Chapter Three

Tuesday, July 26, 2020 at 6:00am

Destiny went for a walk around the neighborhood. Somehow she wound up at Fairview Park. The park covered a wide area that could fit about three football fields. The flower hedges along the outer rim made the park look welcoming and inviting. There was a large pond in the middle of the park, which used to be the home to countless ducks, geese, and swans - was now empty and abandoned. There were plenty of benches for people to sit and jogging tracks located throughout the park, but there was no one in sight. The small playground on the west side of the park, complete with a swing set and jungle gym, sat quietly untouched. The attractive park that had been meant for families and children was completely deserted now. It had become the place to sell drugs and conduct other illicit affairs.

Destiny sat down on one of the benches located under a huge tree. She gazed out over the pond, the murky green water was infested with mosquitoes and dragonflies. There were giant lilypads stretching across the surface of the water. Among them were bits and pieces of trash floating throughout.

In the distance she saw a man jogging along one of the trails. Who jogs at this park, Destiny thought. He was keeping a steady pace and appeared focused. He had on a blue basketball shorts and a gray tank top. He was wearing headphones. As he came closer she could see his lips were moving as if he were singing along to a song.

As the man ran down the pathway, he made his way towards Destiny. He glanced up at her before he passed by the bench where she was sitting. Suddenly he stopped and took out his earphones.

“Hey, it’s you.” He said. It was the man from the diner who had given the two hundred dollars. She hardly recognized him without the dorky suit and glasses.

“Hey.”

“What happened to your head? You okay?” Destiny remembered the gash on her head.

“Yeah, I’m fine. It’s nothing.”

“Look, about the other day, I wanted to apologize again for…” He was rubbing his head.

“That’s really not necessary.” Destiny said.

“Really, if I would have known that you were so sensitive, I wouldn’t have-”

“Sensitive?”

“You know what I mean...”

“No, I don’t. Why don’t you explain it to me?”

“Look, can we just forget I said anything?” Destiny looked at the young man standing in front of her. She hadn’t noticed how tall he was.

“Okay.” She agreed.

“Why don’t we start over. I’m Edwin...Richards.” He said. “I’d ask your name but in the interest of full disclosure I’ll admit that I noticed your name tag before. What does the Z stand for?”

“Zoedana.” Destiny said. She hesitated on whether or not she should explain that Zoedana was not her given name. It had been the name she made up for herself back when she first started selling marijuana. Another one of Nick’s rules for anonymity was to give yourself a street name. Destiny liked the idea because giving herself a new name gave her the chance to be whoever she wanted to be rather than what others expected her to be. After weeks of searching high and low for the perfect name, she and Nick came up with Zoedana. It meant “knowledgeable about life.” Nick always told her how it suited her because she read a lot and knew countless random facts about nearly every subject imaginable.

“It’s nice to meet you.” Edwin said. He walked over to her and put his hand out. She looked at it. What a nerd, she thought.

“That’s a very...unique name.” He didn’t seem phased by Destiny’s coolness. He added, “I like it. You must have some pretty interesting parents.” Destiny said nothing, only looked at him blankly. “Well it was nice seeing you. Take care.”

“Wait.” Destiny said. “I’m actually glad I ran into you. I need to give you your money.” Destiny took the two hundred dollars out of her tote bag.

“What money?” He asked.

“The two-hundred dollar tip you left me the other day.” She held out the money for him to take it.

“Oh that. You’ve just been carrying that around?”

“Yeah. I thought I might run into you again at the diner. Isn’t that a lot of money to leave a waitress for a tip? I mean what are you, some type of millionaire or something?”

“No, nothing like that.” Edwin chuckled. His face turned slightly pink.

“Look, I’m no charity case. It was a nice gesture and all but just take the money back.”

“I can’t do that.” He said.

“Why not?”

“Because of me, you lost a day’s worth of pay. So I owed you that money for interfering with your life when I had no right to. So it is my responsibility as a man to pay you back. If I were to take that money back I would forgo all my integrity.” Was this nutjob for real, she thought.

“But...I was so mean to you. Look really, I don’t deserve-” Destiny objected.

“How about this. You can make it up to me by letting me take you to dinner tomorrow night.” Edwin suggested.

“Dinner?”

“Yes, dinner.” He said.

“I’m not sure if that’s such a good idea...” Destiny objected.

“Coffee, then? Or hibiscus tea with lemon and honey, in your case.” Edwin teased.

“Look, I already told you...I’m not interested. You really aren’t my type.”

“And who said you’re my type?” Edwin retorted. “You’re the one feeling guilty about being rude to me. I was just giving you a chance to make it up to me.”

“Is that right?” She was slightly amused.

“Yeah.”

Destiny laughed. This guy had some gaul, she’d give him that.

“...okay.” She agreed. His smile beamed brightly from ear to ear. It was the first time she noticed his dimples.

“There’s a great little coffee shop about six blocks from here. Care to walk?” As the two strolled through the park, engaged in conversation, Destiny noticed blue and red lights flashing out of the corner of her eye. To their right, off in the distance, were a few police cars and several uniforms standing around. There was caution tape stretched around a small area with spectators surrounding its perimeter.

“Wonder what happened?” Edwin said aloud. Probably another drug deal gone bad. Destiny thought. The two continued on their way to the coffee shop.

---

Back in the heart of downtown Brookside. The tiny coffee shop was huddled in between two huge city buildings. The patio was occupied by at least half a dozen customers. The green awning shielding them from the hot morning sun. Unlike the outside, the interior of the coffee shop was cool and clean, with bright walls and soft music playing the background. The customers sat on their laptops and tablets, sipping their customized morning beverages, blissfully unaware of their surroundings.

Destiny and Edwin stood patiently in line as the pretentious customers ahead of them ordered their half-caf, double whip, no foam, cinnamon dusted lattes, non-fat cappuccinos, and caramel macchiatos. To Destiny, it was like they were speaking a foreign language.

“Hello. What can I get for you?” The petite blonde behind the counter said. She looked as if she could be about twelve years old.

“Good morning, miss.” Edwin said. “How are you doing on this lovely day?”

The girl smiled politely and laughed nervously.

“I’m good. And yourself.”

“Ah, can’t complain. It’s a beautiful day. The sun in shining. And I have this beautiful woman right here next to me. Life is good.” Edwin exclaimed. Was he for real? What a nerd.

“She will have a medium hibiscus tea with honey and lemon. And I’ll take an extra-large dark roast coffee, please.” Destiny had never been out with someone like Edwin. She wasn’t sure if she appreciated him ordering for her.

“Did you want anything to eat?” Edwin asked.

“No, thank you.” She replied.

“And two blueberry muffins.”

“Okay, that will be $17.25.” The television was on loudly in the background.

“Early this morning, a young woman was found unconscious inside a hollow tree at Fairview Park. The woman who found her, Martha Gomez, says she and her daughter were playing in the park when she noticed something strange about one of the trees there.”

Destiny couldn’t believe it! Martha was on the t.v. “My daughter and I were hanging out in the park when when walked by this tree. My daughter says to me, ‘Mama look! I think there’s someone in-in that tree’. So I went and looked inside and there was woman. She looked like a sleeping angel. So I hurried up and called 911.”

The news woman continued, “Officials say the woman had no identification and doesn’t match the description from any of the missing persons’ reports in the last year. The woman’s injuries are fatal. Doctors say they are doing all they can. Next up, is your dog making you sick? More on this after the break.”

They were just at Fairview park! Why was Martha saying that when she knew Sammy doesn’t talk, Destiny thought.

“I guess that’s what the commotion was about.” Edwin remarked.

There was no where to sit inside so they opted to sit on the patio. Edwin pulled out a green metal chair for Destiny to take a seat. Most people hurriedly walked along the sidewalk past the coffee shop while some went inside. They were only a few blocks from Roxanne’s. Destiny wondered how Martha was doing.

“I got you a blueberry muffin just in case you changed your mind.” Edwin said. The three young women at an adjacent table were gawking shamelessly at Edwin. Consequently they looked disapprovingly at the fact the he was with Destiny. The two were quite a pair - clean cut, classically handsome, caramel-skinned Edwin sitting across the table from the off-beat rasta chick with long locks and piercings on her lip, nose, and brow.

“Thanks.” Destiny said. “So, do you always order for other people?”

“Uh...not always.” He said.

“Some people might not appreciate it.”

“I’m sorry-”

“Why do you feel the need to speak for me? I mean, first at the diner with my manager and that customer. And now...here. You can’t even let me order for myself. What’s with you?” Destiny questioned.

“N-nothing. I guess me ordering for you was out of habit. I’m used to ordering for my grandma because most of the time she’s not lucid enough to do it herself. As for the diner, I’m sorry if I offended you but your manager was rude and needed to be told she can’t behave that way. And I saw the look on your face when that jerk in the diner touched you. I couldn’t just sit idly by and do nothing. He owed the respect of an apology. So I told him I was your boyfriend and if I ever heard that he and touched you again I put my foot in his behind.”

“I can take care of myself. I don’t need you to defend me or try to fight my battles. You don’t even know me.”

“You’re right. I don’t know you. But the more I see and talk to you, the more I start to get a better understanding of the person you are. The more I see, the more I like.”

“What do you see?”

“I see a beautiful woman who has a lot of difficulties in life. She’s strong because she has to be. I see the spirit of a fighter in you. And it intrigues me. Because I would like to think that I am the same way.” Edwin was gazing intently at her, his big green eyes were soft and inviting. He seemed genuine. She was moved by his speech but did her best not to show it.

There was an awkward silence before he asked, “so what you do you see when you look at me?”

Before she could answer, a phone sounded. Edwin pulled his cell out of his pocket. Rather than answer it, he turned the sound off and put in back in his pocket.

“Sorry about that.” He said. “That was my TA.”

“TA? What’s that?”

“Teaching assistant. Probably had a question about our class tonight.”

“Class? But it’s summer.”

“Yeah, I know. I’m giving a six-week seminar over at the University. I just started working as an Assistant Professor there last month. It’s part of my PhD program.” He said.

“What do you teach?”

“Ancient studies with emphasis on languages, literature, and mythology.”

“I guess I wasn’t completely wrong about you.”

“What’s that?” He said.

“You are a nerd.” Destiny retorted. To her surprise, Edwin laughed.

“I guess you could say that.”

“You should come check out my class sometime. This week we are discussing the history of ancient language and dialects from 4000-2000 B.C.E.”

“Sounds fascinating.” She said sarcastically.

“You might enjoy it.” He said.

“Thanks but I’ll pass.”

“Okay, okay.” He said. “So what do you do when you’re not at the diner yelling at customers?” He joked. “You in school?”

“Yes.” Destiny lied. She didn’t want to tell this smart, sophisticated professor that she had dropped out of high school and was working two dead-end jobs to try and send herself to college. She wasn’t quite ready to share her life story with this man. “If I’m not at the diner then I’m usually at the public library.” She added before he could ask her any more questions about it.

“That beat up old place? I’m surprised they didn’t close it down yet. You like to study there?”

“Yeah, sure. All the time.” Destiny wasn’t sure why she felt the need to lie to him. “It’s not so bad. I used to go there all the time as a kid. The walls, the books, the smells...there is something classically familiar about it. It’s almost...ancient. One of my favorite places.” Destiny was thinking back on all the times she had spent tucked away in one of the corners of the old library huddled up with a good book. Her mind turned to the secret tunnel and the mysterious door.

“So then I guess that means I was right about you.” Edwin interrupted her daydream.

“What about?”

“You are intriguing.” There was an awkward silence as Edwin waited for Destiny to respond. The two stared at each other for what felt like eternity. They surroundings began to blur. Destiny forgot there were people around - it felt like it was just the two of them in the entire world. She soon snapped back to reality and guiltily looked away.

“Anyway, I should be going.” She said. With that, Destiny got up and headed for the door.

“Wait, can I see you again?” he called out.

“Depends.” She said and walked away.