Right Behind You

Chapter Thirty-Four: Kingston

"The day that I've met you, I started dreaming

Now I write them down if I remember,
in the morning time
I don't know that much about Kingston,
but I like the sound it makes
When it starts to pouring rain
I think that tonight I'll leave my light on
'Cause I get lonely when it's out, and I miss you right about now
Oh, uhmm uhmm

Baby, tell me where you wanna go
Baby, tell me what you wanna know
Give you everything I have and more."

-Faye Webster (Kingston)

Kae:

"So, what do you do for work, Alma?" I watched as she lifted her cup of chai tea to her lips carefully and calculated. She blew on the hot liquid for a short few seconds before taking quick light sips from the cup. I continued letting my own tea rest and cool off before I would pick it up and have a drink. I preferred to have it warmer than when it was straight off the kettle.

            Alma set her teacup down slowly and looked up at me, her bright eyes instantly captivating me. Was it possible to drown in someone's eyes? It felt as if she were kind of hypnotizing me just with her gaze. I tried to look away, but her hold on me was the equivalent of someone grabbing onto your arm and not letting go even if you begged. Alma had to be around her mid to late '40s; she had a captivating grace about her that made me feel that way. She was still stunning with olive-toned skin, an oval-shaped face, sharp eyebrows, a pointed nose, and round-shaped eyes. Her lips reminded me of a heart-shaped porcelain doll, a bit puckered and set in one area of her face. Today she was wearing a violet headscarf wrapped beautifully around her face, her clothing seemed to match the scarf as well; she had a really good style. Too bad, I couldn't say the same for myself.

            "Me? I work in a school, helping children. Particularly ones with trauma of their own to overcome." She said answering my question.

            Wow, that could explain why it was so easy to take her hand, and having that something about looking into her eyes was the equivalent of being kissed by an angel of some sort. I felt safe around Alma. I'm sure those kids felt lucky to have her helping them all while getting their education at the same time.

            "That's very honorable," I said to her finally grabbing my own cup of tea and perching it against my lips. Alma watched me steadily as I sipped my tea, she seemed intrigued by me, I didn't know why I was probably the most boring person in the world, problems aside.

            "What do you do, Kae?" She questioned me.

            I shrugged, "I used to be a surgeon. I'm taking a break, right now I'm just getting around." I said.

            She nodded, "Is this your first time in San Antonio?" She inquired.

            I nodded taking another sip. "Never really traveled before," I said putting the cup down. I sat back and rested my back against the chair of the coffee shop's seat. I thought about the conversation Hartley and I had prior about him traveling and him encouraging me to do so. This was the second person mentioning the whole traveling thing to me, maybe I would take it into consideration and decide to book a random flight somewhere next month and just really go experience the world.

            "Do you want to travel?" She asked me.

            I shrugged, "Possibly. I'm just taking every day one step at a time. If I think too far ahead it doesn't do well for my mind." I said grabbing for my teacup again.