Newfoundland

Once More

Every day was ordinarily mundane. I woke up, showered, dressed, brushed my teeth, and was out the door in thirty minutes, suitcase in hand. Every day I stopped by my local café and bought a cup of coffee with one packet of sugar and two creams. If I had extra time I would sit and observe; sometimes for inspirations, sometimes to reflect, and oftentimes to think about her.

Everything was ordinary, except for Natalia, she had made life extraordinary.

And she never stopped even when I had not seen her in five years.

It was a Monday (an ordinary Monday) when I walked into Steamin' Mugs and saw her at the counter talking animatedly with Anna, the café owner. The beams of sunlight, slanting from the café windows cast her brown hair in an ethereal glow. The smile she wore illuminated her face in a warm and inviting nature, and her eyes sparkled with happiness. It was no secret why Anna had taken an instant liking to Natalia. She always had an effect on people in the best of ways, giving away smiles to everyone she met.

I watched from afar longer than I should have, but I couldn't believe she was here, a part of my ordinary existence.

The odds.

I wanted to approach, to say her name, but it was that very reason why I couldn't. I could not shatter her world again.

So, I walked away for the first time in five years from Steamin' Mugs and from the woman I still loved.

The moment I walked into my office my secretary, Donna, set a massive file on my desk.

"Richard just landed a new client and she will be her in three hours."

If I had coffee I would have choked on it. "Well, good morning to you, too, Donna. My day is going great. How is yours?"

She rolled her eyes at me. "Don't be mad at me. He's your partner. I just found out five minutes ago! Anyways, he wants you to look over the manuscript briefly before the meeting with her and her agent."

"Name?"

"Lenny Banos," Donna said. "She's never been published before so be kind."

"Aren't I always?"

Donna raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms. "Wren."

I put up my hands in mock surrender. "Alright."

Satisfied, Donna sashayed out of the room in a dramatic exit.

I opened up the file in front of me and read the inquiry that suddenly piqued my interests. The story contained elements of magical realism. Sixteen year old, Gemma finds a locket and is suddenly thrust into a world of magical creatures and a crumbling kingdom ruled by an evil enchantress. With the help of some uncanny friends and a boy named Wren, they travel the land of Aldos in search of the ancient spruce tree, containing the only weapon to kill the evil enchantress.

It wasn't the usual genre Maddox & Collins published, but I saw what Richard saw: potential.

I read as much as I could before 11:30 and became immersed within Falling Leaves. Possible title change was something that I made a note of to mention during the meeting. Other than that, the story was good. It had a kickass heroine and a possible love interest that pushed the plot forward. Every chapter was filled with action and revelation. There were minor grammatical and mechanical errors, but it did not take away from the story.

Five minutes before noon, I grabbed the file for Lenny Banos and headed to the elevator that would take me to my next publishing project. No one got on the elevator with me so I quietly hummed on my way up to the fourth floor and didn't stop humming until I saw Richard in one of the meeting rooms, shaking hands with who I assumed was either the agent or the author.

"Hey, Wren!" he said, when he saw me approach. "Just in time."

I was always on time. It wasn't rocket science trying to figure out my current location. If I had a meeting, I was there.

I didn't have time to process Richard's strange behavior because in the next moment I was struck by the sound of my name coming from Natalia.   

Author's Note  ツ

This was my attempt to merge the love or writing with the publishing industry. I hope to continue this story again one day, but for now it has been banished to the world of unfinished WIP's. 

Thank you so much for reading! 

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