That evening, Fernando and Viv sat across from each other. This time near an expanse of windows in the formal dining room.
Viv felt proud to be seen with him. Fernando looked splendid in his light blue shirt with a tie. She'd noted his pressed slacks and slim waist as they were shown their table. He’s so confident.
Viv felt as if they were on a date. She realized he wasn't that much younger and that it wouldn't be so impossible. Viv sighed deeply, feeling slightly confused.
Fernando reached for his wine glass. Holding it up, he offered a toast. "To the best laid plans."
Viv laughed. "Plans do crumble. I can attest to that." She clinked his glass.
By the time the waiter brought their entree, Viv was aware that other diners looked their way. She leaned across the table. "We're attracting attention," she told him.
"Good," he insisted. "I've done my research. Assaults on cruise ships are the most frequently reported crimes. Especially with the ready availability of liquor. As you know from experience, staterooms can be safe but also a trap. Better the other passengers think we're an item, than to think you are vulnerable."
Viv hid her smile and patted his hand. I believe he just lectured me for my own good. Definitely reminds me of Laurence.
The waiter arrived with a bottle of champagne and a bucket. Placing the bucket on a stand, he twisted the bottle to the sound of crunching ice. "Compliments of Bertha Alcott." He set two flutes on their table and then nodded toward the corner.
Bertha's bright eyes stared at Viv. She looks like a ferret, Viv thought, adding a slight wave of hello.
A gentle pop from the cork brought her eyes back to the waiter. He wrapped a white towel around the bottle. Filling both their glasses, he returned the bottle to the silver bucket, standing tall as if waiting for instructions. "Is there anything else?" He turned to Fernando.
"Please thank Ms. Alcott,” Fernando said politely.
Once the waiter left, Viv raised her flute. "I've been feeling a bit adrift since day one on this cruise, and now I want to thank you for being my anchor, making things better."
He touched the rim of her glass to his, warm brown eyes smiling their appreciation.
Later that evening, Viv waited in the audience as Rex walked on stage. He's appreciated, she thought, hearing the solid applause.
Rex's opening banter sounded familiar, giving Viv a minute to assess her situation. She'd noticed that Fernando's appearance had changed her mood. Though she relished her alone time, she did appreciate a good conversation. Then a quote she'd heard from a doula friend of hers came to mind: “A man's not a plan, he's a companion.”
Once Fernando had arrived, she felt able to relax and even take a nap. No longer as critical of the other passengers, she'd looked forward to dressing up and then sharing dinner and a show.
After her nap, she folded her jeans and shirt neatly in a drawer. Viv dressed in her flowing black slacks and slim-fitting top. When she turned in the mirror, the hem of the slacks skimmed the floor just past her low-heeled black sandals.
She'd pulled her hair into a messy bun, lifting it to the top of her head. Instead of the usual scrunchy, she tucked in a pearl hair clip close to her scalp, one she'd purchased earlier that year from a street vendor.
Not bad. Viv leaned forward to get a closer look at her lipstick in the mirror. I may be old, but I won't embarrass my bodyguard. The very thought of needing a bodyguard made her blush.
And now she sat next to Fernando, who applauded at the end of Rex's opening dialogue. He seemed comfortable and to be enjoying himself. Viv turned her focus toward the stage. A spotlight formed a circle of light around Rex's body.
He stepped to the end of the stage. "Normally I don't give away any of my secrets," he confided to the audience. "But tonight I'm feeling different." He took in the crowd, glancing slowly from side to side. "Maybe it's because we're friends. Traveling together for the past several nights. You've come to my show and I've gotten to know you better."
He reached into his pocket. Holding the fortune globe covered by a white cloth, he explained, "Last time we had some luck with the fortune globe." He looked out to the audience, taking his time, waiting for them to focus on what he held.
"I hope you've stayed away from ellipticals after my warning." He grinned as the audience bubbled with laughter.
"No one ignored the fortune globe and used the elliptical, did they?" His grin widened as he doubled down on the joke, the playful accusation bringing even more laughter.
Rex kept his momentum with his next comment, timing it perfectly. His voice grew warm and friendly. "I know. We've all eaten our share this week. I've put on a few pounds too." He patted his waist, which was thinner, if anything. "But we can get rid of all that when we get home, right? That's the time for working out."
Now the audience guffawed. Rex waited, and just as the noise died down, he lifted the ball to be level with his head. The audience gasped. Rex removed the white cloth in a single flourish as the light went out.
Slowly but steadily, a single spotlight rose to illuminate the fortune globe. Rex lifted the globe to his forehead. Viv blinked, dimly aware of the outline of Rex's face reflected in the glass. The liquid inside the globe began to swirl. Mesmerized, she watched as it turned from clear to a milky white. Viv inhaled quickly.
The liquid inside the globe began to swirl faster and faster. The color turned from milky white to black right as Rex held the ball higher, over his head this time. "Help me," he said to the audience. “Call the magic forth. Repeat with me: fortune globe, fortune globe, shining and spinning. Probe beyond the veil and give us a vision."
He repeated the incantation again, making the hair on Viv's neck stand up.
No more prompting was necessary, as the audience kept repeating the incantation. Viv felt a shift in the atmosphere, a highly electric energy swirl that made her skin tingle.
"Silence," Rex demanded, his voice thunderous and all-powerful.
The audience stopped chanting as the lights went to dark again.
Viv stared at the stage, reaching for Fernando's hand.