Break Away

  People always hurried somewhere, cars rushed by, the red smeared lights of cars driving by to the next preplanned activity… Time didn’t stop for anything. And in the midst of it all, there was the look of a small child at a street musician as if the musician were some kind of wonder in the hubble-bubble of the city jungle. The street musician was clearly enjoying what he was doing. If only the musician turned to look at the entranced child, there would be magic. And if the child’s mother was not pulling the latter away, as she was obviously doing, maybe a magical moment would take place. Alas, either most grownups have forgotten how to appreciate the small moments in life, or the small wondrous moments get swallowed by the long list of daily chores. Then again, chores tend to take over as people become adults. Katie Spencer tore away from the large panoramic photograph and shouldered her way to the next photograph titles “A Moment in Time”. It depicted a couple huddling in a small phone booth during a rain storm. The photographer even managed to capture the raw attraction between them. Katie could almost feel the tension and excitement, the breaths of two souls striving to find the ‘us’.

  A woman standing next to Katie said, “I like this picture so much.”

  Katie smiled. “I love it, too. It portrays so many emotions. Have you seen the one at the beginning of the gallery where a mother is playing with her child in a green park and cars are rushing by?”

  “Yes, but I like this one better.”

  “I think they are both great.”

  The woman’s companion nodded in agreement. “The artist behind all these pictures is very talented.”

  “Katie, I’m glad you could make it,” said a male voice behind her.

  “Hey, Kurt, it’s great to see you. This is amazing.”

  “Yeah, Kevin has outdone himself this time.”

  “Speaking of the devil, where is he hiding himself?”

  “Backstage. Come on.”

  Kurt led her to a small room in the back of the gallery. The room was packed with a comfortable sofa, a glass coffee table laid with snacks, nuts and fruit, a table with coffee and tea and two chairs. A dark-haired man was sitting in a hunched position on the sofa with his back to the door. There was no mistaking that one earring in his left ear.

  “Hey, stranger,” said Katie.

  He looked at her. A hint of a smile crawled on his lips. “You made it.”

  “I have a 12-hour shift tomorrow in exchange. I might finish tomorrow’s shift as a coffeeholic, but that’s a price I’m ready to pay.”

  “I’m surprised you still don’t hate coffee.”

  “I’ve grown immune to it.”

  Kurt chuckled. “Kev, are you going to come out?”

  “Do I have a choice?”

  Kurt sighed. “Be nice. Those people would appreciate exchanging a few words with you. And I’m not saying it as your manager, but rather as a friend.”

  Katie said, “We’ll be out in a few moments.”

  Kurt winked at her. “Katie, help yourself to coffee if you’re still not sick of it.”

  She winked back in confirmation. Kurt excused himself and returned to the gallery.

  Katie made herself coffee and sat next to Kevin. “You know, coffee tastes great when you don’t have to be around it 24/7.”

  Kevin chuckled. “Everything is better when you don’t have to be around it 24/7.”

  “I love what you made from the theme of typical city life routine. I don’t know what others think, but the message really shines through. You outdid yourself this time.”

  “Well, it’s better than working on another wedding album.”

  “I bet. Sometimes I think you take pictures of the same poses but with different couples.”

  He finally smiled. “Do you have an X-ray vision or something?”

  “I think I just got to know you much better than I thought I would. So, how is life?”

  He shrugged. “The usual. Nothing new under the moon.”

  “Does the money come in?”

  He took a gulp from her coffee. “The income from the wedding albums is steady, but it’s becoming boring. I want to put up photo exhibitions that portray something important, not just weddings.”

  “When are you thinking of quitting your day job?”

  He shrugged, got up and looked out the window. “I can’t. I don’t think it will ever be possible. My boss thinks it’s fun to give me overtime shifts lately. I wish I could just hand in my resignation letter and walk out the door. Mike rants on about his kid getting into fights, Jenna keeps on and on about how smart her daughter is…Don’t get me started on the new employee; he’s just annoying.”

  She put her hand on his. “What if you find another day job?”

  He looked at her reproachfully. “What if we switch over to you?”

  She said, “Except the usual job rant, nothing’s new. The student loans are killing me. I even thought about taking a loan from my parents to cover some of the debts, but I can’t get myself to even ask. I know I can’t take on another job.”

  “And you shouldn’t. How is the job search going?”

  “Hard. Again, nothing new there.” She finished the rest of her coffee in one gulp. “Let’s go to the gallery. People would like to see you.”

  He shook his head. “They won’t understand the meaning behind my art, except maybe a few.” He rolled his eyes.

  “Maybe not all of them, but from what I saw and the people I talked to, most really like your pictures. Don’t make me pull you with chain and shackles.”

  Kevin hesitated.

  Katie put a hand on his shoulder and looked in his eyes. “I won’t leave you alone until you go out there with me.”

  He sighed and headed to the gallery. They spotted Kurt talking to an elderly couple. Kurt motioned him to come closer.

  “Kevin,” said Kurt, “These are Blake and Simone Smith. This is the man behind this exhibition, Kevin McKenzie.”

  Kevin shook hands with them.

  Blake said, “Mr. McKenzie, we enjoyed the evening very much. Thank you.”

  Kevin smiled, “Thank you, Mr. and Mrs. Smith. I’m glad you enjoyed it.”

  “Good evening, Mr. McKenzie.”

  Katie touched Kevin’s hand lightly. “Don’t make me say I told you.”

  Kevin turned to greet the next people that came to shake hands with him.

*

  “Here you go, sir,” said Katie Spencer, putting two cups of steaming black coffee on the counter. “It would be four dollars and eighty cents.” Returning the customer twenty cents’ change, she finally got to sit for a moment. Most of the morning coffeeholics chose Brad’s Coffee Bean that morning for some reason. The wind chimes hanging above the door clinked and Katie, sighing, got up on her feet again. This time the customer was not wearing a suit and a tie: the black-haired young man, whose face was partly hidden under a trilby hat, walked over to the counter and smiled at Katie. He was wearing a long cream-colored coat, and a camera with attached lens was hanging around his neck. He was carrying a small suitcase.

  “Good morning, Mr. McKenzie,” said Katie with a small smile. “The usual?”

  “Yes, for old times’ sake.”

  Spencer poured him steaming black coffee in a white cup and put it on the counter.

  “Why don’t you make one for yourself and join me?” said McKenzie.

  Katie turned around. “Hannah,” she called, “Can you replace me for two-three minutes?”

  A wide woman came out of the coffee shop kitchen. “Well, alright. You go ahead.”

  “Thank you. It won’t be long.”

  “It’s what you said last week.”

  Katie smiled and she and McKenzie sat at a table by the window. The young man said, “Katie, I came to say goodbye. I’m going away for six months.”

  She sat silently for a brief moment. “Edward, where are you going?”

  “South Asia, my friend. First Japan, then China and after that I’m going to Thailand. Maybe even India.”

  “But what about the McKenzie Collection? It’s finally becoming a successful business, and the people love your photographs.”

  “It will have to wait,” he said without any sign of doubt or regret. “The east is calling me. I want to see the sun rise behind a temple where you can see the blue sky through cherry blossoms. I want to walk along the Great Wall of China and watch cranes drink from a pond amidst a bamboo forest. I want to see koalas move from one branch to another.”

  “You don’t have to go that far to see all this.”

  He caressed her smooth cheek. A few chestnut locks fell from the high hairdo she had spent a quarter of an hour to manage. “Yes, I do. The east is beautiful. America is beautiful too, but in a different way. One day I will see every city in the world. It will be grand.”

  Katie looked at the table, so that he wouldn’t see the gathering tears in her eyes. “When are you leaving?”

  “My plane is leaving in five hours. I will miss you.” He put a black-and-white photograph on the table. Katie was filled with nostalgia: she remembered the excitement and wonder she had felt when Edward had taken a few photos of her in his studio. He really was truly extremely talented.

  “I’ll be waiting.”

  Edward left a five-dollar bill on the table and got up.

  “Bon voyage,” said Katie. Edward smiled charmingly, lifted his hat a little and walked out of Brad’s Coffee Bean, bidding dear Chicago goodbye.