Away

Waking

"Oh my God, Alex? Are you okay?"

I open my eyes and look around.

I'm slumped against the back of a diner seat.

People are surrounding me. Two waitresses. Two strangers. And Kate.

What just happened?

"You... You blacked out, I think. What happened there?" A waitress replies, answering my thoughts.

I know exactly what happened.

The memories became too much.

"I don't know." I lie

My head is hurting.

It's like I built a dam to block everything out. But now the dam is broken. And everything is crashing back into me. Brutal, violent waves.

I feel nauseous.

The other waitress hands me a mug. It's full of cold water.

"Here, if you're feeling faint," She smiles. Her American accent dragging out the 'ee's.

I thank her and take the mug. I sip slowly.

I realise Kate is next to me.

And her hand is on my arm.

I go to flinch away but I can't. Her hand is so warm. It's a trigger like everything else about Kate is.

But it's comforting.

Seeing I'm okay now, the stranger and the waitresses move away. Kate stays next to me.

"Do you black out a lot?" She asks.

I shake my head.

"It could be..." Kate's eyes search the ceiling. "I don't know. Jet lag? Have you travelled before?"

"Never out of England." I say. I agree with her. Jet lag.

Definitely jet lag.

"That'd make sense." Kate smiles at me. It makes me feel... Cared about.

She slides back across to opposite me.

"Do you want me to walk you back to the hotel?"

I shake my head again. "I'll be okay."

"Okay."

I shut my eyes tight as if it would block out all of the mental images I'm getting. After a few seconds I open them again.

Seeing Kate is still quite painful.

But my vision is clearer now.

I will be okay.

I notice the plates, which were mostly empty before I blacked out, have been cleared away. How long had I been out for?

And there's a receipt on the table.

"Hey, Kate... How much was the breakfast?" I fumble around in my pocket. I had grabbed a few notes and shoved them in my new jeans. Before I left the hotel.

She rolls her eyes and waves me away with a flick of her hand. "Pfft, forget it, dude."

"No, really, I can't-"

"Honestly, Alex, it's fine! I'm taking care of you today. Okay? Because you blacked out and stuff."

"That has nothing to do with paying for breakfast... And... This is your holiday... I can't intrude like..." I push a ten dollar bill across the tabletop.

She pushes it back. "Nope. I will not hear of it. Now, if you're up for it do you want to go for a walk?"

I push my hair back from my forehead. Blink hard.

I'm okay.

I'm fine.

I can do this.

I smile.

"So where would you like to go? Do you know any nice places?" Kate leans forward. Then hastily adds: "If possible, somewhere a bit tranquil in this crazy place. You might still have a bad head."

I think back to yesterday.

"I... I know a beautiful place... It's called-"

Kate's hand flies up. "Nope! Surprise me!" She giggles and jumps up. I slowly stand on legs that aren't shaking so much anymore.

And then I walk out of the diner... Onto the streets of New York City.

With a girl I don't know, who looks like the girl who ruined my life back in England.