Lara sat on the grass close to the waterfront. It was ten o’clock in the evening and she had just finished working in the cinema and was relaxing on the grass. It was quiet tonight. The cinema wasn’t even half full. It was a dreadful film anyway. She sacrificed herself to help out her co-workers who wanted to work at a different film. Lara agreed on one condition, that she would finish early to see the sunset at the waterfront.
She loved it here and she loved this time of day. The moment in the day when everything seems to be slowing down. Little children went to bed, the sun shone its last rays on the planet before heading off to the other side of the world leaving the world in an orange reddish kind of colour. It was the best part of the day in summer, the moment when you would take out your bottle of cheap wine and meet up with friends for a drink before heading off to a restaurant or bar to enjoy each other’s company.
She drank her coffee with two hands. The air was getting chilly and she held tight to her warm cup. She glanced at her watch to see if she had to go back into the cinema to get her things for the nightshift. Tomorrow was a big festival close from where she was sitting and she was helping out with the graveyard shift, which meant that she had to sleep on the stage tonight to make sure that all the equipment was safe. She organized the festival together with three friends. She arranged for the meals and drinks for the bands and staff and also for the visitors at the festival. She was very excited about this festival. This year one of her favourite bands was the closing act at her festival. She took one deep breath before getting up.
*
The car stopped at a hotel that looked almost medieval. In a way it appeared creepy with torches on the outside saying “come in, we will take excellent care of you. We might even kill you”. Perhaps he was on the road for too long. It was time that he went home to his family, his cats. Being this famous rock star definitely had its perks, but it was very hard on him. Everywhere he went he saw his name, his face, his band. It was too much sometimes. He craved for just one evening of silence, of pure enjoyment. He needed to get some rest before he had to play another gig tomorrow. He just flew in from Prague and he was not tired at all. He felt like exploring the city in the dark, just him and his thoughts. He walked up to the driver and told him to bring his stuff up to the room and to tell the rest of the band that he went out to grab a bite to eat and he would be back soon.
He put on his coat and his glasses, even though he didn’t need them in the dark, but he didn’t want anyone to recognize him right now. He didn’t know the city, it was a small town somewhere in Holland and they only played here as a favour to a friend of a friend, but they hadn’t played a benefit gig in years and it would look good on their profile. They invited a couple of diehard fans to be here to witness a small and intimate festival. A lot of people would be very happy.
He stopped for a second to see where he wanted to go and decided to turn left to go to the waterfront. He could just about see the blackness of the water and that appealed to him very much. That would definitely be a place where he could think and enjoy some peace and quiet. He walked down and smelled the fresh air. It filled him with great joy and he could stand there for a long time until he saw this girl standing up.
*
Lara put her work sweater on and slowly walked back in the direction of the city when a guy walked up to her. She could see that it was a guy because of the way he was built, but she couldn’t see anything else except his Mohawk and the shape of his trench coat. His Mohawk was hard to miss, even in this darkness. Lara stopped, but kept her phone in her hand on standby in case of an emergency. When he came closer she could see that he was wearing big designer sunglasses that also covered much of his face. He stopped in front of her. He was a very skinny guy. If he would have come here to attack her, he probably would have done it already. She decided to take the risk. She could use the company, she had to stay awake for a long time.
There was an awkward silence until he decided to open his mouth first.
“where can I get a decent cup of coffee around this time at night.” His voice sounded soft but tired.
“I’m sorry, do I know you.” Lara took a step back hoping she could see his face a bit better in case she would have to identify him for a police officer.
“No. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you, but I’m too tired to be polite right now. You must excuse my rudeness.” He offered her his hand. “My name is Sean” Lara stared at it for a second then put her bag in her left hand and shook his hand “I’m Lara” her voice sounded a bit tired too “I was just on my way to get a cup of coffee myself, do you want to join me?” Together they walked the 30 feet to the cinema overlooking the waterfront. Skilfully Lara opened the door. This was the first time Lara was able to see this stranger’s face in the light of the lobby. His face was quite bony and even a bit unhealthy, but in a tough bad boy kind of way, which made him not really the bad boy type, but you could never be sure, now can you? Besides, she was curious about his eyes. His face looked a bit familiar. She had a feeling she had seen him before.
Together they walked into the cinema and Lara walked straight to the coffee machine. Sean sat down at one of the red VIP chairs at the back, like his mind was designated for VIP signs to point him to an available chair. He watched Lara’s every move making a fresh pot of coffee and he slowly lingered off into his own mind for a second.
This night felt good. Being with this girl felt good. Sean was really happy he decided to do something impulsive and go downtown. He didn’t know this girl, but right now she was fun to be with. He wasn’t quite sure if she didn’t recognize him or that she didn’t know who he was and that was nice for a change, either way it was refreshing. He could relax here for a few hours before he had to go back. His phone rang in his pocket and he looked on the display. It was his brother who was the drummer of the band. Sean was late for their on tour drinking ritual in the hotel lobby. He decided to sent him a text message to tell him he was fine and would be back soon.
The coffee machine finished its last drops of coffee and steam came out of the filter. Lara filled a thermos with enough coffee to help them get through the night. She handed Sean the thermos, two mugs and sugar and milk.
“Are you coming?”Lara’s voice was soft, but a bit strict.
“Where are we going?” Sean was a bit surprised. He expected to drink one cup of coffee here and then he would be off to his hotel. He felt excited, not knowing where they were going. After months of tour managers and venue people telling him every minute of every day what he had to do, where he was going and how long it would take. The not knowing was very refreshing. He felt like a little kid who was going on a treasure hunt.
“Well! Can you grab the coffee and the mugs?”
They walked outside. Lara locked the door with great precision. The cinema was dark and quiet until tomorrow. They walked back to the waterfront in the direction of the great stage near the wall of the city, 30 feet away from the water.
They stopped at the main stage. It wasn’t as big as Sean was used to, but it was nice to play a smaller stage once in a while. There was more interaction with the crowd. He liked doing things for his fans. It seemed the more famous they got, the contact with the fans seemed more distant. Sometimes he longed for the days when they would play small venues and the crowd could almost touch them. He didn’t complain. The life he led was good. Hectic, but good.
Lara put her bag on the stage and climbed up to greet the guy who was playing on a bass guitar with only the light of a flashlight. Lara shook his hand and gave him a hug. The guy took a deep breath and packed up his things as he walked off the stage.
He turned around and looked at Lara
“Things were quiet. No hooligans in sight. Do you want me to light the fire before I go.”He pointed at the barrel with wood ready to be set on fire a few feet away.
“Yes please. Thanks Mike, see you in a few hours.”
Sean looked at the water almost being mesmerized. He felt an instant feeling of calmness and perhaps something that could be described as inner euphoria. It was a long time since he felt this good. He took of his coat and walked towards the water. His arms were wide open and he filled his lungs with fresh air. Then he laid down on the grass and closed his eyes. Lara put on big blanket on the grass and Sean rolled onto the blanket bumping into Lara who was straightening the blanket. She fell on the blanket, landed on her back and made a weird high pitched noise. Sean came closer and bend over Lara. He stared into her eyes.
“Thank you for tonight.” He gave her a kiss. “I haven’t felt this way in a long time.
“The water will do that to you” Lara replied instantly. She laughed and pulled Sean closer to her. His arms bended and he fell down on top of her.
*
“Wake up!” Lara woke up gasping for air. Her face and t-shirt were wet. Mike threw the mug that he used to carry the water that landed on Lara’s face, on the ground. Sean was gone. His side of the blanket was empty. They must’ve dozed off last night. Lara got up “the equipment!”Mike sighed. “You fell asleep princess. Don’t worry, all was quiet last night and I called Henry to keep an eye out, because you were way too busy last night when I left this place”.
“Thanks Mike. Again! What would I do without you”.
“You’d be very lost, that’s for sure”.
Mike offered Lara his hand. Lara got up making grunting noises. Her back was a bit sore from lying on the blanket. Her hair was a mess, her shirt was wet.
“Do me a favour. Go home and change. I can’t have you running around the festival like this.” Lara took off her t-shirt and put on her cinema sweater. “Thanks Mike. I’ll be back in an hour”. She ran to the stage and grabbed her bag.
It was ten o’clock at night. The sun slowly set and sank into the water leaving the world in an orange and pink glow. It felt magical. Lara sighed. Twenty-four hours ago she met this wonderful guy. She wondered if she would ever see him again.
Only one more band to go. Lara was very excited. She had begged Mike and Henry to book this band. She really liked them. She had been a fan since she started to show a real interest in music. Mike walked onto the stage to announce the band. The fans shouted and screamed their names. Lara pressed her schedule tightly to her chest. Sean walked past her with an acoustic guitar in his hand. He gave Lara a soft kiss and walked on to the stage, leaving Lara confused and bedazzled while the rest of the band walked past her. She didn’t even notice them.
Lara covered her face with her hands. She felt a bit foolish that she didn’t recognize Sean Last night. She smiled at him. Sean took one more look at her and sat down on a barstool behind the microphone.
“This place here is magical. I’m glad you invited us. Thanks!” He strummed his guitar. “This song is dedicated to a special girl whom I will never forget. I wrote it this morning.” Sean winked at Lara. “Lara, this one’s for you”.
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