misleading emotions

part 4

Averine went out of their cottage while holding their room key. She quietly locked the door and began the short walk to the restaurant. Locating the restaurant was not hard at all. You just had to locate the noisiest place and you already found your destination.

Tourists from different parts of the world filled the area as she walked towards the buffet. She saw girls wearing swimsuits and most of the suits were very revealing. But for once, she admired the individual uniqueness of every piece instead of criticizing them.

When she saw the food in front of her, she couldn't stop herself from salivating. All kinds of food seemed to be present from seafood, pork, beef, fowl, to desserts. Most importantly, her favorite, calamari in mayonnaise, was present. She took the biggest plate and filled it with nothing but her favorite. Then, she sat on the table located at the farthest corner.

In the middle of her peaceful eating, she felt a hand on her shoulder. She quickly looked up, hoping it was her husband. Unfortunately, it was just an old woman who was about 65 who asked if she may sit on the chair opposite Averine. Seeing that there were no available chairs anymore, Averine said yes.

After a while, the woman got curious on the girl sitting across her, so she placed her fork down and looked up.

"I see that you are already married dear," the old woman said while staring at Av's wedding ring.

The old woman had a kind face and she reminded Av of her own grandma. She was wearing a tight baby blue floral dress witch matching sandals and sumbrero. Despite her age, she carried herself in an elegant but simple way; her body was that of a middle aged woman, not a senior citizen. Most importantly, she appeared to be friendly and very down to Earth; her smile lightened up Averine's feelings and calmed her very being.

Almost instantly, she grew fond of the stranger without even knowing her personally. Smiling, she said, "Yes ma'am. I actually got married just 2 days ago." She also lost interest in her food.

"Is that so? Congratulations dear! How come the lucky guy is nowhere to be seen?" She asked curiously.

Av suddenly grew sad as the reality of the woman's words hit her.

"Uhm, you see, he's very busy with his business." She replied while trying to hide her sadness.

Observing the change in Av's mood, the old woman changed the topic.

"You seem so young though, dear. May I know your age?" She began picking at her salad.

"I'm 22 ma'am."

The woman waved her hand dismissively. "Oh please, do call me Annette. All these formalities make me feel older than I already am." She smiled.

"And please do call me Averine or Av for short." She offered her hand and Annette enthusiastically took it.

"22, you're fresh from college, I believe." Annette began digging into her vegetable salad once again.

"Yup, I graduated BS Pharmacy in Yale and just recently passed the board exam ." Av replied after finishing her plate full of calamari.

"Impressive. You're going to open your own pharmacy then?" Annette looked at her straight in the eye and Av noticed for the first time that her eyes were gray. Something about those gray eyes triggered a sense of familiarity in her. However, she couldn't remember where or when she first saw them.

She immediately dismissed the thought and drank water instead.

"Probably not since my mom alredy owns a hospital and since I'm an only child, I'll take over. Honestly, I wanted to proceed to medicine but my parents thought that it was just a waste of time. Instead of rotting in school, they said I should use the time to learn how to manage our business." Once the words came out of her mouth, she instantly regretted saying them. At the same time, she was amazed that she was able to share something so personal to a person she only met less than an hour ago. Even Railley did not know the reason for her drawback from proceeding to medicine.

To Av's surprise, Annette just laughed.

"I see you slipped. It's okay, dear. Sometimes we have to say something in order to lessen the burden in our chest." She patted Av's hand.

How come she was able to read my mind? She must be some kind of witch, Av thought.

"Tell me more about it. By the way that you bite your lip, I can tell that you are battling whether to continue talking to me or not. I can't blame you since I'm still a complete stranger to you, but maybe next time it will be less awkward." Annette slowly got up and handed Av a card.

"Don't hesitate to call me anytime you need someone to talk to."

Av hesitated at first but took the card eventually. She did not see any harm in making a new friend especially when it was a wise and kind hearted old soul.

"See you around, my dear Averine."

"It was nice meeting you, Annette. Hope to see you around too."

With that, Annette walked away.

When she was finally out of sight, Av looked at the card and examined it. Annette Josephine Feldman, it said, and her contact number was written on it also.

Feldman. Again, Av felt like she have heard the name before but couldn't remember when and where she heard it.

She decided to hang around for a while until Railley calls her. She went to the beach and stayed there until the sun was already starting to set. Keys in hand, she headed back to their cottage.

The door was still locked, so she assumed that Railley wasn't there yet. However, she was surprised to find him sitting half naked on the bed.

"Hey babe. Where have you been? I've been looking for you." He got up and walked towards her.