Back to Yesterday (5 page)

Glancing at her nametag, I said, “Elizabeth, I’ve been to war and back. I’m up for whatever Sophie throws my way. I think I can handle it.”

Without hesitation, she said, “If I didn’t think you could handle it, I wouldn’t be over here wasting my time giving you a heads up.” She slid out of the booth. “I need to get back to work now. Enjoy the biscuits. I made them myself.”

“Wait.” I hurriedly scribbled on a napkin and then handed it to her. “Would you mind giving this to Sophie please?”

“What is it?”

This time a smile clung to the edge of my lips. “My last name.”

The next day wasn’t anything I’d expected, even with Elizabeth’s warning. I was sitting in my usual spot when Sophie approached.

“What did you do to Elizabeth?” she asked.

Stunned, I said, “I didn’t do anything to Elizabeth.”

“She likes you. She doesn’t like anybody. How’d you do that?” Her lips were pursed and she was showing me that spunk I was becoming addicted to.

I chuckled. “Maybe I’m just a likeable kind of guy.”

She folded her arms over her chest. “Or maybe you worked some kind of voodoo on her.”

My chuckle turned into an all out laugh. “You don’t believe that.”

“Perhaps not, but–”

“Let me take you to dinner, I want to take you on a date.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea, Charlie.”

“Why not?”

“Because…because…” She uncrossed her arms and began to fidget with the dishcloth in her hand. “I’m busy. I have to wash my hair.”

“When?”

“When did you want to take me out?”

“Saturday.”

“I’m washing my hair on Saturday.”

“All day?”

“Yes, it’s…uh…an all day thing.”

I tapped my fingers on the table. “You know, you’re a terrible liar. Besides, you sort of have to let me take you out.”

“And why is that?”

“Because, I can’t make you fall in love with me if you don’t let me take you on a date. It’s sort of a condition of the bet, spending time with me.”

“There were no conditions when we made that bet.”

“The conditions were implied. Unless…” I raised a brow, “you’re scared that spending time with me will make you lose. You’re not …scared, are you?”

And there it was again, steely strength mixed with defiance. I loved it.

“Fine, but you have to take me out in broad daylight where there are plenty of witnesses.”

“Witnesses? Why would we need witnesses?”

She cast aside her dishcloth and looked me in the eye. Her oceanic eyes looked like a storm was brewing. “Because you seem a bit too perfect, Mr.
Hudson
. I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop. Also, you make silly bets. I don’t entirely trust you and–”

“You like silly bets. You
never
lose, remember?”

“We can get to know each other under the sun just as easily as we can under the moon. Can we not?”

I leaned forward, placed my elbows on the table, and scrubbed my face with both hands. She was
frustrating
.

“Okay, that was a whole lot of gobbledygook.” She opened her mouth to say something but I cut her off. “However, for the sake of making you comfortable, I’m fine with a daytime date. Picnic in the park sound good?” She nodded. “Okay, so it’s settled.”

She gripped the dishcloth in her hands and twisted it several times. “Yes, it’s settled. I’ll meet you–”

“No. I’ll pick you up properly. That’s non-negotiable.”

She huffed. “Fine, whatever.” She wrote her address on the back of an order ticket, tore it off, and handed it to me. Then, without another word she marched off like she had done battle with the devil and came out on the losing side, only she wasn’t mad. When she rounded the corner to walk into the kitchen, she was smiling.

I flipped over the ticket to read the address and then laughed out loud. She wrote…
You’re right, I never lose. I’ll meet you at the park at one o’clock. Bring fried chicken.

W
e stood there staring at the plane, Levi and I, like it was a foreign object, both of us trying to figure out the best way to use the block and tackle to our advantage.

Maikel approached us, massaging his chin, mimicking his father. “So what are we looking at?” he asked.

“We need to figure out the best way to hoist the plane so we can remove the propellers, and fix the damaged fuel line,” Levi explained. “There’s a way to do this, we just need to think.”

“I take it you’ve not lifted many planes before,” I joked.

Levi emitted a low, deep chuckle. “This will be the first. Mules, hay bales, and farming equipment are about the extent of my expertise. I was sort of hoping the guy who flew planes would have some ideas.”

“You would think, wouldn’t you?” I took a seat underneath a nearby tree to think it all through.

Maikel came and sat down beside me. “Does anybody know where you are?”

I brought my knees up and rested my forearms against them. “No.”

“Will they think you’re dead?”

I tended to think better when my hands were busy, so I picked up a stick and began making shapes in the dirt, still contemplating a plan while answering the kid’s question. “Not yet. All they know for sure is that I didn’t come back from my mission.”

It was still daylight, although it would be getting dark soon. I looked up into the sky and wondered what Sophie was doing that very minute. It would still be early in the day back home. She was most likely serving breakfast to her regulars. I would give anything if I could be back there again, sitting in a booth, watching her work.

My gaze wandered over towards the barn. I saw a hay bale shoot at the very top. “Hey, Levi, you use a ramp to slide bales of hay from there, right?”

Levi followed my line of sight. “I do. Why?”

“We could build a ramp.” I paused, mulling the idea over. “We could reinforce it, make it good and sturdy, oil it down, making it slick, and put it in front of the nose. Then tie the rope to the propeller hub. We could use the mules to pull the plane forward up the ramp by the ropes in conjunction with the block and tackle and ease the nose inch by inch up the ramp. You and I would have to hold the wing tips to keep the plane from tipping over as the mules eased her up. We could then place the timbers under each wing for support while I climb inside and lower the emergency lever to release the landing gear. Then once the wheels are down and secured, we could take her off the ramp because we wouldn’t need it anymore.” I stood, pleased with myself, and smiled. “What do you think?”

Levi stared at me, unblinking.

I laughed. “Well?”

After a minute, he said, “I was going to say that. I just needed more time to think it all through.” He grinned and looked at his son. “Come on boy, we have a ramp to build.”

We worked until nightfall. When that monumental moment happened when I climbed into the cockpit, pulled the emergency lever, and her legs came down, we shouted in celebration. We had succeeded in a task that seemed nearly impossible, yet we had not given up. We all felt it – that sense of pride. In that moment, nothing seemed impossible. I needed that and I was thankful for it.

Levi invited me into his home for dinner. We ate a modest meal of potatoes, beans, and bread. When I caught the first whiff of hot food I immediately thought about Sophie, and me sitting in my usual spot at the café, watching her carry plates of food to her customers. You never know why a memory assaults you, but I welcomed those memories whenever they would strike because she felt like home, and I missed home. I missed
her
.

Later, I took a bath and Levi offered me some clothes of his to wear. They fit well enough and I was thankful to have them. Maikel went to bed and Levi and I stayed up a while longer talking about the war and what it was doing to his country. Even though I was missing home, missing Sophie, and clinging to the hope of seeing her again, I couldn’t be sorry for being where I was. These people needed help. The whole world was in despair and in need of saving. I was only one person; however, I could sleep at night knowing I was doing
something
to help restore peace.

“As much as I miss my wife,” Levi said, “I’m relieved that she’s not here to see what is happening in this world. I don’t think I could stand to see the pain it would cause her. She had a beautiful soul.”

I understood his sentiment. “How did she die?”

“She died giving birth to Maikel,” he said quietly. “She made me promise that I would love him enough for both of us.” Lowering his eyes to the floor he said, “Every morning when I wake up I vow to keep that promise.”

“Maikel is a fine boy. You’ve done well, my friend.”

Levi said nothing for a while, contemplating, I think, and then he looked at me. “So tell me, Charles. Do you have someone special back home?”

I still wasn’t ready to share Sophie. I felt like God put her on this Earth for me alone. Maybe that was selfish of me, but part of me needed to be selfish.

Levi smiled and sensing I wasn’t going to answer, he simply said, “When you’re ready, you can tell me about her.” He patted me on the shoulder. “I’m going to bed. The spare bedroom is ready for you. We don’t have much, but what we have is yours while you’re here.”

“Thank you, Levi. I don’t know what I would have done if–”

“Don’t thank me. Just do what you do, and help win this damn war.” With that, he turned out the light.

I instantly felt lonely, and for the first time, I felt the need to talk about her. “Levi?”

“Yes?”

“If you don’t mind staying up a little longer, I would like to tell you about mine and Sophie’s first date.”

Levi turned the light back on and settled across from me. He encouraged me to start with a nod.

“First dates are awkward enough. But throw in a one-legged idiot (me) and you got yourself a disaster of epic proportions.” I laughed. “For starters, I struggled to set up our picnic. With the use of only one leg, the other being in a cast, I can only imagine how ridiculous I must have looked trying to smooth out a blanket. Tank wasn’t any help. Well, I take that back. He did carry the picnic basket for me…”