Save the Date

39

The Uber took me to McKenzie's house. I called her on the way to explain what had happened. I felt numb retelling her the story. Once inside the safety of McKenzie's house, I felt like I could breathe again. "Damn! I had no idea you were such a player!" McKenzie said taking something delicious out of the oven. She pulled out a bottle of wine from the wine fridge under the kitchen counter. She was only joking but I still felt ashamed of myself and even more confused than before. Not only did I have a lunatic after me but now I'd gone and slept with someone whose last name I had found out through a doorman. This was not normal behaviour. "Yeah well, don't get too comfortable because we have to go pick up my car." Pouting she put the bottle away and said, "Doesn't it freak you out thinking that maybe he is waiting for you at your car?" "No, I'm excited by the prospect," I said rolling my eyes. "Sorry," she apologized, "I wasn't thinking. I just didn't know that this happened to people in reality. I mean I know, but I didn't know." She took out two plates and dished up the lasagne. I felt tired and weary, not really in the mood to eat anything but McKenzie had forced the plate in my hand when I protested. Once we'd eaten, I took a shower, put on a new set of clothes then we set off to get my car. McKenzie blasted the air-conditioning and sang off-tune to the songs that came on the radio. I wasn't in the mood to speak. I just wanted to get my car and get into bed. Patrick had tried calling, I assumed that McKenzie had told him about my stalker. I just couldn't get myself to admit how much of a mess my life was. If I wasn't afraid of what Chris might actually do to me it wouldn't really bother me. Everything that had happened between Luca and me last night and Luca and Beverly this morning just multiplied my humiliation. Not to mention Chris. If I needed any more proof of my inability to function as a proper human it would have been the culmination of the last twenty-four hours. The drive to the yoga studio was about thirty minutes from McKenzie's house and I must have nodded off because the next thing I knew McKenzie was shaking my shoulder. "Hey, Ray wake up. Where is your car?" "It should be there in front of the yoga studio," I said groggily, wiping my eyes and squinting in the brightness of the afternoon. Either my sleep state was deceiving me or my car was not where I remembered it to be. The anxious feeling I got in my stomach instantly kicked in and my breathing started to shallow. My ears began to whoosh again. Noticing my panic, McKenzie tried to calm me down, "Don't worry, we'll just park and see if the people at the yoga place know what happened. It's all gonna be okay." I nodded in reply as McKenzie expertly parked her Mercedes-Benz where my car should have been. When we got out of the car I looked around me nervously to make sure that Chris/Robert wasn't lurking around the corners. Hurriedly we made our way into the yoga place. The doorbell rang as we opened the door and, thankfully, Nova turned around to face us. Her face, however, went into a panic when she saw me, "You," she accused, instantly reaching for something under the desk where I assumed she kept her Taser. "Hi, yes it's me," I said sheepishly putting my hands up in surrender as she, rightly, pointed her Taser at me. McKenzie started when she saw Nova's weapon of choice, "Whoa lady, put that thing away before you hurt yourself." "How 'bout you keep your mouth shut and leave. This one," she again brandished her Taser at me again, "is banned from this studio for life and so are you." She turned her aim on McKenzie. "What?! What did I do?" McKenzie said lifting her hands in surrender too. Nova shrugged her shoulders, "Guilty by association. Now look here missy," she addressed me again, "I don't want any trouble, but you aren't welcome here. And don't try to sneak past while someone else is on duty because your picture is on the wall." McKenzie snorted with laughter, "You're kidding, right?" "I don't believe I am," she said moving aside so that I could get a good look behind her to the notice board. Sure enough, pinned under large letters that said: BANNED, were photos of several people, including Luca, Chris/Robert and myself. I didn't recognise the others, but I did wonder what their offences were. How much havoc could one cause in a yoga studio? "Lady, we're not looking for trouble," McKenzie's hands were still in the air, "We're just looking for my friend's car." "Yes," I said snapping out of my reverie, "My car. It was parked right out front, do you perhaps know what happened to it?" A broad smile broke out on Nova's face, "That stretch of street is a tow-zone. My guess is that your car is in the impound lot." Nova seemed to be enjoying my agony. "Really? Oh, man! What am I going to do?!" "You should have thought about that before you started a fight club out in the street." She said with a broad smile, "Now get out of here before I call the cops."