Make a Memory ✔

Chapter 1 : "Bright Lights, Big City." (1988)

"I have no interest in money,

I just want to be fabulous!"

Hi, I'm Selena Black and this is my story. Twenty-two years of age, history major, heiress of a very small Jewellery store in Gilbertsville, Pennsylvania. I have never done anything reckless. This was a first. Sure, I've been rebellious. All teenagers go through that. And frankly, wouldn't you rebel if you had to live with a spinster who had a cat and bird and whose house was a museum? Still... reckless? Nah! The most reckless thing I've done was not returning my library books on the due date. I have never been outside Montgomery County lines. Ever. This was definitely a first... Packing up my entire life, leaving every sense of security behind to travel across state lines to move to busy, beautiful, unknown, strange New York City.
Crap!
I took one last glance at my now empty apartment. Lifting my digital camera, I took a picture of the empty space. My entire apartment actually fit into one picture. Open plan living area, kitchen and bedroom. Only one door leading to the ridiculously small bathroom, faded wooden floors and paint peeling from the walls. My near ancient car was parked downstairs in the parking space in front of the shop. When you looked at it, you wouldn't say it contained all my belongings. There was only a sleeping bag, pillow and three suitcases in the boot. The rest of my stuff I sold at a junk sail. Gas money... Luckily, my bank account would be looking better round about now. I haven't gone to check yet. The shop isn't worth much but the jewellery inside was.  I took a final picture of the store. It still looked the same, but someone else would be opening the doors today. Some random stranger, taking the only thing I had left of mom. I climbed into my car and looked around. The town was still asleep, but the sun was just rising, making the sky seem a light fluffy pink. No one to say goodbye to, no one to wave at me as I drive off, no one to wish me luck. I turned the key in the ignition and stomped my foot down on the gas pedal as a lump grew in my throat. This was ridiculous. I've been alone for nearly four years, my friends all went off to college after school and they didn't really keep in touch and I didn't either. I was starting my life today, I didn't need anyone right know, I'll make friends in New York and if I move again from there I'll have someone waving at me from the side walk, wishing me good luck. The little town disappeared in my rear-view mirror and I drove faster, eager now to get away, to drive the 120 miles and to start my future. Sarah Bettens kept me company on my stereo as my tires ate away the miles. I had to stop three times for gas and the junk sale money came in really handy. I heard my phone ring somewhere in the car. I let it go to voice mail, I wasn't about to go hunting for it. Too much trouble. I passed a sign that made my heart soar with excitement.

New York City                   20 miles

I swear if my car could go faster, I would have, but he was already at his limit. A steady 40 mph. I sighed in resignation, no need to push the little guy any further, I still had to sell it and it had to be in a driving condition. If you could call this speed a driving condition. I was getting so impatient that it felt like the trees were passing me and not the other way around. Oi! But then, finally, just as I thought I was dying of old age, a big sign, with bold black letters.

WELCOME TO THE BIG APPLE - NEW YORK CITY

I ignored most the thoughts running through my head at that moment. Thoughts of Gotham City. Pictures of gang members standing on dark corners, a woman screaming into the night, children crying. I hung onto the positive stuff – mom's stories. This was the city that never sleeps!! The Big Apple for goodness sake! I thought of shows like “Sex and the city”, “Will & Grace”, “Friends” and “How I met your mother.” And that's when I felt the excitement take-over, relinquishing the doubt and the fear. I felt elated, I am so happy I could scream. I wanted to scream!! I was on Cedar Crest Boulevard (PA-29) and took the left ramp I-95N towards the 15 E exit towards the Lincoln Tunnel. I emerged in the Upper West Side in Manhattan... I think. I looked at my mom's beat up old map of New York City. She made it herself, street names and numbers written in her curly handwriting. Real pictures and photos of important landmarks pasted onto the map. Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, Times Square, Central Park and the Twin Towers. I've written over them with a dark marker pen.
“Ground Zero .”
I still cried when I watched any documentary on the 9/11 attacks and when Nicholas Cage's “World Trade Centre” showed at the small cinema back home, everyone in town went to see it. Even cold-hearted Aunt Victoria. I went armed with a box of tissues and some make-up to cover up my red-eyes after-wards.
I mapped out a route to take me towards the golden star stocked onto the map. Starbucks...
42street, Dryer Avenue, 12th Avenue, RT-9A-North, 96th Street, right onto Central Park West and another right onto 95th Street. From there it won't be too hard to get to 3rd Avenue.  I drove through the busy streets, my eyes seeing and my brain memorizing everything at the same. Street names I've heard about, buildings I've read about. Everything just as I imagined it! I drove in a throng of traffic past Central Park. I've read this book once, Tabloid Love, about a British journalist coming to work for... the Times I think. Anyways, she said that when you start out in New York, it should be in Manhattan and then after maybe two years you could move to like Brooklyn or one of the other Burroughs. Personally, I'm going to stick with Manhattan. It had so much to give. East Village, Soho, Upper East and West, Chelsea, Greenwich, Tribe-ca. Then the landmarks that were all on mom's map, including Madison Square Garden where there were artists performing and it was home to the mighty Nicks!  It was mid-January, so the trees were bare and there was snow patches on the brown ground but it was still beautiful to me! I pulled up in an open parking space and looked at my watch. It's half past ten, I didn't have a bad drive up, about three and a half hours, without the traffic. I saw the Starbucks near the corner of the street. Yes! This day didn't have a bad start. I dug out my purse out from underneath the passenger seat, which reminded of my missed call from earlier. I stretched for my coat on the back seat and found my phone in one of the pockets. Aunt Victoria called me. I didn't think she'd actually use the number I gave her yesterday before she stormed out of my flat. Curiosity got the better of me and I pressed the dial button. She answered on the fifth or sixth ring.
“Selena?”
“Hello Aunt V How are you?” I asked politely.
“You really left, didn't you?” she was accusing, not asking.
“I told you I was going to, but you didn't believe me.” It was silent for a while.
“Yes. Where are you now? I hope you aren't driving while speaking on your cellular.” Unbelievable how she could sound interested, accusing and annoying all at the same time.
“No. I'm in a parking spot in New York.” There was another freaky, unfathomable silence.
“I just wanted to check whether or not you had enough guts to actually leave.” Now there was the Aunt V I knew and didn't love.
“I've lived with you for six years, haven't I?” I muttered.
“What was that?” she asked sharply.
“Nothing. Is that all then?” I asked, eager to end the conversation.
“Yes, but you'll come crawling back into town soon enough.”
“Don't hold your breath. I won't even go back if you paid me.”
“Hah!” was all she said before the line went dead. You know what they say... Curiosity killed the cat, since she was the cat I knew that saying wasn't accurate, because I wasn't that lucky. I quickly looked out of the side window at the people on the sidewalk. They were all huddled into their coats, their hands deep in their pockets. I pulled out a scarf and some hand mittens and shrugged into my coat, buttoning it up to the top. I peeked into the mirror quickly. Red coat, my mittens, scarf and pants were all black. Great! I looked like those girls who lived by the Cosmopolitan as if it were a freaking Bible. Luckily my black hair still had bright blue streaks in. I liked to be different and that was the one thing that shocked people back home. Hey! I just remember one reckless thing I've ever done before! Back to my outfit... I know it won't shock people in New York, but thankfully, it won't make me look like a magazine worshiping dimwit. I rarely dressed up and I only had about three pairs of heels. Honestly, in Gilbertsville there wasn't an occasion to dress up for. I had a lot of really nice blouses, jackets and jeans, but nothing fancy. All my clothes were basically more comfortable than stylish, but I didn't have anything that was ugly, you know. Who would go out and buy clothes that were unflattering or in a terrible colour? My hair hung just above my shoulders and it was straightened. My hair was actually really really curly, not in a bad way though. More like Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman. Still, I liked it more when it was straightened, sometimes I'd use curlers to make the curls bigger, then I didn't quite look like a crazy person. I had a fairly ordinary face, I've never had skin problems and I thought my body was pretty regular. I don't do diets and I don't exercise. If someone mugged me, I'd just let them go, 'cause I'll probably die after chasing them a few feet. I got out of the car and gasped as the cold blew the air out of lungs. Damn it! It was freezing! If it was 32degrees then it was warm!!! I grabbed my purse – it was my only designer item I owned – black - Gucci. I locked my car and threw a couple of quarters into the parking meter. I huddled into my coat like all the other pedestrians and sending up a silent prayer that my car would still be here when I get back, I walked to the Starbucks. A Cafe Latte and pancakes warmed me up pretty nicely and I decided that I needed to find either a hotel or something to crash in tonight. Maybe an Information Station, surely they'll know of some form of instant accommodation. I asked the waiter where the nearest hotel was.
“Honey, you're in Manhattan. They're everywhere!” He lifted an eyebrow as he looked me up and down. He sat down, not caring if his manager would mind or not.
“You definitely won't do the financial district. Hmm,” he put his one hand under his chin “by the looks of you... You're something else, definitely not a Barbie. I have just the place for you to stay at. It's not really a hotel, I mean there isn't no room service and butlers and stuff but you'll feel better there than in some overpriced fancy Downtown Hotel.”
His voice was a bit feminine and he gestured with his hands while he spoke. Gay? His hair was the kind of blonde you'd only find in exclusive salons. His eyebrows were perfectly tweezed, nails short and clean, hands well looked after, chino pants and... Ah... crocodile leather pointed shoes. Yip. Definitely gay. No straight man would choose fashion over comfort. He scribbled on a piece of paper, writing a name, address and a phone number. I took the paper and read it carefully. The Jade House? Doesn't sound too bad.
“Okay cool. Is that their number?” I pointed to the number scrawled at the bottom.
“No darling. That's my number. I get off at three, call me later and let me know if you survived the day.” I smiled over my Latte at him.
“Is it that obvious that I'm from a small town?” He shook his head and stood up. “Oh no sweetie, if it weren't for those shoes of yours, I'd never have guessed. Call it a woman's intuition, but I get the feeling where going to be spending a lot of time together.” I started laughing He was great!
“I'm Selena, Selena Black.” he took my outstretched hand  lightly with his fingers only and applied a bit of pressure. Very ladylike. I bit back a smile.
“Nicholas Dominique Du Toit.” He leaned in conspiratorially and whispered. “Changed it myself as soon as I turned eighteen.” And in a louder voice. “You can call me Nicky. Those shoes,” he pointed down at my oags, “and Selena doesn't really work with New York. Not the image that we're going to create. I'll call you Lee, it's hip, it's funky and I like it!” I jumped slightly as a loud crashing sound came from behind the closed kitchen doors. Nicky stood up and quickly walked away but I could hear his feminine voice rise as he entered the kitchen.
“Oh my goddess of chaos!!! MEGAN! Do you always have to make a mess?”
I snickered into my Latte, but sobered up as I sat back and sighed. Looks like I've made a friend and that's a really good thing. Maybe Nicky will know where I could find a job. I didn't care what I was going to do as long as I earned money for it. I did have that history degree... I payed for my breakfast and left a tip for Nicky. I was really happy to see my car still standing there with all four tires and with no ticket in the wiper. I pulled out the eccentric map again and looked at the street numbers. Avenues numbered from one to twelve, running North and South roughly parallel with the Hudson. Hmm... Glancing back at the address again I thought it would make a much better address than The apartment above Black Jewellery. I made my way through mid-morning traffic. Luckily, I'll soon be using the yellow taxis or the subways. Lady luck was still accompanying me, because there was an open parking space right in front of the old brownstone with the small sign 'The Jade House' above the door. I picked up my purse and walked towards the door, I was just pulling the door open when someone pushed from the inside. That's when Lady Luck took her feathery wings and flew up, up... and away. I fell backwards, down the three steps I just climbed and landed with a dull thud, flat on my back on the sidewalk. I looked up dazedly into a frowning face.
“Hell! Sorry man! Totally didn't see you on the other side of the door.”
My eyes came back into focus and I saw a blonde guy, bending over me. Blue eyes looked at me, not really concerned but slightly worried. But damn! I don't care what expression darkens those eyes. As long as they were focused on me I was happy!
“Um, do you think you could help me up?” I asked holding out my hand. He blinked a couple of times.
“Oh! Yeah. Sorry dude, forgot about that for a second.” He pulled me up to my feet with only one hand. Wow! Pretty and strong? Sigh!
“There you go. You okay?” I flexed my arms and fingers a few times.
“Yeah, I'm fine. Don't worry about it.” He stepped away from me.
“Cool. Later.” He walked off and I was surprised at his offhand behaviour, but then again, this was New York. No personal touch with strangers, pity, I would have loved not to be a stranger to him! I tried entering the Jade House again, and this time succeeded. It looked like any other brownstone, minus the warmth a personal home would give you. There was a middle-aged man coming down the stairs and he looked at me with half a frown and half a smile.
“Can I help you?” He asked in a gruff voice as he reached me.
“Yes. I'm looking for a place to stay and I got send here.”
He shook his head. “Sorry kid, all my rooms are full. Try a hotel.” He turned towards a door next to the stairs.
“What? But Nicky said...” That worked like a magic word.
“Nicky sent you? Why didn't you say so? Come on, I've got the best room open.” He started up the stairs again and I followed uncertainly. I could hear music coming from the one room and the man banged on the door a few times. “Keep it down Kate!” It didn't sound like the volume went down.
“Chill Eddie!! No one minds!” It came from inside and Eddie grumbled something about today's youth and went on to the next flight of stairs.
Okay, here are the rules. No parties, no drugs. You come and go as you please, you clean you're own room, you cook you're own food. I collect rent every Sunday. No contract, if you want to complain, don't come to me – I'm not your mother -  go to the person you have a problem with. If you can't solve the problem within a week, I kick out everyone involved in your little problem.” We ascended the stairs, there were only four doors on this floor and Eddie walked over to the door at the end on the right hand side. “Here you go. It's furnished, but no curtains or bed-covers though. Hope you'll have a good stay. I'll get your rent on Sunday.” I gazed into the room. It was as big as my old apartment was! Fantastic! Then I remembered something.
“Hey Eddie what's the rent?” He was already halfway down the stairs.
“$200!” he yelled back. That wasn't so bad, $200 a week, which would be... $800 a month. It wasn't as cheap as my apartment back in Gilbertsville, but this was the city. $800 for a fairly large room in Manhattan! I loved New York already! I loved the room, it had a writing desk pushed against the large window, a built in closet, a single bed with a headset and a dressing table. I walked over to the window and was a bit bummed as I looked into another building, but at least there was a tree in-front of the window, the top-branches reaching the same level as my window. It was bare of leaves like all the other trees in the city, but I was sure that in the spring and summer it would be lovely with green leaves and maybe some colourful blossoms? It took four trips from my room to the car to get my sleeping bag, pillow and suitcases upstairs. I unpacked my clothes but I left my toiletries in my vanity bag since I'll have to take them to the bathroom every time I wanted to shower or bath. I threw my pillow and sleeping bag on the bed and sat down. I took my most personal belongings out last. My small CD player, that went onto the writing desk. My CD collection and a few books. My favourite book, Lesley Pearse's Hope I placed on my bedside table. It didn't even take me an hour and now what could I do? I looked around and realized I missed something. I grabbed my camera and snapped a couple of shots of the room from different angles and then I took a few out the window of my tree and the street and even the building across the street. I went out into the hallway to explore the rest of the house. As I was turning around, after closing my door I bumped into something and I fell again, luckily this time not flat on my back. Just flat on my ass. I looked up into the same blonde guy's blue eyes. A real Adonis.
“Crap dude, we really have to stop doing this.” He said as I laughed up at him.
“Yeah.” I stretched out my hand towards him again.
“Oh. Help. Yeah.” He pulled me up again, but didn't let go of my hand immediately. Tingle-Tingle-Tingle from my fingertips to my toes.
“I'm Paul Garret, by the way. I live across from you.” He pointed over his shoulder as I shook his hand and returned his smile.
“I'm Se....”
I remembered Nicky's words and quickly changed my sentence.
“...Lee.” Paul frowned.
“You're silly?” I pulled my hand away from his, laughing.
“Yeah, I guess I am. But I'm Lee Black.” He leaned against the doorframe of his room. He was a big guy, with arms that were muscled. You could see that even through the jersey he was wearing. Hmmmm.... His blond hair had curly edges and I felt sure that if he let it grow longer it would be even more curlier. He had laughing lines around his eyes and mouth that reminded me of Heath Ledger. Sexual appeal oozed out of every pore of his body.
“Nice to meet you Lee. So where 'bout you from?”
“Gilbertsville, Pennsylvania. You?” His smile widened.
“New York city. Born and raised baby!” He threw his hands up in the air like it was an achievement. Thinking about Montgomery County, being born and bred in New York would be an achievement.
We walked down the stairs in silence. I didn't know what to say to him! Aunt Victoria sure was right when she said people were different here... Imagine a guy like Paul walking down the quite streets in Gilbertsville. I smirked. The women would swoon -  no matter the size or age. The guys would first try and compete with him to show him how much he won't fit in. Looking at him from the corner of my eye I shook my head. Nope. He'll fit in everywhere. He's one of those guys you could send into the jungle with a pocketknife and he'll build you a shopping mall. He was confident but not in the bombastic why most good-looking guys are. I rather liked that. The fathers back in Gilbertsville would load their shotguns just at the mention of his name. I laughed quietly at the mental image of the dads sitting on the porch with their shotguns while the mothers and daughter try to get a glimpse of him through one of the windows. Paul looked at me inquiringly, but I was still shaking my head.
“Imagination running wild.” I answered when he continued to stare.
“I like a woman with a wild imagination.” He winked at me and I felt myself blush.
The front door opened just as we reached the bottom of the stairs and two guys walked into the house. Every scrap of clothing they had on was black and they didn't greet us as they ascended the stairs. Hell, they didn't even look up. I shot Paul a bewildered look but he was already in the living room, switching on the television. He was amused at my bewilderment as I sat down next to him. He relaxed back in his chair as he found some football game on the television to watch.
“Welcome to New York Babe.”