As Luck Would Have It by Renee Espriu 05/28/2011

     We had decided to meet up later to get a bite to eat, after he was done bowling with his friends and I had done some shopping. The name of the place he gave me, I thought, sounded interesting. A little place he said that served soup, salads and sandwiches with a variety of beverages of choice, “Bistro by the Bay”. A change for Leo, for sure. Curiosity had me at its’ gate but getting there?!? That was a whole different question.

Leo and I had been seeing each other going on five years now and in all that time he rarely took me anyplace that didn’t have carbonated drinks in half a dozen flavors and where everything was cooked in grease or got sizzled on a grill that said char with black lines being etched into the meat…most often beef. So, when he asked me to meet him at a bistro…well, you can imagine the things I was thinking. I could be all wrong, of course, as he could be turning over a new leaf, getting a new lease on life, trying to extend his past bowling and drinking beer with the guys while playing pool on Friday nights at the local tavern. Well, anything is possible, I thought to myself.

As I was driving I kept trying to keep my eyes on the road while looking at the map I was holding in my right hand and it just wasn’t working. I’m not good at finding new places and should have studied his directions better but then, his directions were about as good as the company he kept and the food he ate.  I decided to pull over and try to get a better handle on where I was going. Even the neighborhood did not look familiar. I turned onto a side street and in an attempt to turn around saw one of those half circular driveways. It didn’t look like anyone was home so I pulled in and stopped to read the directions. I thought it will only take a moment and then I’ll be on my way.

I bent over to look at the long lists of rights and lefts when a boy no older than ten or eleven banged on my car door. I was going to roll the window down to see what he wanted when behind him came running a woman and another boy, this one maybe thirteen? I was never very good at guesstimating ages. She yelled at the boy already at the car to get in and quick as that he opened the door, jumped in and closed it behind him. The woman and the other boy jumped in the back seat and I could see the panic on her face.

“Please could you drive me someplace…anyplace?!? I’ve not seen him this angry before and I really am afraid of what he’ll do.” I hadn’t had time to reply to the boy now sitting beside me much less think about what this woman was saying when I saw all their expressions change to one of fear as they looked out the car windows. A man looming in the front yard of the house was coming toward the car and just the redness of his face with veins bulging on his neck told me he wasn’t having a good day. I looked at them and said (without thinking, really) to lock the doors. Just in the nick of time he was there pounding on the car and yelling. “I don’t know what the hell you think you’re doing, Alice, but if you leave you’d best not come back. If you do, you’ll wish you hadn’t. You’re nothing to me, bitch, nothing at all. You and those two slackers you call sons.” It felt like forever but I finally put the car in gear and pulled out of the drive.

When I pulled out onto the main street I looked into the rearview mirror and the man was getting into a truck and pulled out behind me. I didn’t feel like meeting up with him face to face so I quickly changed lanes and kept going. Alice and her boys kept looking out the back window and I knew they felt the same way. I finally asked her where she wanted to go. She didn’t care and then she said she didn’t have a phone with her so somewhere where there was a phone. I finally lost him at a traffic light and thought quickly of someplace I could take her. I offered the use of my phone but she said no, she would wait until we stopped. Well, sometimes, avenues of opportunity just seem to come along at the right moment and mine was a bridge going over a waterway. I drove across and on the other side there was an exit for a strip mall and gas stations. I pulled over and again asked if she wanted to use my phone and if she would be alright. Again she declined and said she would find a phone and call someone to come get her and the boys. Somehow I got the feeling this wasn’t the first time she had left and wouldn’t be the last. She and the boys got out and I watched as they walked away.

It suddenly dawned on me that I was probably late meeting up with Leo and I really was very curious about the bistro so before driving away, I called him on my cell phone. He picked up and said, “Where have you been?” I finally pick a place I know you won’t complain about or at the very least ‘roll your eyes’ about and you don’t show up!” “Well, I kind of took a detour.” “You mean you got lost?” “Well, you could say that. It’s kind of a long story. Why don’t I tell you when I get there?” “Sure, no problem. Just so long as you’re coming.” So, I’m not one for surprises and it was just killing me about why Leo would pick a bistro to eat at. Just maybe he was going to ‘pop’ the question after all these years so I had to ask.

“So, Leo, I wasn’t going to ask but why did you ask me to meet you at a bistro for lunch?” “I wasn’t going to tell you until you got here but….” I could hear the excitement in his voice and just hearing it I thought, well, maybe this is my lucky day! “So, why a bistro, Leo?” “It’s like this honey, me and the guys were playing pool last Friday night like we always do and some guy came up and put up a bet that he could beat me. I hesitated at first but I thought, what the heck! I like, could not believe it, but I won and I won big as the other guys bet too! So, I thought, I’m going to take her to a place she really likes and not another dive. Kinda like a celebration! Ya know what I mean!” I nearly could not believe my ears but then I should have known, if anyone was going to get lucky it would be Leo and not me.

© May 28, 2011 Renee Espriu