To catch up: After Bryan’s funeral, I had a chat with my dad, then decided to get out and go for a drive. I found myself in an area with several small shops near Rice University. I parked my car and went into a dress shop. I was thumbing through the selection when I felt as if I were being watched. I looked up and found myself face to face with someone I had seen a while back; someone I never expected to see again.

Continuing:

I was face to face with someone that Lisa and I had seen while dining at Floyd’s and had agreed could possibly be the most beautiful woman on earth. I was stunned, and I’m not very good at hiding a surprise like that unless I have a chance to prepare. When I suddenly found myself close to this incredibly beautiful girl, I involuntarily put my hand to my chest. I felt my heart racing and my face blushing. She didn’t have to be a really perceptive person to see that something was going on inside me, and her face showed her concern. “Are you OK?”

“Yes, yes, I’m fine. You just kind of startled me.”

“You look very familiar. Have we met?”

“Not formally, but I go to Floyd’s a bit with my family.”

“That’s it! Floyd’s! How could I forget that beautiful face? Your sister was there, too?”

“My cousin.”

“Your cousin! By the way, I should introduce myself. I’m Laura Lake.”

“Sarah Brooks. I’m pleased to meet you.”

“I remember that night at Floyd's. I’ve been there a few times, but I’ve never seen many beautiful girls there. That night, though, I was amazed at you and your cousin. But I thought, ‘This is an unusual family. There’s one dad, two moms who appear to be clones, and two daughters who appear to be sisters.’ I could tell there was a lot of love there, and I remember thinking, ‘I wish I had a family like that!’ And the beauty! It runs in the family! Are you maybe … models?”

“Models? … no way. But you must have caught me looking at you! I tried not to stare, but you were hard to look away from! You were stunning that night. I don’t think anyone would say otherwise. So you were girl watching while on a date with a guy.” I smiled to soften the accusation.

“Yeah, a date with my brother. He insists I get out more. He’s never been to medical school, so he doesn’t realize the amount of time it takes.”

“You’re in medical school? That’s where I hope to be headed as soon as I finish my undergraduate work.”

“Rice?”

“Yes, you go to Rice?”

“Yes! Sometime we should get together and I’ll tell you the best teachers and the ones to avoid. Most of the teachers are excellent, but some people just can’t teach, and the students are the ones who pay for it.”

“Oh, I’m very well aware of that. Would you like to come by my house sometime? I live near here, on Kirby Drive.”

“Sure! What’s your cell number?”

I gave her my number. She punched it in on her phone and my phone buzzed.

“Now, I have your number and you have mine. Are you dating anyone?”

“No, and to give you the reason I’d have to tell you quite a long story.”

“Whoa! Sounds interesting! I’m not dating anyone right now either … except for my brother. You might call it a ‘charity date’.”

“I wouldn’t know. After I saw you, I hardly noticed him at all. Being your brother, though, I would find it hard to believe he needs a ‘charity date’.”

“Well, he was facing away from your table or he definitely would have noticed both of y’all.”

“When we got home that night, Lisa asked me if I had noticed you. She called you a ‘knockout’.”

“Really? Well, I guess there was a lot of girl-watching going on at Floyd’s that night.”

“Actually, we probably wouldn’t have been girl watching, but a ‘knockout’ walked into the room. I think maybe most of the people in the room became girl-watchers when that happened.”

“Nah, I’m just ‘plain Jane’.”

“Oh, no. Don’t try to sell that shit to anybody!” I put my hand to my mouth. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to say that! I don’t talk like that! I’m so embarrassed!”

She smiled, “It’s Ok. I’ll take a compliment in any language. So you and your cousin don’t usually girl-watch?”

”It’s definitely not out of the question for me. When I tell you some of the problems I’ve had with boys, you’ll understand why an alternative seems somewhat attractive. I don’t want to say too much for Lisa …what the hell … she likes girls more every day. You should meet her yourself.”

“I definitely would like to meet her. Sounds like we have a lot in common.” She smiled, then looked at her watch and her smile went away. “Oh, gotta go. Give me a call soon. If I don’t get a call, I’ll be a bit disappointed, but I’ll understand.”

“I’ll call! Hope to see you again!”

She left and I watched her leave. She was beautiful even leaving. The quick meeting and her beauty left me a bit disoriented. I decided I was too distracted now to shop, so I headed my SUV toward home, hoping Lisa was there so I could tell her about my new girlfriend.

Lisa was home, and she met me at the door with an accusation. “I’ll bet you went shopping. Find anything?”

“Yes, I didn’t buy anything, but you wouldn’t guess what I found. Come to the bedroom.”

We went to my bedroom; now our bedroom. I sat on the bed and she did the same. “I found a lake.”

“Were we needing a lake?”

“No. I found Laura Lake.”

“Well, it sounds like a girl, but could you maybe give me more details?”

“She sometimes dines at Floyd’s.”

Lisa became wide-eyed. “No! You found the knockout?”

“Yes. She is that. Get this; she’s in medical school at Rice!”

“Oh my God.”

“I have her cell phone number. She said she would come by some time and give me a list of the best and worst teachers at Rice.”

“So, with Bryan gone maybe you’re gonna swing the other way?”

“Well, I’m pretty sure she prefers girls, but this is strictly business!”

“Yeah, until it’s not!”

“I know. She’s so beautiful! I think I’m in love … in a platonic way!”

“Sarah, you don’t have a platonic relationship with a girl like that. I’m sure a lot of guys have fed her that line, though. When y’all finish with your ‘business’, I’d like to chat with her.”

“What you’re thinking of is not called a ‘chat’.

“Lisa smiled. Let’s say I’m using it as a euphemism.”

“Lisa, I saw her first! She’s so beautiful!”

“Technically, I saw her first. I saw her reflection in a window before she came into the room.”

“I can’t argue with that since you sometimes see things before they happen, but I made contact first.”

“Just let me know when she’s coming so I can meet her.”

“Sure, as long as you mean m-e-e-t, and not m-e-a-t.”

“Ewww! Gross! Another one from your days as a boy?”

“Yeah. One of the grosser ones, but not the grossest. There are some I wouldn’t verbalize and some I wish I could un-hear.”

“Sorry you had to go through that, cousin. Look, I have a lab. I’ll be back in a couple of hours. See you.”

“Bye, Lisa.”

Lisa left and I lay across my bed and thought about Laura. She wished she had a family like mine. What was her family like? All I knew was that she had a brother. She could marry into my family. I smiled to myself as I thought about Lisa and me fighting over her. Then I realized I was being shallow. I just knew she was beautiful and smart and I was already thinking about marriage.

I decided to text her about coming over. I typed “What time Saturday is good for you?” Then, “7 1 3 END CALL”. I can’t do this! I thought texting her would be easy. I’m acting like a teen-aged boy! I typed again. This time, I typed in her whole number, then forced myself to send the text.
I lay back on the bed. She’s so beautiful!

The doorbell rand and I rush toward the front door. Laura was right on time. I opened the door, but it wasn’t Laura. It was…. No, it couldn’t be. What the hell is happening? I was confused, but I managed to speak. “Come in!”

I turned toward the door as I closed it. “Bryan, this is impossible! What is going on? You’re supposed to be …!”

Next: Undead, maybe?