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I MANIFEST A CHERRY red convertible for my date with Anna. It's actually a double date, which wasn't my choice, but as long as Pho's my student, he needs to be present on every mission. Our car is a 1962 Chevy Impala, and we ride with the top down. Conveniently, when Rain sent us into Anna's dream, the girls were already riding with us. I'm in the front with Anna, and Pho's in the back seat with a very handsy Cathy. Every now and then, I check his face in the rear view mirror. The poor boy looks terrified. I believe this is the first date he's ever been on.
Anna's hair is out of its usual ponytail. Now that the wind's ripping through her reddish blonde locks, she looks stunning. She was always beautiful, but there's a joy in her eyes that I haven't seen before.
This has been a very unusual experience, even for me, and I've been on countless missions. Most guides don't get to interact with their charges. I should treasure every minute I get to spend with this beautiful young woman, because after we dance, I'm sure I'll never see her again.
“So...” I feel oddly unnerved when I start a conversation with her. “Tell me about yourself, Anna.”
“What would you like to know?”
I check the rear view mirror again. Cathy is practically sitting on Pho's lap. I never would have guessed he would have more success than me.
“Tell me everything. Anything,” I request. “Do you have any sisters? Brothers?” If I wanted to, I could search for her on the LightTab and find the answers to these trivial questions, but I'd rather hear it from her.
“I have one older brother. He's away at college, and I haven't seen him in almost a year. Do you have any siblings?”
In a way, all of the Archangels are my siblings, but I can't tell her that. I have to make something up. “I, uh... would you believe me if I said Chris was my brother?”
“Chris? Really?”
I could have invented a more believable story, I suppose, since Chris is Asian American and looks nothing like me. Now that I've started spinning this lie, I might as well continue it. “We're step-brothers,” I explain. “My dad's married to his mum.”
“Ohhh. I guess that makes sense.” Anna sends a deadly smile my way. Forget Helen of Troy. This woman has a face that could launch a thousand ships, and then some. How does she not have suitors lining up at her door? “How long have you been brothers?”
“Three years,” I blurt—and then I have to choke back a chuckle, because Cathy's hand is sliding along Chris' leg. My shy student has no idea how to handle her.
“You have a really nice car,” Cathy says. “Is it really yours?”
“Absolutely.”
“How old are you?”
The intrusive question comes from Cathy, not Anna, and it forces me to come up with another lie. I don't have an age. How old do I look, I wonder?
“Twenty-four.” I pull the number out of the air and hope it sounds realistic. “Do you think I'm too old?”
“Not at all,” says Cathy, whose hand is sifting through Pho's black hair. He looks mortified. I don't think his face could get any redder. Personally, I think he should seize the day and enjoy the young lady's attention. It's not like he'll actually have a shot with Haniel. “Chris is younger, right? He's still got a baby face.”
“I'm eighteen,” Chris says.
“Yeah, I knew it. You're just a baby.”
“Aren't you the same age?”
“Well... yeah,” Cathy says. “But for a guy, it's really young. Girls prefer older men... don't we, Anna?”
Anna doesn't give an answer, which is a shame, because I'd like to know what she's thinking. Rain warned me against reading her mind. Apparently, doing so could disrupt her dream.
We pull into a drive-in movie theatre and wait for To Kill a Mockingbird to begin. Pho offers to buy snacks at the concession stand, but I don't think he's interested in retro candy. I think he just wants to get away from Cathy for a moment.
“Have you ever read the book?”
It takes me a moment to figure out what Anna's asking, distracted as I am by her big, blue eyes. “The Mockingbird book? No, I haven't. I don't have time for books.”
“Oh. Well... that's a shame. Reading books is one of my favorite pastimes.”
If I could, I would kick myself right now. I won't win myself any points by bashing one of her favorite hobbies, will I?
Chris returns with a box of Red Hots and popcorn, which Cathy seizes from his hands. She steals his snacks for herself, and she looks quite shameless about it.
I ask the lovely Anna, “Would you like me to get something for you?”
“No. That's okay. I'm not really hungry.”
For some inconceivable reason, this young lady makes me nervous. I want to tell her she's beautiful, but the words are caught in my throat. What's wrong with me, I wonder? And what makes her different than all the other women I've flirted with over the years?
Thirty seconds after the movie begins, Cathy asks Chris, “Would you like to make out?”
Timid Chris nearly chokes on his popcorn. “Um... what?”
“Make out,” Cathy practically shouts the words. She's so obnoxiously loud, she catches the attention of a couple in a nearby car. “I was asking if you wanted to make out with me!”
“Uh... uh...” Chris is looking at me, not Cathy. I wonder if he's waiting for me to come to his rescue. “I, uh... I think... maybe... we should get to know each other first?”
Cathy's lips sputter at his answer. She reminds me of a nickering horse.
The movie is over two hours long, and each minute feels like an eternity. I have nothing against the story itself, but I need to get Anna alone. The object of this mission is to get her on her feet and dancing. I can't really do that at a drive-in movie theatre, can I?
Halfway through the movie, I start to slip an arm around her shoulders, but I pull back before I touch her. Anna has so little experience with men, I have to be careful. I don't want to do anything to put her off.
When the movie concludes, I take Cathy home first. After Chris rejected her, she never stopped looking petulant. Her disappointment is obvious, and she wants it to be obvious. Her arms are crossed, her lip is stuck in a pout, and she's shooting endless daggers with her eyes. She doesn't even say goodbye, she storms up the driveway in childish rage.
A few minutes later, we're in front of Anna's house. Chris, still sitting in the back seat, leans forward and whispers, “Are you going to ask her to dance or what?”
“What... now? On her front lawn?” I dismiss the idea with a snort. “That hardly seems appropriate.”
Chris' whispers turn into a hiss. “What are you waiting for?”
“The right moment,” I reply. “If you really want to romance a woman, you have to take your time.”
“You're not supposed to be romancing her! You're just supposed to dance with her,” Chris reminds me. “Wait... maybe you don't want this mission to end? Maybe you actually like her, and you don't want to—”
I clear my throat and turn my attention back to Anna. “Shall I walk you to your door?” I ask.
“Yes... wait... no.” In the middle of her reply, Anna looks perplexed. “Do you have my wheelchair?”
I jump out of the car and open Anna's door. “You don't actually need a wheelchair right now. Try to stand.”
Her eyebrows snap together, as if she's offended. “What?”
I don't want her to be confused, so I give her a straight answer. “You're in a dream, Anna. We are in a dream. If you wanted to, you could fly. Walking should be no trouble.”
“Are you... sure?”
“I'm very sure.” I offer her an arm, in case she needs to steady herself. Even in a dream, I wouldn't be surprised if she's a bit wobbly at first.
Her right foot touches the pavement first, and then her left foot. She's taking a long time, so I lift her out of the seat, forcing her to stand.
Her first few steps are a bit ungainly, but she's a quick learner. In no time, she's walking in circles around me. “I can walk!” she exclaims.
Her joy touches me, and my lips are taken by a smile. “I see that.”
“I can't believe it. This is incredible!” Anna hops up and down, testing her new abilities. “Wait... if this is a dream, does that mean you're not real?”
“Oh, I'm as real as anything,” I assure her. “And don't worry... this isn't the last time you'll see me.”
I pull us out of the dream before Chris can say anything about dancing.
Maybe he's right.
Maybe I don't want this to be over.