THe Man in the Cafe

If you had told me that a day that started so badly would be the day that my life changed for ever I would have completely ignored you, but then I would also have had to apologise later.
I woke up and realised I had not set my alarm. Damn I was late for work. I flew out of bed and after using the toilet quickly run the shower while getting my clothes ready. After a very quick shower I got dressed and grabbed an apple for breakfast whilst running out of the front door.
I looked at my watch I had just under 5 minutes to make the train station, not long enough but with a bit of a jog I might make it.
I had been late twice already this month and was not looking forward to what my manager was going to say this time.
Isn’t it funny but when a day starts bad it seems that the whole day follows suit with the start, as I crossed the road to enter the station the train left. Now I would be even later, I looked at the empty taxi rank and sighed. This was definitely going to be one of those days.
I decided that as I was already late I might as well make the most of it. I went into the station café and had some real breakfast and a coffee (at least that is what I had ordered).
I sat reading the newspaper, the usual stuff this celebrity doing that, and that celebrity doing this, no real news to speak of.
The door to the café crashed open startling me, an old man was leaning against the open door, he looked short of breath. I don’t normally get involved when something like this happens, I like to keep my life simple, so what possessed me to get up and go to his aid still eludes me to this day.
I reached the door just in time, he collapsed into my arms, I called out for help and the person serving in the café came over with a chair. We sat him down and tried to talk to him, he was not listening, he just kept on mumbling something neither of us could make out.
The waitress went and phoned for an ambulance and the old man grabbed hold of my hand. He was desparetely trying to tell me something, I tried to make it out but it was too incoherent. Finally the waitress came back and said the ambulance was on its way. She then went to get the old man some water. I heard what he was trying to say at last, but it made no sense at all.
“The colour red in the rainbow will be the change your life has been waiting for” What the hell was that supposed to mean, just an old man in distress ranting on. I spoke to him trying to reassure him that he would be OK soon enough. There was an almighty crash behind me, looking round I could see that a pile of plates had fallen down and the waitress was nowhere to be seen. I got up and went behind the counter. She was still nowhere to be seen. The door to the kitchen area opened up and a young man came out. “What the hell are you doing?” He asked
“I was looking for the waitress, I heard the plates fall and came to see if she was alright” I anwered.
“What waitress? I am here alone. I think you better get out of here before I call the police”
“But the old man needs help, she called for an ambulance then went for some water” I tried to explain to him, really confused now.
“I take it the old man was with the waitress then because he must have left with her” He said with a mocking tone.
I turned to where I left the old man and stared at the empty chair. My head started spinning, was I still asleep? Was I dreaming? Questions stirred in my head as I tried to make sense of what was going on.
The man behind the counter started to get agitated he was telling me to get out, he was convinced I was high on something. I did not know what was happening, but I did manage to understand that I should at least get out of the café.
Standing on the platform I was trying to calm my breathing down. I looked around, there were only a few people waiting. My head was pounding it felt like it was going to explode. Not only was I late for work, going to have to try to explain myself to my boss, but I was on the edge of going insane. I again shut my eyes tightly hoping that when I opened them I would be tucked up in bed, but no the cold, grey platform still awaited me. I was thankful when at last the train arrived, at least I hadn’t been arrested.
Sitting on the train I tried to replay what had happened in the café, nothing made it any clearer. I got off the train and hurried into work, again hoping I could take my mind off of the events of earlier.
I was right I ended up getting a warning about my lateness, my last chance so to speak. I managed to sneak a short lunch break, even though I probably shouldn’t have. I just popped to the sandwich bar a got a take out.
After work I felt I needed a drink, so stopped off at a pub near the train station, I hadn’t been in there before, it was quiet, good, I needed quiet. I sat down near the window, watching the people going into and leaving the station, going home from work or getting home from work. I looked at my fellow drinkers in the bar a couple of blokes looking like they had had a hard day at the office, boy did they think they had a hard day. There was a young couple playing pool, and a flash of red caught my eye near the bar. Oh my god, wasn’t that the waitress from the café. I got up and half staggered round to where she was sitting, dressed in red sitting alone at the bar. This was getting weirder by the second, but I had to ask “Excuse me. Do you work in the café at the train station?”
The girl just looked at me like I was some kind of alien. “No, I quit two months ago to look after my Dad” She looked as though she were miles away now.
“I’m sorry, I thought I saw you this morning, must have been someone who looked like you. I’ve not had a good day that’s all, sorry to bother you” I turned to leave when she called “Hey would you like a drink, I’ve had a terrible day and maybe we could cheer each other up a bit.”
“No, please let me buy you a drink, I feel kind of stupid after coming over here like that, so what are you drinking then… By the way my name is Edward or Eddie I don’t much mind which”
“I’m Clare, and I would like a dry white wine please.”
The light was now catching her face just right and I have to say all of a sudden i felt awkward, she was beautiful and I was not the most confident person especially around women.
“So how’s your Dad?” I asked, and immedieately knew I had asked the wrong question.
“He passed away last week, we had the funeral yesterday”
“I’m sorry” I offered as a pathetic response, how could I be sorry about her father dying, I never knew him, didn’t know what he was like. Isn’t it just stupid saying things like that, as if saying something like that can ever make them feel better.
Our drinks came and there was a really awkward silence, then she said “wanna grab a seat?”
We found a table in a quiet corner and I was struggling to think of something to say trying to hide the fact I was starting to get nervous about saying the wrong thing again.
“So this women you saw this morning did she look like me then” She asked
“yeah it’s kind of weird I would have sworn it was you, but it was a bit of a stressful moment so I must have been mistaken”
“What happened then” She asked
I thought about what the hell I was supposed to tell her about this morning or even if I should tell her anything. All of a sudden I found that I was rattling on about everything, from getting up late right up to seeing her sitting there at the bar.
She didn’t interrupt or laugh or anything really, but when I finished she looked as though she was in some kind of trance.
“Are you OK? I asked
“It’s just something you said about the old man and my red dress. It’s kind of weird that’s all”
“What’s so weird about your dress it looks lovely” I offered as a compliment
“It’s not just that, the old man, my father was always getting short of breath late on that’s why I stopped working at the café, he would not let anyone do anything for him, he would always try to do it himself, thus leaving him short of breath” she paused as though trying to compose herself. I didn’t know what to say to her, luckily I didn’t have to she continued “This morning when I woke up I was getting dressed for my interview I couldn’t make up my mind when I was looking into the mirror my Dad appeared to be standing by my side and told me to wear the red dress, this red dress.”
She stopped took another drink of her wine before continuing “I got the job working at an office locally so no more travelling and I met you”.
To say I was stunned would have ranked as one of the understatements of the year, there I was in a bar, which I don’t normally do talking to a complete stranger, again something I don’t normally do and to top it all this beautiful women seems to like me. My head was spinning, again.
“Have you got a picture of your father” I asked half knowing what I was about to see.
Sure enough the man in the photo was the man I saw this morning in the café, now I was faced with yet another dilemma, should I tell her or not.
She surprised me when she said “It’s my Dad you saw this morning wasn’t it?”
She guessed when all I managed to say was a long meaningless mumble.
“I knew he would still be looking out for me, I just knew it. He said I would get the job and afterwards to go and have a drink in The Rainbow pub, where I would meet my future. It seems he knew you were the one.”