Four

1.1K 29 6
                                    

I readied myself for the day. I brought a bottle of water, my journal and pen, my camera, and all my essentials in a small knapsack. I decided to wear a loose white T-shirt, cotton shorts and sandals. It's a particularly hot day. I took Eris' list and the second on it was shopping in the district market. I thought about doing it with James. Of course, I could totally do it on my own. But going on a trip with him in a place where a bunch of people would see us together was something I don't fancy. I remembered the feeling I had last night in the lobby. And would he liked the idea of shopping? I don't think so. Maybe, this trip would just blew everything good that happened in the previous days. "Ugh..Stop it!" I told myself.

I walked to the hotel's breakfast buffet and saw him seating outside, sipping tea. He was wearing a blue shirt and a khaki-colored shorts and his sunglasses. He looked great. "Good morning, Mr. McAvoy!" I beamed. He stood and like a gentleman, he pulled the chair for me to sit on. He sat and asked me what I want for breakfast. The waiter came and I just asked for coffee.

"Where does the list wants us to go today Miss Henderson?" he asked as the waiter left. "Well, don't set your hopes too high. The list commands us to go shopping at the district market." I looked at him and expected to bail out on me. But he said, "Okay, let's go do it. Shopping it is."

"Are you sure you want to do this?" I asked him. "Why not? I believe in your list. And I was the one who convinced you to do it. I'm a man of my words." he answered. "Alright then, let's go."I broke into a wide grin. After finishing my coffee and his tea, we walked to his rental car. We have no idea where the district market is so we hoped that the GPS device on his car would take us to our destination.

Luckily, it wasn't hard to find. What was hard was James' driving skills. I knew he mostly drove his motorcycle but I didn't expect him to be a racecar driver. We came downtown and saw a spot to park. The town square was quaint and was busy with people walking in different directions. It was nothing like New York City or London but it exudes a friendly and charming vibe. The brick pavement and old buildings as well as the trees on the sidewalk made it so appealing to the eyes. I brought out my camera and took pictures of the place.

I realized that James was looking at me, smiling. I felt embarrassed but I tried to hide it. "This place is pretty, don't you think?" I said. "Yeah, it is." He replied without looking away from me. This made me a little more self-conscious. "Come on, let's start shopping!" he urged.

We walked towards the market place and the stalls were endless. The displays were colorful and enticing. It was as if calling you by the name and luring you to buy everything. The freshest fruits and vegetables I've ever seen in my life; the most beautiful and fragrant flowers; the friendliest locals I've met; all of it are in this place. There were a lot of people and I noticed a bunch of tourists as well. It was odd that no one was coming up to James and ask for a picture or an autograph. When two teenage girls looked at me and at James, I moved to the next stall. James was talking to the woman tending the store. Good thing the girls moved on when their mom (I think that was their mom) called them.

We've gotten through the morning without someone approaching James. We decided to eat lunch in a local pastry house. I knew that James worked as a baker when he was young. We ordered danish bread and it was one of the best that I've ever tasted. I was thinking of asking him about his experience being a confectioner but I stopped myself because that would mean getting into his personal life. As if reading my thoughts, he blurted, "You know I worked as a confectioner before I started acting?" "I actually know about that." I admitted.

"Really? How'd you know?" he asked.

"You have no idea how much I know about you Mr. McAvoy." I chortled. "I told you I was a fan ever since I can remember."

"You mean to say you actually watch my interviews?" his face was in disbelief.

"Yes, and the write ups about you." I confessed. He was shaking his head while smiling. I think he was amused as well as bemused.

"You think everything I tell in those interviews were true?" He straightened and looked at me intently.

"No. I don't think so. You actors are actually trained to answer questions, I presume. And years of experience in getting interviewed, you learned to evade personal questions because you don't like to reveal too much." I shot back.

"Right, but you see, it really depends on the person who's asking me." he smiled smugly. "So what you're implying is that?..." I asked.

"Don't you want to know the truth among those interviews?" his tone was teasing me. If I am right about this, he's trying to lure me into showing him how much of a fan I am. He wanted to see me desperately trying to get answers from him. But I refuse to play within your rules, McAvoy. If you want to play, you follow my rules.

"How do I know you're not lying? You said it yourself, you are a professional pretender." I raised my eyebrow, mocking his own gesture. He smiled, and then looked at the little dove key chain I purchased in a thrift shop which I placed on the table. He snatched it. "Okay, let's do this. Since we both are professional pretenders, the person holding this wee key chain is entitled to ask a question to the other. And the answer should be as true as it gets."

"Deal." I answered.

"Good, now my first question is..." and it went on for about the entire afternoon. It was a fun game, childish as it was. I got to know him more and I get to reveal something about myself which was new for me. We decided to stroll around town and visit bookshops, liquor stores, more antique and thrift shops. At dusk, we decided to go back to the hotel. He parked his car on the same spot we found it this morning.

"So, this means we've done two things on that list. What's next eh?" he asked. I pulled out Eris' letter. "It says here ride an all terrain vehicle in the rocky valley at San Andres. Where exactly is San Andres?" I asked. I took the GPS device and searched for it. "It was an hour drive from the hotel." I told him. I noticed that he wasn't listening because he was reading the letter Eris gave me. I tried to snatch the letter from his hands but he managed to steer the letter away from me. He was grinning to the point of laughing. I'm starting to get furious at him, I removed my seat belt and I tried to grab the letter again. "Just give me the that! That's private property you know!" He was laughing now and it made me more infuriated. I didn't realize that I was so close to him 'till he turned his face to me. I immediately sat back to my seat as he was still having a laugh with the letter. I guessed my face couldn't hide my annoyance. He settled the letter on my lap.

"Look, I'm so sorry Carly. But your friend's hilarious, not to mention brilliant." When I didn't respond, he told me, "I know I should've not taken the letter. But if you think about it I kind of need to know what is on that list. Don't you think?" I considered that for a moment. It was true, but still it was kind of invasion for me. "Okay, fair enough. But because of what you did, you owe me a turn in the question and answer game. I get to ask you a question that I could use even without the key chain." He acted annoyed and furrowed his brows but still he said "Fine."

We walked towards the hotel lobby. Once inside the lift, I said, "I seriously had fun today. Thank you for accompanying me." The doors of the elevator opened so I stepped outside. I turned to him and he said "See you tomorrow, Carly."

Changing TidesWhere stories live. Discover now