The Time Capsule

James

“well Suzanne, like I told you, I’m busy on Fridays and Saturdays. It’s my nights out with the guys. But Monday we can meet up.” I lie to her. Oh the joys of dating two girls at once.

“fine, Monday evening, my place.” She hangs up then and I grin from ear to ear. My life couldn’t get any easier.

I switch back over to the first line, “everything all right honey?” Jennifer asks in a sugary sweet tone.

“just dandy, some author was double checking dates.” I tell her, “which reminds me, we still on for the weekend?”

“of course. Wouldn’t miss it.”

“great. I’ll pick you up at seven.” I click end and set my cell on my desk. I take a seat and check my emails to make sure no important clients have tried to get a hold of me. When I see that there’s none I shut down the computer and pack up my things. It was already way past five and the office was pretty much cleared out of employees. The elevator ride down to the bottom floor was pleasant with no one there to talk to. Silence is golden in my mind.

When the doors open I step out and instantly here someone shouting at the guards. She was tall, probably somewhere around 5’8” with brown hair and fairly tan skin. Just like any other woman you’d see on the streets.

“I swear on my life I would never even think about dating James Watson. I just need to talk to him.” She says.

The guards stop her from pushing through, “now, now, lady we were told specifically by him not to let any women through that weren’t clients.”

“I’m not another one of his fuck buddies! For goodness sakes just let me through!” I smile at her word choice and step into view of the guards.

“I have this slight feeling someone is here for me?”

They all freeze and the woman turns around to face me with a pretty angry look on her face. If she isn’t an ex then I don’t know what I did to her. “You, James Christopher Watson, are in big trouble.”

I gulp. Okay, seriously, what did I do to her? I study her face for a moment and then the name she called me registered. “Selena?” I wave at the guards to have them let her go and she stumbles out of their grip, “how have you been?”

She raises an eyebrow, “how have I been? I’ve been trying to track you down for three days now. You ignore my calls to your house, office, and cell. Won’t answer any emails through work or Facebook, you’re never at your apartment, and it’s hell to get an appointment with you. and when I do show up the guards attack me like I’m some whore of yours. As if!”

“right. I’ll ask later.” I mumble. “come on, let’s go back to my apartment and catch up. Where are you staying currently?”

she answers and follows me out to grab a taxi. I call the hotel and have them bring everything to my place.”

“this isn’t your apartment,” Selena states when we show up to the building.

I smile, “do you really think I’d let all those women know where I live?”

She slaps my arm and steps into the elevator with me. I press the top button and wait for it to open up to my flat. Her mouth drops when the doors open. For being thirty I was pretty successful in the business of publishing. All I needed now was to become the head boss.

“like it?”

“Somehow, this is ten times better than my beach house in Miami.” I raise an eyebrow. Whoever would call an apartment better than a beach house is just crazy.

“yeah, what ever you sayLena.”

Her head snaps away from the view, “don’t call me that,” she says sternly.

I walk into the kitchen and grab a beer, “want anything to drink?” I ask her.

“water, please.” She answers quietly. I could tell that the nickname had caused her pain I just don’t know why. We always called each other by different names.

But then again that was when we were fourteen, not thirty.

“so, how has life been treating you?”

she stares at me for a moment, like she’s trying to figure something out. Selena was always the good girl of the group, never getting in trouble or allowing any of the rest of us to get in trouble. She was our go-to girl for advice and help when we needed it. The stable person.

“perfect.” She smiles to prove it which means she’s lying. It’s little things like that you remember about your best friend. “studied Law atColumbiaand now I live down inMiami. Live on the beach and everything. It’s been great.” I could tell she was hiding something but didn’t push it. “what about you?”

“well, I’m assistant editor at the publishing company so between the two girls I’m currently with and work, my life is pretty fun.”

Selena shakes her head at the comment about my girlfriends. She was never one to accept how I was a player. “one of these days James…”

“yes, miss ‘I would never even think about dating James Watson,’ is telling me that my life is bad.”

A small blush appears on her cheeks, making me smile, “so a small lie. It’s nothing compared to what you lie about.”

“true, true.” I take a sip of my beer and she cringes a bit. What’s that about? “what brings you to the city?”

she points to me, “you.”

“and what about this amazing person known as me?”

Selena shakes her heads as if I did something wrong, “of course you wouldn’t remember.”

“I can’t remember my last girlfriends name, don’t expect me to remember something that’s important to you.” she shoots me a glare and I shrug it off, “just telling ya the truth.”

“I’ve got two words for you Watson, time capsule.”