Let me enjoy the next ten hours without having to worry about work.”
“Since when have you ever worried about anything?” Marcus grumbled.
“Oh, come on now, Marcus. You know I worry about your stress levels every day.”
“I wouldn’t be so stressed if you would just try to make my job a bit easier and do what you should.”
“Doing what you’re expected to do is boring. I like surprises.” At Marcus’ grunt, he added, quite amused, “But I suppose you don’t.”
“Well, if you don’t want to talk about work for the next ten hours, then fine.” He pulled out a sleeping mask from his travelling bag. “I don’t want to have worry about that or you either. I’m going to take a nap.”
“Aw,” Michael pouted. “Then who am I going to talk to while you’re sleeping?”
“Talk to yourself. You’re good at that.” Dismissing him, Marcus pulled the mask over his eyes and reclined his seat. Michael sighed silently.
There weren’t many people in the first-class section, and they had chosen the seats farthest away from everyone else. Michael was bored as he reclined his seat, preparing to spend the next ten hours entertaining himself.
That was, until she walked in. The surly Elizabeth looking as perfect as she did yesterday—except now she wore a deep purple dress rather than black. Michael couldn’t believe his eyes and he watched as she took her seat opposite his, not sparing anyone a glance.
What were the odds?
A slow smile began creeping over his face as he stared at her. He couldn’t tell if she had noticed him staring and was just pointedly ignoring him, and for some reason, that made him eve more excited.
He watched her a bit, waited to see what she would do next, but she did nothing else but pull out a book and begin to read. It was unnerving how still she could become, nothing but her eyes moving. His grin grew wider.
Knowing well that it was likely to end in disaster, and maybe shame, he got to his feet and made his way over to her.
She didn’t even move when he sank into the seat next to her. Michael looked at her, then at the book she was reading. “What’s that about?” he asked.
“Ten Top Ways to Tell Someone to Leave You The Hell Alone.”
“Yeah? And how’s that going for you?”
“Not the best read, actually,” she said in a terribly monotone voice. “People tend to make things a lot more complicated than they are. I think the best and only way is to just say it straight.” She lowered the book and looked him dead in the eye. “Leave me alone.”
Michael shrugged. “Hey, come on now. We know each other. Don’t you remember? Yesterday? Your knight in shining armor?”
“You mean the guy who jumped into something that clearly didn’t concern him? Yes, I remember you.”
“Then you must remember our deal on that date you promised me.”
“I don’t recall you being this delusional.” She went back to her book and Michael had to wonder how much of it she was really reading.
“Why are you heading to Naples?” he asked curiously.
“It’s none of your business,” she answered curtly.
Michael sighed.
As much as he wanted to stick around, he wasn’t about to invade her space any more than he already had. “Fine, if that’s what you want,” he said with a conceding raise of his hands. “I just find it interesting that a person I met for the first time yesterday under such interesting circumstances is sitting right on the other side of me on the same flight to Italy. I thought you’d be just as surprised.”
She looked at him for a second then back at her book before saying, “Trust me. It’s not as uncommon as you might think. I fly a lot. Happens all the time.”
Michael didn’t know what to say to that but it was clear that he had overstayed his welcome. He nodded and got to his feet. “It was nice seeing you again, Elizabeth.”
She didn’t respond and he didn’t expect her to. He made his way back to his seat, but he couldn’t keep his eyes off her. She kept hers on her book, never moving even when the hostess asked her if there was anything she would like.
Michael didn’t grow bored of watching her. In fact, he found her fascinating and had to resist the urge to go back over to her on multiple occasions. Just when the urge grew too great, she closed the book and tucked it away. Then she pulled out a sleep mask—all black—put it over her eyes and reclined her seat. Even then, Michael couldn’t stop staring.
She knew him. Liz didn’t know where she knew him from but she knew him. A part of her wanted to ask him where, but with the way he kept staring at her, she wasn’t sure that was such a good idea.
It wasn’t creepy staring, though, which struck her as odd. Everything about this man struck her as odd, from the way he spoke, to the way he acted, as if he was a child playing dress up. He flirted endlessly with the flight attendant, to the point Liz was almost annoyed enough to snap at him so he could stop. Which was also odd—because she shouldn’t have been bothered in the first place.
But throughout the entire flight—when she was awake—she wondered about him, wondered where she knew him from. As far as she knew, he didn’t sleep a wink, and she was slightly relieved when the man sitting across from him awoke. The two of them seemed to be business partners, and they chatted a bit concerning some papers that they pulled out of their bags. Liz wondered what kind of work the man did.
When the curiosity and loneliness was almost ready to overwhelm her, she pulled out her phone and slid a pair of headphones into her ears. She kept her wires neatly folded in her purse, and could not stand the way Madison’s purse was always a giant jumble of chaos. Navigating to her music app, she began playing some of the soothing instrumental music she had been obsessed with listening to lately.
After a few seconds of relaxing and staring out the window, she was startled to find that the man had gotten out of his seat to move over to her. He was staring down at her with surprise.
“What?” she said, removing a bud from one ear in annoyance.
He pointed at her phone. “You like that kind of music?” he asked, with wide eyes.
“I guess so,” she said with mild embarrassment. “It’s a guilty pleasure. This composer is pretty good.”
“I’ve uh, heard of him,” the man said awkwardly. “So you already had that song downloaded on your device? Because there’s no Wifi on the plane.”
“Yes,” Liz said with confusion. Her hand reached out hesitantly, without her entirely realizing what she was doing. “Do you want to listen?” She immediately kicked herself for asking, realizing that it would mean he had to sit beside her.
“Absolutely,” he said, taking the invitation and plopping down beside her eagerly.
Once the earbud was positioned in his ear, so they could listen together, Liz felt a little bit shy all of a sudden, and hoped he wouldn’t criticize the song she loved so much. But instead, the man seemed very focused on the music, and he seemed to be listening with reverence.
His eyes lit up with an intelligence she hadn’t seen there before, as he listened. She watched his reaction to the music, and saw his head moving ever-so-slightly in time with the instruments. As she watched him, she found herself enjoying the song more than she ever had, and goosebumps rose on her arms.
“This is my favorite part,” she whispered, unsure of why she was sharing so much about herself. “Right here, when it builds to a crescendo.”
He nodded intently, staring directly into her eyes as the notes began to build and build, filled with emotion and pain.
Liz found herself holding her breath, and getting a little overwhelmed by the look in his eyes. She took the earbud away from him abruptly and turned off the music, stashing her phone away.
“I should probably go back to reading,” she said awkwardly.
“Yeah,” he said, standing up a little shakily. He moved hesitantly, unsure of whether there was something he should say. “Uh, do you like going to the orchestra? I heard that artist will be performing in Naples soon. Maybe if you have the time...”
Liz shook her head. “I’m here for work. I won’t get a chance.”
“But you know, if you have an evening free, or even time for the weekend matinee…”
“Listen,” Liz snapped. “I already told you that I’m not going on a date with you. I’m going to Italy for work, and I don’t have time to dilly-dally with strangers.”
The man paused, looking slightly wounded. “Well, it doesn’t have to be with me. But I just thought you should know—especially since that artist never goes on tour. He hasn’t performed in years, and he might not ever again. So it’s a rare opportunity to see him live, and I wouldn’t want you to miss that.”
“Thank you,” Liz said quietly. “Are you a fan of his?”
“His biggest fan!” the man answered with a large grin. “That’s why I just had to come over when I saw you listening to that song.”
In spite of herself, Liz found a smile tugging at the corner of her lips. “I appreciate the information about the show.”
“No problem at all. It should be a once-in-a-lifetime performance.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” she responded. “Now I’d like some privacy, please.”
“As you wish.”
The moment the plane landed and they were cleared to leave, Liz didn’t waste any time. She got to her feet, trying not to seem too rushed as she walked out. She heard him call to her from behind but she kept going, losing herself in the crowd of people and hopefully losing herself forever from his eyes. The man was a distraction and if there was one thing Liz hated, it was distraction.
She got away. Now, she could focus on the reason she was here. Finding the eccentric artist and getting his painting before anyone else could. Away from the stranger, she could focus on how daunting of a task that would be now that she was here in Italy. The city where Alessandro had last been seen was Sorrento, just a short train or ferry ride away from Naples. Harold had arranged a private car for her, but even once there, it wouldn’t be easy to find the artist.
The problem weighed on her as she collected her things and made her way to the limousine. She was looking forward to staying at the hotel in Sorrento, a beautiful coastal city that laid almost in the center of the country. She had never been there before, and did hope she could take in some of the local sights. But she did not know how long she would be there, and needed to be ready to follow Alessandro all over the country, or continent if the need arose.
The stranger from the plane remained in the back of her mind as she traveled to the hotel in silence, staring out the window at the gorgeous blue sea. She remembered the odd look on his face when he listened to the music, and it made her feel strangely warm in her chest. He seemed to have a great appreciation for art—both paintings, and music. She couldn’t help wondering what else made that strange man tick.
When she checked into the Villa Eliana, and was escorted up to her room, she tried not to think about him. It wasn’t until she was in the shower, washing off the grime of the last ten hours and preparing for a good nap before she tackled her work, did he return to her mind. That grin, that charm. She hoped she didn’t see him again. He was bound to be even more of a distraction after a third meeting, considering that she was already being pestered by his image after two accidental encounters.
But she was in Italy. What were the chances of ever seeing him again? As soon as the thought occurred to her, she dismissed it. She was a practical woman, and while coincidences could happen, it was unlikely that there would be any more. Sharing a flight was strange enough. If he hadn’t seemed so genuinely surprised, she would have accused him of stalking her.
It didn’t make it any better that she was still bothered by the thought that she knew him from somewhere. It was bound to drive her crazy.
Washed and in bed, Liz dialed Harold. She updated him on her arrival and check in, and reassured him that she wouldn’t get to work until tomorrow. He had insisted that she go out and take in the attractions, enjoy a bit of Italy before she got too caught up with work. Liz had confirmed that she would absentmindedly, not bothering to tell him that her only plan was to take a catnap before getting to her task. She knew he knew that, anyway.
When she was done with her boss, she called Catherine. “I’m here,” she said as greeting. “In Sorrento.”
“Really?” It wasn’t Catherine who spoke but Madison from the distance. “How is it?” she asked, closer this time. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?”
“Beautiful doesn’t come close to describing this place,” Liz said truthfully. “It’s beyond words.”
“Pictures,” said Catherine. “Don’t forget to take pictures while you’re there. And you might be there for work but you can always try to relax and get some summer sun while you’re at it.”
“You sound just like Harold.”
“I always respected that man. But seriously, Liz. It’s a free vacation, a gorgeous summer in Sorrento. You need to try to have yourself a good time.”
“Yeah, well, we’ll see what happens.” Liz said awkwardly, still thinking about the handsome stranger. “I really need a nap now so I’ll call you guys later.”
“Bye!” Madison chirped. Catherine laughed and issued her own farewell. Liz hung up the phone, set it down on the nightstand, and pulled her sleeping mask over her eyes.
She snuggled into bed, sighing in comfort. And even then, the stranger haunted her sleep almost as well as he did her thoughts.