Josh left for the studio early the next morning. He sang with the rehearsal tape David made for him, paying close attention to the songs he would work on today. This way, he’d be warmed up vocally and he and David could save time on getting acquainted with the material. The music was a bit loud and Josh was concentrating on the French lyrics, so he didn’t hear his cell phone ringing.
David and Josh worked very hard all morning; they didn’t even stop for breaks. Finally, at 1:00, they decided to grab some lunch. They were almost out the door when Josh’s phone rang. “You want to get that?” David asked. “No. I’ll check it later, I’m starving.”
Sabrina rolled her eyes in irritation. She’s been trying to get a hold of Josh all morning. She waited a bit and left a message as she walked into class. “Sabrina.” Leo called and waved her over to an empty seat beside him. “Hey, some friends and I are going out tonight. Would you like to come?” “I can’t, I already have plans. In her message, she asked Josh to call her tonight. She couldn’t flake out on him. Leo smiled. “All right, but you’re missing out.”
Hours later, after their study session, Leo tried once again. “Are you sure you can’t come with us tonight?” Sabrina smiled. “I’m sure, but I’ll take a rain check.” He handed her a slip of paper. “If you change your mind, call me.” Sabrina promised she would and Leo winked as he walked to his car.
Sabrina had just walked through her apartment door when the phone rang. “Hi baby.” “Josh, I’m so glad you called! I’ve been trying to call you.” “I know, are you all right?” “Fine. CJ an Chelsea are getting married!” “That’s great!” “Chelsea wants you to sing. She says she can’t get married otherwise, so CJ said to name your price.” “I’d love to sing for them. What’s the date?” “October 5th, the anniversary of their first date.” “I’ve got a meeting with Brian and the others in a few minutes. I’ll give them the date.” “You have a meeting now? I was hoping we could have dinner together.” “I’m sorry Bri…look, I’ve got to go, I’ll call you tomorrow.” Sabrina fumed for a full minute after she hung up with Josh. She reached in her bag for Leo’s number. He picked up on the first ring. “Leo, it’s Sabrina. My plans fell through. Would you like to have dinner and then meet up with your friends?” “I’d love to. Let’s do dinner at my place. The address is 1720 Madison. I’ll meet you outside.”
When Sabrina pulled up to 1720 Madison, she expected to see Leo standing in front of an apartment building or a house. She thought she was in the wrong place, but there was Leo, looking especially handsome in a white t-shirt and jeans. His hair was pulled back and he wore an apron around his narrow waist.
As Sabrina parked her car, she got a better look at the building. There was a large picture of a black man with his arms outstretched, offering loaves of bread. Next to it was a sign which read ‘St Benedict the Moor Soup Kitchen’. Leo met her at the door. “I know it’s not what you had in mind, but it’s a great place for a meal. I volunteer here sometimes.” “This is definitely a surprise, but I like it.” Leo’s smile was enchanting. “We’ll eat first, then serve dinner in half an hour.” He led her inside. “Hey everyone, this is Sabrina.” A priest with a sweet twinkle in his eye smiled. “May I now say the blessing Leonardo?” “Only if you never use my full name again, Father O’Malley’.
Dinner was short but Sabrina enjoyed watching Leo interact with everyone there. There was something about him that drew people to him; it drew her to him as well. Sabrina helped everyone clean up and Leo gave her a quick course on serving dinner to their clients. “Talk to them, ask them about their day. Treat them like you would an old friend. These people are like anyone else here, they’re just poor and homeless.” Sabrina found that he was right. Most of the people eating just wanted someone to talk to, someone who treated them with respect and kindness. The only thing she hadn’t counted on was the amount of small children who were there, many without their parents.
Once everyone had eaten, Sabrina helped with clean up. Then she and Leo headed to Gallagher’s Pub. The place was full of people drinking and dancing to the music of the Irish band playing onstage. Leo’s friends, Elton and Clement joined them. Elton was an attractive, tall black man who put Sabrina in mind of Taye Diggs. Finn looked like the typical skater boy, complete with baggy clothes. They talked, laughed and danced for hours.
Finally, Sabrina said her good-byes and grabbed her things to leave. Leo walked her to her car. “Thanks for a great night, Leo.” “Thanks for coming. You made my night.” He kissed her hand and helped her into her car. When Sabrina was out of sight, Leo went back in to his friends. “She’s really great, Leo.” Said Elton. Leo smiled. “Yeah, she really is.” “You like her. Damn, you really like her a lot.” Leo shrugged and drank his beer. “Not that it matters much.”
When Sabrina got home, there was a new message blinking on her machine. She
knew it was Josh and knew exactly what he would say. Something like ‘Bri,
I’m really sorry about before, I’ll make it up to you, I promise.
Call me when you get in.’ She pushed play and found she was exactly right.
Sabrina reached for the phone, then decided against it. There was another message
on her machine, this one from Leo. “Hey Sabrina, this is Leo. You left
your notebook at St. Ben’s, it must’ve fallen out of your bag somehow.
I’ll have it for you in class tomorrow. Sleep well and I’ll see
you tomorrow.” Sabrina sighed. There was something so beautiful about
his voice. She even loved the way he said her name; she hadn’t bothered
to tell him to call her ‘Bri’. Sabrina’s last thought before
going to sleep was that there was something very special about Leo.
