I’d known Shae for several years and she was one of my closest friends. Our friendship had began when she had started coming into my shop a few times a week. We were the same age and we occasionally hit the town, exploring new restaurants, seeing new movies or searching out the perfect second hand clothing store. She was a free spirit, much less conservative than I, but we complimented each other well and never failed to have a good time when we were together.
As I walked across the lobby of my lavish neighbor, the Four Season’s hotel, I immediately spotted Shae behind the long reservation desk, her back towards me, talking to an older man. I sat my bag down at my feet and stood at the counter waiting as she talked, her motions very animated, her voice rather loud. When she turned and saw me standing there she let out a stifled squeal and clapped excitedly.
“What on earth are you doing here?” she said, almost jumping up and down.
“Calm down girl” I said, laughing. “You’re going to hurt yourself”
“I can’t help it. You never come see me at work. This is exciting!! What’s up girl?” she asked, leaning across the wide desk.
“I...well....I need a favor” I said, suddenly feeling very self conscious.
“Anything, you know that” she said, suddenly serious. “As long as it isn’t a loan, cause you know compulsive shopping is a disease that effects not only my mind but my pocketbook as well”
I laughed a little and leaned onto the desk as well.
“There’s this....this guy” I finally blurted out.
I could see the excitement swelling in Shae and I honestly feared that she was going to scream. I clinched my teeth and stared at her wide eyed, silently pleading with her to not lose control.
“Okay, spill the beans girl. What’s the favor?” she finally said, having composed herself.
“Well, I know he’s staying here and I...I was hoping you could have something taken up to his room for me. I...I brought him a little something.” I said in a whisper.
Shae moved to behind her computer and stared at me, waiting. “Come on, you know I live for this kind of crap. Let’s do this.”
“Okay” I said, unsure of myself and the whole situation.
“Okay” she said back. She waited a few minutes as I stood there staring back at her. “Hon, you’ve got to give me his name before I can do anything.”
I lowered my eyes and sighed.
“India? Hello??” she said, obviously having fun with the scenario.
I looked up at her and shrugged my shoulders.
“His name” she said slowly. “Yoooou.....haaaaaave....toooo....tellllll....meeeee.....hiiiiis....naaaaame. Damn, I thought English was your first language”
“I don’t know his name.” I finally confessed quietly.
“What??” Shae said and then burst out laughing.
Her laughter at my expense crushed me and the hurt must have shown in my eyes as Shae stopped laughing and again leaned across the counter.
“You don’t know his name, Indy? I don’t get it.”
“He’s been in my shop twice” I said softly, trying to figure out how to explain to her. “There was this...I don’t know...like major spark, you know? There was this major chemistry going on between us. I can’t explain it.”
“You’re doing fine, babe. Go on” she said, putting her hand on mine.
“He said that he was staying here...that he’s in town on business. I never thought to ask his name and he paid with cash so....I don’t know....I feel like such an idiot.”
“Why do you feel like an idiot?” she asked.
I looked up at her and chuckled a little. “Look at me Shae. I’m here with a gift for a man who’s name I don’t even know. This just isn’t like me. I’ve never done anything like this before.”
“All the more reason to find out who this guy is then.” She said with a warm smile.
“I thought maybe you might have seen him, that maybe you’d know who he was or something.” I said, getting hopeful again, but still unsure as to whether what I was doing was completely insane or not. “He’s...God Shae...he’s the most beautiful man I’ve ever seen.”
“You’ve got it bad, girl” Shae teased. “What does he look like?”
“He’s tall and slender. Not skinny, but it’s kind of hard to tell because he’s always been wearing pretty baggy clothes. He’s got black, longish hair and a mustache and goatee. Oh yeah, he’s always been wearing this stocking cap.”
Shae stared at me, her eyes unblinking, her mouth hanging open a bit.
“And he has the most amazing green eyes I’ve ever seen in my life, Shae. Just amazing” I said wistfully.
She continued to stare at me, a slight smile slowly turning up the corners of her mouth.
“Earth to Shae, come in Shae” I finally said with a laugh.
“Kevin” she said. “His name is Kevin.”
“What? You know who I’m talking about?” I said, shocked.
“You really didn’t know his name. You don’t know who he is?” she said with a surprised laugh.
I shook my head, feeling even more like an idiot than before.
“Wait right here” she said, pointing at the desk. “Don’t go anywhere”
I watched as she sprinted across the lobby and into the hotel’s gift shop. She emerged less than a minute later and again sprinted across the lobby and back behind the desk, a magazine in her hand. She thumbed through it and then with a triumphant smile laid the magazine on the counter in front of me.
I looked at her with a puzzled smile and then looked down at the magazine. It was him, in a full page, brightly colored photograph, it was him. With trembling hands I picked up the magazine and looked at the cover. “Teen People”
“He’s been here for a couple of weeks. It’s been pretty wild, actually” Shae said while I stared at the cover. “There’s been girls in here everyday hoping to see him. I don’t know how many girls have come in with teddy bears and cookies and all sorts of weird stuff for him. It’s been insane.”
I looked up at her and then down to the bag at my feet. My heart sank.
“I’m going to go.” I said, defeated. “I’ve umm....I need to get the shop opened up”
“Wait. Indy, what about your gift?” she asked, not understanding why I was not as excited as she.
I picked up the bag and smiled sadly at Shae and shook my head.
“Hey” she said. “I didn’t mean that...just wait....this is different.” she said, trying to make amends, trying to make me understand.
I felt like a fool.
“Give me the gift” she said sternly.
“So that it can get lost in the sea of other gifts he’ll get today?” I asked harshly, my feelings hurting nearly as much as my pride.
“Yours is different, Indy. Remember ‘sparks and chemistry’?? What happened to that? Give me your gift and I’ll personally make sure he gets it” she said, reaching towards the bag.
I pulled it away and stood looking at her. I was torn. I didn’t want to be just another of his many admirers but at the same time I couldn’t deny the electricity I had felt with him. I remembered the twelve boxes of incense that he’d bought because they smelled like me. I remembered the sparkle in his eyes when he’d laughed.
With a deep sigh and a silent prayer I opened the bag and pushed my gift for Kevin, he finally had a name I thought to myself, across the counter to Shae. She looked at it and smiled warmly. She turned it around and nodded in approval.
“There’s no card, Indy” she said
“He’ll know who it’s from.” I said. I bent down and took a deep breath, drinking in the sweet fragrance of the small English lavender plant I’d spent all day Monday scouring New York for. “I hope.”
\ 5 \