Remember Me (3 page)

The
night was a blur for Catlin once she left Ben. Upon returning from the rooftop,
the apartment welcomed her back warmly, as if it was somehow happy to have her
safely in its walls again. She sat for a while, shuddering occasionally as the
shock of what she’d almost done came to mind but she did not want to think on
the troubles of the day or the peril of the evening, preferring to muse on the
smiling stranger she had been fortunate to encounter and her thoughts of him
soon drove the chills of such remembrance’s away. Ben Ellison. Who was he and,
more importantly, why had he appeared on her roof, that night and at the very
moment she needed him? It was curious, but despite their having spent less than
half an hour together it was as if she had known him for years. There had been
some weird and instant connection as soon as they had spoken. It wasn’t a one
sided feeling on her part either, he had felt it too, she was sure of that.

Their
brief introduction continued to haunt Catlin long after she had gone to bed. She
closed her eyes and she could see him and that smile, hear his laughter stirred
up and carried along on the wind outside her window. Heavens! She was acting
like a lovelorn teenager experiencing the joys of first love rather than a
woman of thirty three who had seen enough of relationships to have every last
drop of romance kicked out of her veins. But whereas she would have normally
given herself a stern ticking off for being so immature, Catlin laughed off her
silly emotions, making fun of her own romantic nature instead of punishing it.
Still, those feelings did not allow sleep to come easily to her that night, her
mind, body and spirit being agitated by the uplifting mix of happiness, hope
and disbelief that she had met such a man and survived such a night, that by
daybreak she had snatched barely an hours rest, but she woke with the energy of
a hyperactive three year old.

The
day was as ordered as the previous night. She had planned to spend it working
on her next book, but found concentration to be as elusive as sleep and could
not settle down long enough to put any real effort into the task. Often she
caught a glimpse of her reflection in the window or a mirror as she flitted
from room to room finding, time after time, that she was grinning for no apparent
reason other than in the seconds before her mind had strayed to thoughts of her
rescuer. By mid-afternoon she had to concede defeat and admit attempting any
work was a futile effort. The few pages she had managed scribble down when she
read back over them were utter gibberish. For two days she continued in this
fretful state until she had to admit it was no use. Work was beyond her.

Hoping
that a bit of exercise would shake off the greater part of her restless energy
Catlin grabbed her walking boots, got into the car and headed out to the hills.
It took less than twenty minutes for her to reach her favourite trail, one
which led up into the highest part of the hills. Few people bothered to venture
out that far, except for the serious hikers on a weekend, so with it being only
half way through the week, she was virtually guaranteed to be undisturbed.

It
might have been the height of summer, but between the clouds in the sky and the
wind which whistled down from above the worst of the sun’s heat was carried
away before it came close to reaching her. But the weather had never bothered
Catlin, good or bad and she savoured every step she took for with each one she
was carried further away from the distractions of the city and into the
sanctuary of the wilds. She had left the low valley where she’d parked her car
some distance behind and was more than half way up the hill she was navigating
when she stopped to take a drink from her water bottle. It was so peaceful.
There were no car engines revving, no tyres or brakes squealing, for the bustle
of the city was unable to extend its reach that far. There was nothing but the
sounds of the birds singing, the insects chirruping and boots crunching their
way up the stony path behind her. Boots? Did she have company after all?

Catlin’s
heart began to sink at the prospect of company, until she heard
his
voice.

“By
thunder, you can get a crack on, can’t you?” Catlin did not so much turn as
spin around at his approach, unable to convince the beaming grin which spread
over her face as Ben trundled into view, to make itself scarce.  She had been
doubtful as to his really being there, thinking it to be a trick of the mind,
and was more than pleased to have met him again so soon.

“Ben!
What are you doing out here?”

“I’m
here because of you, of course.” Catlin was undecided as to how she should
interpret that statement it was so vague, but it did not hang around long
enough to become a point for deeper consideration. She had spent most of the
past two days (and a chunk of three nights) wondering if Fate would be kind
enough to permit them a second meeting, half afraid that it would and half
petrified it would not and then suddenly – there he was. She jogged back down
the path to join him.

“You
look tired,” she teased as he tried to catch his breath.

“It’s
been a while since I’ve had to climb anything this mountainous.”

“Come
on, old man. I’ll give you a hand. There’s a fallen tree up here you can rest
your old bones on.”

She
took his hand as it was the most natural thing in the world for her to do, and
he allowed her to drag him up the final few metres of the hill. There, they sat
down on the trunk of the tree which lay alongside the path and rested.

“So,
are you going to confess and admit the truth or not?” Ben looked panicked.

“Truth
about what exactly?”

“Back
up there, there’s no need to go on the defensive. I was just referring to the
real reason for your coming out here.” He relaxed.

“Oh
that. I told you – I’m here because of you.”

“You’ll
have to explain that in a bit more detail. That you’re here because of me could
mean several things. You’re not one of those nutty stalker fan types are you,
who just has to be wherever I am at all times?” she joked. His breath
recovered, Ben gave her one of those smiles which bypassed all sensibilities.

“No,
you’re quite safe. I came out as you reminded me of this place. When I was on
your roof it came back to me how much I liked it out here. This just happens to
be my favourite route through the hills.”

“It’s
mine too. Quite a coincidence though, that we should both pick to come for a
hike on this same trail, at the same time and meet for a second time entirely
by chance.”

“I
couldn’t agree more. It is definitely odd. I kept thinking the same thing over
and over after we had gone our separate ways.”

“Did
you?”

Catlin
was secretly pleased to find out she’d not been alone in her restlessness
following their meeting. “Perhaps there’s a reason for it.” There she was again,
flirting with him. Why couldn’t she stop herself from doing it? The last thing
she wanted to do was frighten off the one person she seemed to have a genuine
connection with, but as before, Ben did not seem inclined to make a run for it.

“I’m
sure there is,” he replied. The tone of his voice was indecipherable, leaving
Catlin questioning if she had already blown what tiny chance she had of forming
a friendship with him, but then she saw the cheeky gleam of a grin playing
about his eyes, and she was reassured that nothing had changed in the days that
had passed since they parted ways on the rooftop. “Come on. It’s pretty obvious
I’m out of condition. Let’s get moving.”

They
strolled on for hours more, halting here and there as they discussed certain
topics they had a shared love of in deeper detail. They were both avid readers,
with the curious mix of fantasy, horror, whimsy and poetry ranking in their top
five shared favourites. They had a mutual passion for the environment and
animal welfare, something which caused Catlin to recount how she had once waded
into a river in an evening dress in order to rescue a pigeon that had fallen
into the water. It was the first time her actions were not laughed at. Ben in
turn told her how he had got himself torn to bits scrambling through a thorn
bush to reach a rabbit that was tangled up in some discarded wire.

Their
tastes in music were just as varied. They loved classical pieces, but were
equally happy to chill out to the easy going songs of the sixties and
seventies. Television was the least debated area, not because they could not
agree on them, but rather it was due to their both having little time to watch
the long running series currently favoured. Life was just not compatible with
programming schedules, but the conversation picked up as soon as Catlin confessed
a weakness for classic movies and television shows.  It went on like that for
the rest of the afternoon. It was as if each of them had, for the first time in
their lives, found someone who did not just have similar interests and tastes,
but did not ridicule them for their actions.

The
hours flew by unobserved, fleeting as a fractured second and yet it was as if
they had been out there for an age and that time had ceased to be. Catlin had
frequently wondered if time as a concept really existed. How could minutes feel
like hours and hours like seconds if there was such a thing as ‘time’? She
voiced her query without thinking, the ease of communication with Ben having
lowered her defences and she could not stop the words from pouring out of her
mouth. She began to regret them instantly – such questions had made her a
laughing stock in the past, but again proved himself unlike any other
individual she had encountered before and he simply looked over at her and
said,

“If
you want my opinion on the subject, I get more certain with every passing
moment that time as we think of it is of very little importance.”

It
seemed to last forever, but too soon they were back at Catlin’s car. It wasn’t
until then she realised that, at some point unknown to her, Ben had taken hold
of her hand and they were still linked together as they reached the car park.

“Where’s
your car?” Catlin enquired, seeing the single vehicle there was hers.

“I’ve
not got one. Someone gave me a lift.”

“In
that case, do you need a lift back to town?” She was inwardly willing him to
accept her offer.

“Thanks,
but I’m not heading that way.”

“Right.
Well, this is me so I’ll be saying good-bye.”

“Yeah,
bye.” Ben lifted the hand which held hers slightly, but kept hold of it, as
reluctant to let go as she was, perhaps more so as he squeezed it tighter as
she looked to her car. Catlin’s fingers too wrapped themselves around his in an
involuntary response, locking their hands together more firmly than they had
been at any point during their walk.

“I’ve
had a great time talking with you this afternoon,” he said quietly, as if
afraid that by speaking he was violating some code of silence.

“I
enjoyed it too. Maybe we could do it again?”

“Maybe
we could. Let’s hope so, anyway.”

“Soon?”

“The
sooner the better. There’s no telling when I might be called away.”

Catlin’s
stomach curled inside as her feelings took the blow. She had forgotten along
the way that Ben was not a local and was merely on a flying visit to the area.
The disappointment caused her fingers to slacken, alerting Ben to the alteration
in her mood.

“If
my luck holds out I should be around for a while. I’m certainly not planning on
leaving yet. It’s been a long time since I’ve met someone as intriguing as
you.” Intriguing? She liked that. Catlin’s head lifted, as did her heart, at that
and their eyes met fully. Ben reached up and swept a stray strand of her hair,
which had curled in the wind, back into place, allowing the tips of his fingers
to brush lightly against her cheek. There was something magical in that touch,
something so powerful in its source it had to of another world. Catlin was not
exactly a novice where men were concerned, but the thrill of his skin connecting
with hers made her feel as if it was the first time a man had laid hands upon
her and she quivered inside.

The
sparks that were flying between them could have set a wildfire raging, but as
she thought he was going to move in and kiss her, Ben hastily withdrew his hand
and took an unsteady step backwards.

“You’d
better be going. It’s later than it looks and you don’t want to be out here
after dark.

“Sure,”
Catlin stammered out, trying to regain some kind of composure. “Are you certain
about a lift?”

“Positive.
I’ll be on my way soon enough.” Catlin unlocked her car and began to get in to
it.

“If
you find yourself at a loose end any time, you know where to find me. Feel free
to pop in any time.”

“If
I’ve the chance to, I’ll come by soon.” Ben made a valiant attempt to appear
happier than he was, but Catlin, an expert in masking the darker emotions, saw
right through him. Shooting him the forced smile of her trade Catlin climbed
into her car and drove off. She took a final glance back in her rear view
mirror to where she had left him – a lonesome figure, hand raised in a
farewell, gradually fading into the distance.