Same Same but Different

Chapter Eight

My stomach twisted into a knot. What exactly had I just agreed to? We stood side by side at the foosball table. Chris leaned casually back against it. I used the handles to steady myself. Seriously, what was I thinking? A brief sense of guilt washed over me. For a fleeting second I remembered why I was in Cambodia in the first place. Faith. I quickly pushed her away. It felt good to subdue the sadness even for just a moment.

"We should probably get out of here, huh?" His warm voice made the grief disappear completely. Movie star good looks combined with kindness made it easy to forget to be sad. The quick glance made my palms sweat and suddenly a smile was flirting with my lips. My heart pounded in my ears. Up until moments ago, I had assumed my path would divert from Chris' path. Deep in the corners of my mind, I had prepared for a lonely moto ride back to my apartment to hide in the dark and let the mourning rush out in rivers of tears. The usual, 'Here I am alone in a country with my dead sister's ashes woe is me,' tears. This new road I found myself on was unfamiliar. I had never been on anything like it before. I had no experience. I had no map. But it felt good.

What the hell am I doing?

"I should take this stuff to my hotel and get all that sorted out. Maybe someone there can get me in touch with the right people. I definitely need to cancel my cards." He explained in a soft, serious voice after nodding in the direction of the bag of clothes purchased earlier in the day. Time was weird. Our time in the market felt like days ago when it was really just hours.

"I hadn't even thought about that." I turned to face him. His lips parted into a comfortable grin. "Yeah, sure. Let's go." Let's go. The semantic coupling made my own lips curl into a slight smile.

We walked through the open threshold and into the main living area of the Marine house. All of the men were still totally engrossed in the game on the screen. The only difference was one Marine had been swapped out for another. A man still in his uniform, cover tossed haphazardly to his left, had joined the game. Everyone else was in comfortable civilian attire except this newbie.

"Hey Rolf, we're going to head out." Gently, I touched Rolf's shoulder to ensure I pulled him from the fantasy world in front of him.

"Oh yeah? Hang on a minute, guys." They paused the game. Rolf and I awkwardly hugged while the uniformed Marine shook Chris' hand vigorously. We exchanged pleasantries again and I started for the door. "Hey!" Rolf called, "I sent an email to someone I know, erm, pretty well, in the Ambassador's office for the paperwork and everything to get you a new passport. Just swing by tomorrow morning?"

I couldn't help but smirk at how Rolf spoke about who he knew. I could only imagine how he really knew this person 'pretty well'.

"Sure thing. Thanks." Chris nodded politely.

"Let me show y'all out." With a toss of his controller and a jog, Rolf was at our sides. We walked slowly through the hallway and Rolf showed us how to sign out. "When you come back tomorrow, make sure you ask for me." He patted my back. "Good to see you, Grace."

Outside, the sky melted from a fuschia to an inky purple. The thickness of the air lightened as the temperature dropped. Humidity fell as the sky darkened. A soft breeze tousled my waves and I had to brush my hair away as I searched for a moto. The street in front of the Embassy was completely empty. I knew, a short walk a few blocks to the right, there would be countless rides available. The temple itself was closed, but tourists usually still loitered to feed monkeys. The street lamps flickered on and a warm orange glow cast shadows across Chris' face that accentuated the sharpness of his nose and cheekbones. And yet again, I felt the need to loudly scream into the muggy air, "What was I thinking?!"