Sunbreaks is the poignant story of a man's search for a new and fulfilling life after tragedy throws him into a tailspin.
SUNBREAKS
By GREG MESSELTrafford Publishing
Copyright © 2009 Greg Messel
All right reserved.ISBN: 978-1-4269-1509-3Chapter One
LOVE AND COFFEE
The first time I remember seeing her was on a rainy, dark morning in January of 2004.
When my son from San Francisco visits me, he always says that Portland smells like coffee and everyone wears black and gray. It was on one of those black and gray mornings that Erika made her first appearance. It was raining steadily when she entered the coffee shop, wearing a tan raincoat. The hood was pulled over her head, obscuring most of her face as she entered. She got in line to get her coffee and tried to shake off her umbrella while holding onto her large purse. I took note of her entrance but became very interested in watching her when she pulled back her hood, revealing her beautiful face.
She gave everyone she encountered a kind smile and seemed to be a very warm presence. I wondered if this was the first time she had stopped by this coffee shop in the morning. I would have surely noticed her, even in my semi-alert state early in the morning, as I ingested my first caffeine jolt.
Erika was a tall, slender woman with large light-blue eyes. Her face was surrounded by long, thick black hair, which hangs below her shoulders. Her hair formed a perfect frame for her face. I guessed she was about five foot nine or ten, and I pegged her age at somewhere in her thirties.
She was a beautiful woman, but what made her extra attractive was the way her face lit up when she talked. As she talked, her face was very animated and her eyes twinkled. It was a stunning combination. I found that I could not take my eyes off her from the first time I saw her. It wasn't just that she was a beautiful woman ... there was something else drawing me to her that I couldn't quantify.
I was sitting by the window in the Starbucks across the street from the office building where I worked. I was half-reading my morning paper and half-watching the scene outside the window as people rushed to get out of the rain and make it to work on time.
It is a habit I had developed each morning recently. I couldn't stand to spend the rainy, dark winter mornings alone in my house as I prepared to go to work. I headed into downtown Portland, where I worked on Sixth Avenue, each morning about 6:15 am, sometimes earlier. Since my wife's sudden death a couple of years ago at the hands of a drunk driver, I couldn't sleep very well anymore. I no longer enjoyed being in my house alone. Whenever I got up, I generally took my morning shower and headed out regardless of the time.
I found the coffee shop on the corner of the block by my office was ideal. It was an all-glass cube with windows from the roof line to the sidewalk. There were tables and chairs and even overstuffed chairs positioned near the large windows. I found comfort in sitting there, drinking my morning coffee and easing into the day. It was entertaining to have a front-row seat to the morning street scene as I watched humanity pass by the windows. I always felt happy when I was downtown. Unfortunately, I lived in the suburbs.
After getting her coffee and a muffin, she sat across the room from me on the opposite wall. I felt a little guilty as I continued to watch her. I couldn't stop looking at her. I noticed what long, graceful fingers she had as she delicately tore off small pieces of her muffin. I tried not to stare, but she was by far the most interesting thing in this coffee shop.
A few minutes later this beautiful, tall woman began to gather her belongings and head out the door. I got caught looking and she flashed a brief smile at me as she exited the coffee shop and walked back into the rain. I would think that she was used to being noticed. My office was a left turn out of the coffee shop door. She turned right and headed down Sixth Avenue.
I took note of her entry each time she came into Starbucks. Some mornings she came, and sometimes she didn't come in while I was there. I thought she was a pretty woman, one of many attractive women who can be observed downtown each day. But I found myself being disappointed on mornings when she didn't make an appearance.
There are many, many people you see in your work environment each day. They are familiar faces but you never know their names. You see them on the elevator and recognize them as someone who works in your building. You see them on the bus riding to work. You see them at the lunch-spots downtown or at coffee shops. This woman was becoming one of those familiar faces, and I would likely never know her name or her story.
This morning ritual continued for the first few weeks of January, with little variation to the seemingly scripted series of events that occurred in the confines of the coffee shop. Then an unusual set of circumstances broke this routine. They seemed to be random events that would normally never happen. A few minutes difference either way, then the chain of events would have had a different outcome. The timing had to be perfect, or Erika and I would never have interacted. It was good luck for me. It was a turn of events that would alter my outlook on life after all that had gone on in the last two years for me. Was it just random? Some would say, fate was taking a hand in our destinies. I don't know what it was, but it was extremely coincidental.
One morning late in January, I was finally making a long-delayed trip to the dentist for a cleaning and check-up. I scheduled it for the first thing in the morning. My dentist's office was near my house. I would go there first and then drive into the city. It was a very rainy, blustery morning, and we were in the midst of an unusually strong storm. The day was the kind of windy, rainy day where you have to battle with your umbrella as the gusts tried to turn it inside out.
It did not occur to me that by getting to downtown around 9:30, all of the usual parking spaces and lots would be full. I had never encountered this problem because I always came so early. All of the lots around my office building had "Lot Full" signs blocking the driveways. I was beginning to get frustrated and wondered where I would end up parking. I finally found a parking lot a couple of blocks off Broadway. It was not an enclosed lot but wide open to the pounding rain. I was in for a wet walk of about five blocks to my office.
As I pulled into the lot, I noticed a woman struggling to get a large box out of the back of her car. She was completely covered by her raincoat and hood. The woman was also struggling to hold her umbrella over her head. I was certain it was a woman since there was a beautiful, slim pair of legs and red high heels below the raincoat. She looked like she needed help.
As I exited my car I couldn't quite get there fast enough to help her. Before I could help, she dropped her large purse, spilling its contents out onto the rainy pavement. I now ran quickly to assist her. I extended my umbrella over her head and said, "Let me help."
She lifted her head and when I could see inside the hood of the raincoat, my eyes met two large blue eyes and the beautiful face of the woman from the coffee shop. My face must have registered surprise.
"What a nightmare morning," she said.
I suggested that I take the box and that she concentrate on recovering the contents of her purse and holding the umbrella.
"Thank you so much," she said. "You are going to get wet."
"I think it is probably too late for that. Let me help you get this hauled to your destination."
"Oh, no ...," she started to say.
I interrupted and said, "I work over on Sixth Avenue, where are you going? Let's just get out of this rain."
She said, "I work on Sixth Avenue also, just a few blocks over at the investment firm, on the third floor."
I said, "You take your purse and the umbrella, I will get the box while you lead the way."
"Thanks so much," she said.
We were walking silently, trying to manage our bundles without getting even wetter than we were already. I finally asked a question, and of course I already knew the answer: "I think I see you in the coffee shop on some mornings. Do you go to the Starbucks on Sixth Avenue?"
I was hoping she wouldn't say, "Oh, yeah, you are that kind of creepy guy who is always staring at me."
Instead she said, "Oh, yes, that is where I have seen you. I thought you looked familiar."
"How did you get caught in all of this?"
"I usually come before 7 and never have any trouble finding parking, but today was a total nightmare," she said. "I had to go pick this stuff up at the copying center for a presentation later today. I ended up parking in that lot a few blocks away and then discovered I couldn't get it all hauled to my building. I guess I pictured pulling into the covered lot by my building and then getting a hand-truck or something to haul it to my office. That plan didn't work."
"I am never here this late either and got caught with the parking problem too. I went to the dentist this morning before I came," I said.
"Wow, the dentist and now this," the woman said. "Your day is off to a great start."
Then she added, "Turn here," as she pointed to the walkway of her building. "You don't have to do this ..."
"We are almost there ... I assume," I said.
"Yes, we are. Let me grab the elevator."
I entered the office behind her. It was a nondescript series of cubicles like most of the other offices downtown. She had a window seat facing my office building. I realized my hair was dripping on to the box.
"Just set it here. Perfect. You are so kind. You poor man, let me get some paper towels to dry you off." She scurried off towards the women's bathroom and quickly returned with a fist full of paper towels. "I am so sorry, and it was so, so nice of you to rescue me. It was a dumb thing I was trying to do."
I noticed her nameplate on the cubicle, which read "Erika Stevens."
"Really, it was no big deal, glad I could help. You must be Erika," I said, pointing to her nameplate.
"Yes, and I owe you a coffee, at least, when I see you some morning," Erika said.
"I am Tom Walker, and it is very nice to meet you, Erika. It was my pleasure to help."
"Where do you work?" she asked.
"Right there," I said, pointing out her window. "The thirteenth floor."
"I love that building," Erika said. "Wow, the thirteenth floor; does it bring you bad luck?"
"There is only so much I can blame on my location in the building. The rest of my problems are probably self-inflicted," I said, attempting to make a joke.
She laughed and thanked me again.
I said, "I guess I better get going. Good luck on the presentation today."
"Thanks again," she said. "I definitely owe you a favor."
With that, I walked out of the building, trying to readjust my wet coat and hair. I thought I must have looked pretty bad. She certainly didn't. Erika. Nice name. She was even more stunning up close and personal. As I walked down Sixth Avenue with the rain pounding on my umbrella, I mused about the strange turn of events. I was amazed to find the "coffee shop woman" under the raincoat hood in our chance encounter.
I was now curious as to what would happen the next morning in the coffee shop. It was kind of a silly thing. I wanted to arrive early to the coffee shop. I didn't know what I expected to happen or what coming early would do. Maybe it was the chance to have some interaction with someone new and interesting. That had not happened for a really long time. I am not sure I even wanted it to happen. I might get to talk with Erika and see how the rest of her day went. Then, it would probably be the end of "our moment."
I sat on the usual side of the coffee shop the next morning but moved one table closer to the door. Around 7 am, Erika came through the door. She smiled when we made eye contact.
"Hi," she said. "Have you had your coffee yet?"
"I will have one of whatever you are having," I said as a way of short-circuiting the extensive list of options. I had already been there for half an hour and had enough caffeine to keep me bouncing off the walls all day. She placed the order and then came to the table.
"Please join me," I said gesturing towards a chair. "How did the rest of yesterday go, Erika?"
"Pretty well ... Tom, right?" I nodded. Then she added, "Thanks to you."
"You are very kind," I said, "but I think helping you with a big box in the rainstorm is the least I could do."
"Well, you saved my day and I really appreciate it. Did you get dried out okay?"
"Oh, yeah, I have lived in Oregon long enough that I will not rust," I said. "Go ahead and sit down and I will pick up our order. Did your presentation go well?"
"Yes, it did. I did it with two other people but I was the one who was compiling it. I was getting it put together over the weekend. I decided to do the materials at the copying place in the condo building so I could run back and forth with changes. That was a convenient plan until I had to haul the stuff to the office in the rain yesterday."
"Oh, so that is what happened," I said as I brought our coffee to the table, with a muffin for Erika. "Where is your building?"
"I have a condo over in the Pearl District, and there is a Kinko's on the ground floor."
"Now I am really impressed that you have a condo there," I said. "I have always wanted to live over there. I love that neighborhood. I run at lunchtime and I always run through that area just because I like it so much."
"Really? You probably run by my building. It is the one on Eleventh Street by the Jameson Square Plaza fountain. Do you know it?"
"Oh, yeah, I know the area. I love the plaza, and there are so many great galleries and restaurants."
Erika said, "So you run each day?"
"Yeah, I have a group of buddies that I run with to try to stay in shape and prevent further deterioration," I said.
She laughed and said, "Good for you. I need to do something and quit being such a slacker."
Right, I thought, you really need to do something about your slovenly appearance. "It is a nice break in the day," I said, "and it gets you outside and reduces stress too."
"I presume you don't live downtown," Erika said.
"No, I live in Beaverton but would like to be downtown. I am a downtown kind of person."
"So you're a commuter," Erika said. "Are you married and have kids in the suburbs?"
"No, I am not married. My wife died a couple of years ago and my two children are both adults living other places."
"I am sorry about your wife. I guess I was being snoopy."
"No problem. Thank you. What about you?" I asked.
"No, I am single," Erika simply said.
"How is that possible?"
"I was divorced a couple of years ago, and I have spent the last two years working on my MBA," she said. "It seemed like a good time in my life to take the plunge and get it done."
"Sorry, that was a stupid question. It was none of my business. My social skills are a little rusty, I think," I said.
"Not at all. How did you lose your wife?" Erika asked, with a concerned look on her face.
"In a car accident; she was hit by a drunk driver. She was a real estate agent and on the way to an appointment when this guy ran a red light and hit her."
"Oh, my gosh, Tom, I am so, so sorry. That is terrible."
"Yeah, it was quite a shock. So I have been getting used to a new life as a single person. That is something I never anticipated."
"I can relate to that," she said. "It was very disappointing that my marriage didn't work out, and I wasn't expecting to be single either. I guess I thought I would live happily ever after or something ..."
It was mesmerizing to talk to her at close range. When she turned her beautiful blue eyes on me, it was impossible to not be fascinated by her every word.
"Life does take some unexpected turns for sure. I am sorry things didn't work out for you, Erika."
She looked at her watch and said, "Yikes, I better go."
"Thanks for the coffee and the conversation. It was a pleasure to meet you," I said.
"Thanks again for being my hero and rescuing me. I will see you again, I am sure."
"Join me for morning coffee and conversation any time. I enjoyed talking with you."
"Have a good day," Erika said, and she was out the door.
Erika definitely brightened a room when she entered, and she certainly brightened my day.
The next morning, I was at my station in the coffee shop at my usual time, but there was no Erika that day. I thought it was odd that I was suddenly so enamored with her and looked forward to seeing her. I don't know what I expected would happen. I tried to put her out of my mind and thought my close encounter with Erika was probably over.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from SUNBREAKSby GREG MESSEL Copyright © 2009 by Greg Messel. Excerpted by permission.
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