FicWad

The open sign was lit when the brothers arrived at the antique store. Nervously Gerard glanced through the windshield at the business as Mikey pulled into the nearest parking space. “Well...” He knew Gerard was nervous, “Here we are.”

“Yeah” Gerard answered taking a deep breath then slowly exhaling it.

Mikey shut off the rental car engine. “Uh, you want me to wait here?”

The question surprised Gerard. “What?”

“I was thinking maybe you wanted to talk to her alone.”

“No” Gerard answered immediately. He wasn’t sure why but the idea of facing the woman alone frightened him.

Mikey saw the fear in his eyes. “Well, good. Because if you remember I’m supposed to talk to her too. Alicia gave me strict instructions to thank Ayasha for that bracelet.”

“Right” Gerard smiled. Without another word he grabbed his cane, opened his car door then waited on the sidewalk for Mikey to join him. He disliked using the cane but his weakened body, while still recovering, made it necessary at times. And while he didn’t want to admit it to his brother, yesterday’s flight had left him feeling physically drained.

As they walked towards the entrance to the store Gerard felt his heartbeat increasing. He tried to reason with himself that the nervousness he was feeling were ridiculous. There was no reason to be nervous about meeting Ayasha again, he’d met her before. However as he pushed open the door he held his breath.

Immediately a greeting was called out by an older man Gerard recognized from the photos on the web site as the owner Tom. He was helping a couple but said if they needed any help he’d be with them in a moment. Gerard nodded and smiled.

Mikey was scanning the store but didn’t see any other employees. “I don’t think she’s here.” He whispered to his brother.

Gerard had removed his sunglasses and he too was looking around the shop. He was about to answer his brother when a painting caught his attention. Immediately he moved closer to get a better look.

Tom finished speaking to the couple then walked over to the two men. “Beautiful isn’t it?”

Gerard was staring at the painting with rapt interest. “Yeah, it’s…” he tried to put the deep emotion he was feeling into words. “It’s a beautiful landscape but…”

Tom was staring at the man. “But?”

Gerard’s eyes still hadn’t left the canvas. For some reason the snowy scene refused to let his attention wander. “It’s a beautiful scene, the snow…but it has a sad feeling.” He finally realized his words must sound strange. However, when he forced his attention away from the painting, he saw that the older man was smiling.

“That’s exactly how I felt the first time I saw it. Turns out the artist was able to convey her feelings into her art. That spot she painted held a painful memory for her.”

Gerard frowned, “A painful memory?”

“That was the site of a car accident. The artist herself was in the car at the time but she was only a child. The accident resulted in her mother’s death.”

Mikey had moved closer to get a better look at the artwork. While he thought it was a beautiful snowy scene he didn’t feel any deep emotional pull.

Gerard had again turned to attention to the painting. There was something about it that pulled him in. “That’s what a great artist does, they make you feel something when you view their work. Do you have any of her other works?”

Mikey sighed. They were not here to buy artwork.

Tom smiled, “No, that’s they only one she’s brought in although I keep trying to encourage her to paint more.”

“So she’s a local artist?”

“Matter of fact she works for me.”

Gerard glanced over at Mikey wondering if he was thinking the same thing. “Really? What’s her name?”

Tom pointed to the signature at the bottom of the painting. “While I’m sure you can’t read it, it’s Ayasha.”

Gerard leaned down to get a closer look at the signature. “It’s written in Cherokee, right?”

“You know the language?”

It was time to reveal the reason for the visit. “No, but we’re looking for Ayasha.”

He didn’t miss how Tom’s face suddenly lost its friendly smile. “Looking for her?”

Wondering why the older man suddenly didn’t seem so friendly Gerard tried to smile. “Yeah, I just need to talk to her.”

Tom gave both men a closer look. “You’re not from around here are you?”

Gerard wondered if he and Mikey looked that much like tourists. However he was realizing that he needed to keep on this man’s good side because obviously he felt some reason to protect Ayasha. “We both live in LA.” He answered slowly.

Tom, who had noticed the cane Gerard was using, had an idea forming in his head. “You the fella she went to LA to see? The one who was in the hospital?”

“Yes” Gerard smiled. “I am.”

“She said you were recovering when I asked her.” Tom said feeling less nervous. Ayasha hadn’t spoken a lot about her trip to LA but she had told him that much.

“I want to thank her for coming out to LA.” Gerard said slowly.

Tom nodded, “Have to admit it was quite a shock when she took off like she did. I didn’t realize she had friends out there.”

This comment confused the brothers but neither said anything.

“Is she working today?” Mikey asked.

Tom glanced over at him. “Ayasha never works on Sunday’s.”

Gerard felt his heart drop. “Oh, I really hoped I get to talk to her.”

Something seemed wrong to Tom but he couldn’t place his finger on just exactly what. However as he looked at Gerard his gut told him there was nothing to worry about. “Suppose you could stop by her house.”

Immediately Gerard smiled, “That would be great.”

Tom waited a moment but it became clear to him that these men obviously didn’t know where she lived. Again he wondered how close of friends they really were.

“Maybe you could call her? Ask if it’s okay if we stop by?” Gerard realized the man was still protecting her.

“I would if I could.” Tom sighed, “Fact is she doesn’t have a phone. She had a cell but lost it on her return trip from LA.”

Now more than ever Gerard felt he needed to speak to her. He decided to be honest. “Look, I know you don’t know me but my brother and I flew here just to see her. It’s really important.”

There was something in the man’s eyes that rang true. “I’m not doubting you. It’s just I try to protect Ayasha the best I can. The best she’ll let me. She’s a strong woman who likes to stand on her own. Still I worry about her especially since the break in.”

“Break in?” Gerard repeated.

“You haven’t spoken to her since she got back from LA, have you?”

Gerard decided being honest was the only way. “No, I haven’t. I’m not sure how much she told you about my condition but I was in a coma, and not expected to live.” As he admitted that truth his body slightly shivered. “I’ve only been out of the hospital a week.”

Tom wasn’t surprised by this news. He had figured the man’s condition had been extremely grave by the way Ayasha had acted. “Well it’s good to see you up and around. I’m sure Ayasha will be very happy about that. But the thing is her place got broken into when she was in LA. I have a pretty good idea who did it but the police couldn’t find any evidence to back up my theory.” The thought of what had happened still filled him with anger. “The inside of her home was ransacked. It was vicious, practically everything destroyed.”

“Shit” Gerard muttered miserably realizing she’d gone to LA to help him and that had happened. “I had no idea.”

“So you can understand my reluctance?”

Sadly Gerard did understand. “Yeah, I get it. But I promise you I’m just here to talk to her, to thank her.”

Mikey tired to help. “And I’m supposed to deliver a thank you to Ayasha from my wife.” When Tom turned to him he explained, “She gave her a beautiful bracelet because my wife is pregnant. She wants Ayasha to know how much that bracelet means to her.”

A sudden memory filled Tom’s mind. “It’s on leather strips with quartz crystals, right?”

Mikey nodded.

Tom smiled, “I saw her making it the day before she left for LA. I watched as she braided the leather, added the crystals while reciting what I guess was a prayer. I’m not real familiar with Cherokee beliefs but I did recognize a few words. Figured it was for a mom to be.”

Mikey tried to hide his surprise. How could Ayasha have made a protection bracelet for an expectant woman she hadn’t met? One she couldn’t have possibly known was pregnant.

Gerard too was confused but knew he had to speak to Ayasha. “Please, I really need to talk to her.”

Tom who’d lived his whole life trusting his feelings nodded. “She just lives a few blocks from here. Can’t guarantee she’ll be home but…”

“Thank you.” Gerard said leaning a bit more on his cane.

Tom gave them directions then followed them to the door. As he watched them climb back into the rental car he felt in his heart he’d done the right thing giving them directions to Ayasha’s home. Since she’d returned from LA she’d been different and while she tried to hide it Tom had seen the sadness in her eyes. Maybe this visit was just what she needed.


Mikey drove a block then spoke, “Did you catch that bit about the bracelet?”

For some reason his mind was still on the painting in the shop. “What?”

“Gee” Mikey sighed, “It doesn’t make sense. How could she have been making a protection bracelet for a mom to be before she left for LA? I mean if you believe that sort of thing you could think she saw something in Alicia that made her realize she was pregnant. But there is no way she could have known before she met her.”

Gerard honestly didn’t know what to think. Suddenly so many things were confusing him, like his reaction to Ayasha’s painting.

“What are you thinking?” Mikey asked.

“I was just thinking about her painting.” Gerard admitted. “There’s just something about it.”

“She’s a good artist.”

“Definitely but it’s more than that. For a minute I felt like I’d seen it before.”

“Maybe you saw it when you talked to her out in LA? Maybe she pained it there.”

More and more just wasn’t adding up for Gerard. “Tom made it sound like he was surprised she went to LA but she’s spent time there before.”

Mikey too was trying to reason things out. “Maybe when you talked to her she was staying with friends in LA. You know like a vacation.”

“Maybe” Gerard said slowly. His eyes were scanning the street for the house number Tom has given them. “There” He pointed as the car neared the small house.

Mikey pulled along side the curb then shut off the engine. “If that’s her car she’s here.” He glanced at the house. “Kinda small.”

For some reason the comment bothered Gerard. “I think it’s nice.”

“Want me to go see if she’s home?”

Gerard’s hand on the door handle was shaking. “No, I’ll go with you.”

______________________________________________________________

Ayasha set her coffee cup down on the kitchen table then decided to retrieve her Sunday paper. Immediately her mind flashed to another time, the day she’d run outside for the paper while Gerard watched from the house. That day they’d done housework together, he’d teased her about the laundry but the memory that stuck out in her mind over all others was that was the first time they’d painted together. That memory caused a fresh stab of pain to her heart. His painting, the long dark passage way to the stars had been viciously slashed. Still, she hadn’t been able to throw it out. It along with the remains of the vision painting and the painting of her mother now sat in her bedroom. They were reminders of a love she’d never forget.

“He returned home.” She whispered to herself needing to hear the words, needing to remember that was the most important thought.

Ayasha hadn’t found out until the next day Gerard had awoke from the coma. Her computer had been destroyed so after dealing with making a police report and explaining to Tom what had happened she’d gone to the library to get on the Internet. She still remembered how her fingers had shaken as she’d pulled up the first web site. She still remembered how tears had started to form in her eyes when she read he had awoken from the coma. But the tears in her eyes hadn’t fallen. Ayasha had refused to cry. He had gone home, he’d made his decision at the crossroads just as she’d prayed. And she knew in her heart that the memory of the time they’d spent together had been erased from his mind.

Since that day she’d gone on with her life. She returned to work the next day forcing herself to smile. Yet that night, when she looked at the small bits of paper she’d salvaged the tears had threatened again. On the scraps were words Gerard had written. She’d tried to make sense of the words, tried to piece together what he had wanted to tell himself but it was no use. In her heart she was sure Kyle was behind the break in, the intensity of the violence that had taken place inside her home attested to this fact. But even though she’d found out that Dawn had told Kyle she was leaving town the police had not been able to pin the crime on him. He had an air tight alibi for the night in question. Still Ayasha, like Tom, knew it was Kyle. His hatred towards her knew no bounds.

And while moments like this one, the simple act of retrieving the paper, caused her sadness it didn’t compare to the nighttime. Since returning from LA Ayasha spent most every night up in the attic, staring at the stars and remembering. Alone in the darkness she would let her mind travel back to the time she and Gerard spent there. Never did she light a campfire and she knew she never would. The darkness was her friend, the darkness felt almost comforting.

“Paper.” Ayasha reminded herself realizing she’d been standing lost in thought. She knew she needed to stop letting herself get lost in memories. She had promised Gerard she would go on with her life and that’s what she intended to do just as he was going on with his life. Just the other day she had been filled with joy when she’d read the post he’d written for his fans on their web site. The words she realized that had been pulled from deep in his soul had touched her heart. He had returned home and he was working to repair all the wrongs. His post was a beautiful testament to that fact.

Slowly she walked to the front door.

_________________________________________________________________

Mikey glanced over at his brother and what he saw caused him concern. Gerard was leaning heavily on his cane looking pale. “You okay?”

Gerard nodded, “Yeah, fine.” He lifted his hand to knock when the door suddenly was thrown open.

Ayasha inhaled sharply in shock when she saw the men standing on the doorstep.

“Hello” Mikey smiled confused by the look on her face. The woman even swayed slightly.

Ayasha gripped the door tightly with one hand. She was staring at Gerard who returned her gaze. For a moment time seemed to stand still then the truth, the reality hit her full force. She could see it in his eyes, he had no memory of her.

“Uh” Mikey had waited to see if his brother was going to speak but obviously not. “Good to see you again.”

Struggling to regain her composure Ayasha spoke slowly. “Hello Mikey.” She took a deep breath, “Gerard.”

“Hello” Gerard smiled.

Ayasha could feel her heart breaking all over again.

Mikey wasn’t sure what was going on with the woman. “Uh, did we catch you at a bad time?”

He was giving her an out without realizing it. “Actually I was just about to go out.” She lied keeping her eyes on Mikey.

Gerard was still staring at her. Something wasn’t right and then it hit him. Here eyes…they were blue. In the photos he’d seen they were definitely dark but now they were blue and for some reason he didn’t understand that seemed right.

“I promise we won’t take up much of your time.” Mikey said determined that Gerard would get to speak to her. “But we did fly from LA just to see you.”

“How did you find me?”

Mikey smiled, “Well I tried to call…”

“I lost my phone.”

“Yeah, that’s what Tom told us.”

Gerard was wondering why she suddenly looked even more upset.

“You talked to Tom?”

“We thought you’d be at the shop.” Mikey explained.

“I still don’t understand.”

Mikey glanced over at Gerard. “Uh could we come inside.”

It was then Ayasha saw that Gerard was leaning on a cane. “Yes, of course.” She whispered standing aside to let them enter. However her mind was in turmoil. Never once did she believe Gerard would return. She had understood his memory of her would be erased but now she realized he would have questions, ones that would be difficult to answer because the story they’d concocted was built on lies. And she knew there was no way she could tell him that truth and that fact shattered the few remaining pieces of her heart.