Chapter 5 – A Close Encounter
The next morning, Roxbury opened his eyes with the uncomfortable sensation of something missing. The sun was already up but all seemed too quiet around him. Instinctively, he rolled around to glance at the alarm clock LED display.
8:23
"Oh crap!" Roxbury shouted. The one day I need to be up early, noone makes any banging noise on walls. He thought to himself. He wasn't sure at what time Layla ended her morning shift, but he knew that he needed to hurry if he wanted to catch her at work this morning.
He hurried to the bathroom and stuck his head under the sink faucet, cold water running. He dried his hair on the go as he grabbed the cleanest shirt around. Apparently he slept in his khaki shorts, which will save him some precious time this morning. He jumped in his shoes and was on his way out.
8:29
Pretty good, ready in 6 minutes. Roxbury was proud of himself, but still knew he needed to increase the pace if he wanted to be at the cafe before Layla left. He couldn't help but smile at the thought that he was already calling a complete stranger by her first name, as if he had known her for years.
Looking left, then right, like his mother taught him, Roxbury crossed West 11th Street running. As he entered "Brew Me Softly", he spotted the same barista he gave his number to yesterday. He tried to control his voice to hide the panting from running and asked.
"Good morning. Is Layla here?"
"No, Sir. She just left, her shift ends at 8:30. Maybe you..." The barman was still talking as Roxbury was already opening the front door and racing onto the sidewalk. He recalled that on the photo from yesterday Layla was coming from the left as she passed in front of the lens. He followed the same direction and started walking as fast as he could without looking out of place. If he wanted to have good shots of Layla by friday at 11:00, he had to find her today and convince her to accept posing for him. Experience told him this was no easy task.
As he was making his way up the street, occasionally bumping shoulders and drawing protests, Roxbury finally spotted her. Her stride was sharp and her dark blonde hair was jumping in the air with each firm step she was taking.
It'd better be her. Roxbury thought as he increased his own pace, trying to catch up with her.
From about 20 feet away, he realized she was about to cross Washington Street and he might get stuck at the light.
"Layla!" Roxbury shouted with no real convinction in his voice, as if wanting to be heard but also knowing screaming her name on the streets would make him look a little funny. As expected, she didn't react. As she reached the pedestrian crossing, Roxbury didn't want to take the chance of losing her, so he tried again, a little louder.
"Layla!!"
This time she turned around, along with a few other passers-by. Roxbury didn't really pay attention to the other sets of eyes looking at him, he instantly focused on Layla and smiled, almost awkwardly, as if two long lost lovers had just met again years later on the streets of Paris. As one would expect, she seemed surprised as she stood there, looking at him getting closer.
Roxbury stopped in front of her, leaving enough space between them to not make her uncomfortable.
"Good morning Layla." He tried, showing his best smile. "I... I left you a note at work yesterday, my name is Roxbury Porter. Did you not get it?" He asked, a little nervous about what the answer might be.
"Uh... yes, I got your note. But I don't need a pet. I thought you were mistaken in who you were trying to reach." She replied, still dumbfounded by this chance encounter. Roxbury smiled.
"Ha. The pet thing. Well... I wasn't sure what to come up with in order to get in touch with you. Do you have a minute? Can I buy you... a coffee?"
If it had been any other stranger, she surely would have declined, but she found herself shaking her head in agreement.
"Sure." She replied, intrigued. "But no coffee for me, I've been surrounded by it all morning."
They both looked around for a decent spot to share a drink, but no coffee shop around. Roxbury spotted a street vendor on the opposite walkway and Layla followed his lead. He ordered his first cup of coffee of the day, a much needed and welcomed treat, and offered her to order anything she wanted. Apparently, a bottle of spring water was all she needed. They sat down a few feet away on a bench underneath a big oak tree, the "New School for Drama" right in front of us.
"Alright. First of all... I'd like to apologize for chasing you in the streets of New York like that." Roxbury started. Layla smiled as he kept on going with his explanation. "I don't have a pet to offer you. I'm a photographer and I was hired by a company to find them a "face" as we call it, I have to find a model for them who can represent their products. Does that make sense?"
"Uh... Your work makes sense, yes." Layla responded cautiously. "But I'm not sure where I fit in. I don't know anyone here."
Roxbury couldn't help but smile at her candid comment.
"Layla, I've spent quite some time looking at people your age lately." He explained, pausing for her to see where this was going. "And I think you'd be the perfect girl for that job."
"Me? A model??" Layla bursted out laughing. Sure she kinda thought she was cute, and did everything she could to improve her looks, but being a model was a whole different ballpark. Was this Roxbury guy trying to flatter her to get into her panties?
"Listen Mister. Thank you for the water and the kind words but I think you're just being funny here, so I'll be on my way." Layla said, standing up.
Roxbury stood up instantly, clearly surprised by her words.
"No, no, no. Layla, listen please.' He gently grabbed her shoulders so she could face him and see that he was genuine about his offer. "I truly believe you have the perfect face for what my client is looking for. I am not trying to sell you fake dreams, I just would truly appreciate it if you just thought about it tonight." Roxbury slowly let go of Layla's shoulders.
"You have my number. Just think it over, please. I will respect your decision either way, and I will still tip you every morning as long as you don't add salt to my coffee."
Layla looked down, trying to hide a smile. After a moment of silence, she looked back up and stared at Roxbury's eyes. She could sense he was honest, she felt a warmth invade her as she finally said.
"I will call you tonight to give you my answer. I want to talk it over with a friend of mine." No sooner had she said the word friend that she saw a light die off in Roxbury's eyes. I pinched her heart and she surprised herself adding quickly.
"My roommate. I need to get her opinion on this."
Roxbury smiled.
They shook hands, agreed to talk tonight and each went their own way.
