Memories from a Different Future: Jump When Ready, Book 2 (12 page)

Wedding Plans

Ian managed to snag a parking space a block away from the
Olympic, where he supposed Peter and Brent were probably already waiting for
him. He’d spent a little longer than he’d meant to riding his bike around the
park at Green Lake. Partly, because it was such a nice day. Unexpected at this
time of year, when it was almost always overcast if not raining or snowing. Not
today, though, which had turned out to be sunny and relatively warm—in the
upper forties—which had brought a lot of people to the park.

The other reason Ian had lingered there longer than
expected was his confusion over that weird moment with his mother in the
kitchen. What the hell had that been about, exactly? One minute she’d been
absorbed in something online—more than likely one of her projects—and the next
she’d suddenly felt compelled to urge him to avoid going to the mall. Ian had
never once thought of his mother as a worrier. In fact, despite some aspects of
her personality that could be described as a bit quirky—for example, her
refusal to learn how to drive—neurosis just wasn’t part of her deal. Just the
opposite, in that she was normally easy going almost to a fault. The kind of
person who took one day at a time, typically greeting each day as if it could
only bring with it good things.

There had been one other reason he’d kept cycling longer
than intended, Ian realized just now as he got out of the car. The strange
feeling that he wasn’t alone. That he hadn’t been before either. His mind shot
back now to that moment this morning before he’d gone downstairs. He’d found
himself thinking about Professor Russell’s brother again, hadn’t he? That kid,
Henry. He’d totally forgotten until now. And some other name had come to mind
totally out of nowhere, almost as if someone had whispered it in his ear.
Curtis. Even now, Ian shook his head. Curtis. No idea. He didn’t know anyone by
that name and never had.

Ian crossed the street in a part of town that had once
held a reputation for poverty and crime. It hadn’t been that way while he’d
been growing up but that’s what his parents said. Evidently, twenty years ago
this had been a seedy neighborhood. Now it was trendy, full of sparkling new
restaurants and coffee shops like the Olympic. Inside, alternative music played
and baristas pulled shots for a crowd almost all younger than thirty. Ian
spotted Brent and Peter across the room where they’d managed to claim a table
by the window. A few minutes later, he joined them and stirred sugar into his
latte.

Brent regarded him, eyebrow raised. “How did the shopping
go? Can’t believe you braved going to the mall this time of year.”

Peter didn’t wait for Ian to answer. “Yeah, it totally
sucks. It took me like an hour to get out of the parking lot the other day. So
I could get my sister a present. And, I ended up buying a freaking gift card.”

Brent snorted a laugh, covering his mouth since he’d just
taken a sip of coffee. “Dude, sorry, but that’s hilarious. You could have
snagged one at the grocery store.”

“Whatever,” Peter said. “At least it will fit into my
luggage.”

Ian pulled his chair closer to the table. “I decided to
skip it. I went down to Green Lake instead.”

Brent reached out for a fist-bump. “Good move. It’s
really nice out there today.”

They took a minute to drink some coffee, sit back and
listen to music. Brent and Peter scanned the room, no doubt checking out some
of the women there. It wasn’t like Ian didn’t look too, just not in the same
way he once had. A thought crossed his mind—a sudden, unexpected thought. He
was going to miss them, these friends he’d come to love. As soon as the thought
crossed his mind, Ian didn’t know what to do with it. Where had it even come
from?

“So, listen.” Brent set his mug down on the table.
“There’s a party going on tonight that promises to be one for the history
books. I do realize you swore us off until after the holidays but you’re here
now. What do you think?”

Ian shook his head without even considering the
invitation. “Yeah, I don’t think so. I should stay at home. I just thought I’d
hang with you guys for a while first.”

“Why?” Brent cracked a smile. “I thought you were sick of
us.”

Ian grinned back at him. “I totally am. But, you know,
there’s something I’ve been thinking about and I thought I’d run it past you.”

Peter leaned in and set his elbows on the table. “You
have news?”

“Yeah, maybe,” Ian said, even though he hadn’t planned on
saying anything. In fact, he hadn’t planned on saying anything for at least
another year or two. “I’ve been knocking around the idea of asking Lisa if she
wants to get married.”

Brent burst out laughing. Not derisively—more, just
surprised. “Seriously? I mean, that’s awesome. You guys are great together.”

“Agreed,” Peter said. “I can totally see you guys getting
married someday.”

“Right, exactly,” Brent said. “Someday, like five years
from now when you’ve both finished school and maybe graduate school. Don’t get
me wrong, I’m totally supportive, but are you ready for a move like this?”

Ian looked both of them in the eye. “Yeah, I think so.”

But the fact was, he hadn’t expected to say what he’d
just said. Why did he feel like suddenly he had to fit as much in as possible?
Almost as if he was running out of time. Again, the thought made no sense but
Ian forced a smile. “I’m not talking about getting married immediately or
anything like that. I just meant asking her so we could start to plan.”

“Good idea,” Peter said. “Start by planning to pay off
like ten years of student loans and then maybe get married.”

“Bingo,” Brent said. “But, sure, why not start setting
things up. I can totally see you two squeezing out a few offspring life forms
in the future.”

Ian laughed. “Yeah. Something like that.”

“Something exactly like that,” Brent said. “You’ll be
changing diapers before you know it. Just don’t rush things. You have plenty of
time.”

Was it a coincidence that Brent said exactly what he
needed to hear? Ian wasn’t sure why he’d need to hear that but it felt good,
nonetheless. He sighed and settled back into his chair. “So, what’ s going on
with you guys?”

~~~

An hour later, Ian left the Olympic and walked toward his
car. Amazingly for this time of year, it still remained a beautiful day. A warm
breeze blew past and the sun was now high in the sky, the sidewalks crowded as
people working nearby headed out for lunch. Ian was almost to his car when he
decided to keep walking. Another block or two and he’d be able to see Puget
Sound. He’d always loved gazing out at that shimmering expanse of water,
watching the ferries making their way out to the islands. One of his earliest
memories was of his father holding him up so he could get a better look at that
view.

He found a spot overlooking the water and leaned on the
rail as the wind rippled through his hair. Sure enough, within seconds a ferry
horn blasted against the sky and the boat set off while another spread its wake
across the sound in approach. Such an amazing city. Ian had never once wanted
to live elsewhere. Visit? Definitely. But Seattle was home.

Lisa should be with me, Ian thought. Right here, right
now. He imagined her next to him, squinting out at the water, her long dark
hair blowing in the wind like a silky flag he’d get to run his fingers through
later. Her eyes sparkling and crinkling up at the corners. Her mouth parting to
smile, then later parting to kiss. He called her, holding his flexlet up for
when she answered, knowing she would.

“Where are you?” she said, seconds later.

Ian pressed the sensor on the back so he’d appear in a
frame sharing the view of the water. He smiled and said, “Just downtown. Met up
with Brent and Peter for coffee. Beautiful day here. How’s it going there?”

Lisa smiled back at him. “Like forty-below. Okay, I’m
exaggerating. But maybe twenty degrees and there has to be at least two feet of
snow.”

“Sounds nice,” Ian said. “Christmassy.”

“Nice from a distance,” Lisa said. “No, I don’t mean
that. It really is nice, but I guess my blood has thinned out from living in
the Northwest. Guess I’m not much of a high altitude person these days.”

“A couple more weeks and you’ll be back again.”

“Works for me,” Lisa said. “How’s your family doing?”

Ian almost told her about that morning but decided not
to. Just a strange moment, already forgotten, he felt sure. “They’re good.
We’ve been having fun. So, I’ve been kind of thinking about stuff.”

Lisa raised her eyebrows. “What kind of stuff?”

“I don’t know. Just, like, you and me.”

She smiled. “Glad to hear that.”

“I miss having you here.”

“I miss having you here too. Wait. Never mind. You know
what I mean.” She laughed at her own screw-up. “I miss you too. Did you have
something on your mind? You look kind of…I don’t know…thoughtful. Everything
okay?”

Ian didn’t realize he looked distracted and kind of
wished he’d kept it voice-only. “Yeah, I’m good. Just missing you, that’s all.”

Lisa studied his eyes. “Are you sure?”

“Sure that I miss you?” Ian forced a smile when he hadn’t
imagined any need to force it before. “Definitely. How’s your gang doing? Did
your sister get there okay?”

“Yeah, she came in yesterday. And guess what?”

Ian shook his head. “What’s going on?” But somehow he
knew. He could feel it.

Lisa drew her lens closer, so close that all Ian could
see was the excitement in her eyes. “She got
engaged
! She’s getting
married next summer!”

“What? Seriously?”

“I know!”

“You’re talking about the guy she met at grad school,
right? The same guy she met like six months ago?”

Lisa pulled her flexlet farther back again. She looked up
for a moment as she thought. “Well, it’s been almost a year now. Ten months, I
think. Something like that. Anyway, she’s super-excited. We all are.”

“That’s really great,” Ian said. “Tell her
congratulations from me.”

“I will. Hang on, she’s right down the hall if you want
to—”

“I should probably go,” Ian said.

“Oh, okay. Are you sure?”

Ian clicked off the camera facing the water, leaving the
one showing him. “Yeah, it’s just that I told my parents I wouldn’t be gone all
that long. Holiday stuff and all.”

Lisa nodded. “Okay. Got it. Call me later?”

“Definitely,” Ian said. “I’ll call again later.”

~~~

Ian walked back toward his car,
the temperature starting to drop now, the skies clouding over. The extended
sunbreak would soon end. This too was fine with him. After all, he’d grown up
here—he had no issue with cloudy days. He thought about his conversation with
Lisa and how close he’d come to actually telling her what he’d been thinking
about. Maybe it was better that circumstances had prevented him from speaking
prematurely. Had he really shared that whole marriage idea with Brent and
Peter? Yes, he had. God. Ian couldn’t help smile, thinking about the shit
they’d give him later but Brent and Peter were right. Sure, someday definitely.
But it made no sense right now. Ian reminded himself of what Brent said. He had
plenty of time. Why did it feel so important to remind himself of that?

Despite this part of town being long ago gentrified, a
few remnants signaled that things here had once been less than prosperous. One
such vestige caught Ian’s eye now, an old apartment building that hadn’t been
renovated to match its surroundings. Ian knew he must have walked past it a
thousand times without even thinking about it but for some reason it stood out
for him today. He slowed his pace as he continued to stare at the drab stack of
apartments.

An image flashed into his mind for no reason Ian could
possibly imagine—a teenager standing on the roof as he stared out over the
city, his long red hair blowing in the wind. Just as soon again the image was
gone, as if noticing it within his mind had immediately forced the door to
close. But not before he heard a word go through his mind too. A name,
actually. Curtis. Why again that name? What the hell was going on?

As if to answer his question, Ian’s flexlet buzzed and he
withdrew it from his pocket, thinking something must have crossed Lisa’s mind.
Probably about her sister’s now upcoming wedding. He went to press the sensor,
then stood staring at the name on the screen. Julie Meyers. It took him a
moment. Right, Julie. Why would she possibly be calling him?

“Hi, how are you?” she said.

“Pretty good,” Ian said. “Just sort of kicking around
downtown today. Saw some friends. How are you doing?”

A moment passed before she said. “So, you’re not too far
away. Do you possibly have time to swing by? There’s something I wanted to talk
to you about.”

~~~

Julie sat across from him as she
seemed to be collecting herself to speak. Ian blew across the top of his mug,
wafting steam away, wondering if she always offered tea to those who came to
see her, suspecting she must. A ritual of hers, apparently, which he
appreciated. Her way of making uncomfortable people comfortable.

Finally, her eyes met his. “I wasn’t sure if I should
call you. But I did, obviously.”

Ian nodded, looking into her eyes and wondering what was
coming. He wanted to ask, “Can I trust you? Who are you and why are you in my
life?” But he didn’t ask any of those questions. Instead, he waited, still
trying to dispel the inexplicable image of that kid balanced on the edge of
that sad building, his red hair blowing in the wind. About to do what?

“Have you ever had a feeling about something?” Julie
said. “I know this might sound strange. But, you know, a feeling—like maybe
you’d be better off not doing something or going somewhere?”