Coreopsis 6-e

   “You were right in your assumption,” she spoke louder so he could hear her. 

   “Never?”

   “No.”

   “I envy you.” He drew a sharp breath as the cold water caressed his face. 

   “You know nothing about my personal life, don’t envy me.”

   “You have freedom.” He reached out and touched her face. “Freedom to choose a mate that will be good to you and love you.”

   “Your wife doesn’t love you?”

   “Nor I her.”

   “That must make for an interesting relationship?” She tried to keep the pace of the conversation as quick as she could.

   “There is something about you; I don’t know what it is.” He gazed at her for a moment. “I feel like you can see right through me. As if you can see my secrets and my deepest fears; as if I am transparent.” He closed his eyes. “What do you see?”

     Orion didn’t know how right he was. 

   She shook off all the thoughts rolling through her mind. “Shall I tell the Prince what he wants to hear or shall I be honest with the man?”

   His voice was almost a whisper when he answered her. “Be honest with me. I feel not enough people are honest with me.” His clothes were covered with sweat. 

   She closed her eyes, “your son is your only source of joy.” She saw him reading to his son at different stages of life. In the blink of an eye, she saw them lying together asleep on a couch, his son wrapped in his arms. “Your sister is your sanctuary.” She saw him lying in his sister’s room. She saw them talking as they walked through a garden. She wouldn’t tell him the other things she saw. “Outwardly you’re a corpse. Bones wrapped in flesh. Your eyes are dark. They are lifeless and empty. You have wondered why you haven’t died. You wish death to end your physical pain but it never comes.”

   His blood ran cold as she talked. How did she know all of this?

   “I have never met anyone like you. You are different. I find it easy to be around you.”

   “I was beginning to think you couldn’t engage in a conversation.” She smiled.

   “There you go being a tease again.” He gagged. She helped him raise up. His breathing was rapid and shallow. She held him up until her arm gave out. Once he was able to lay back down on the couch, he faded to sleep.

  When she had gathered her wits about her, she got up collecting a suit case from the closet where the porter put her bags. When she emerged from the bathroom, she had on lime green pajama’s and matching socks. 

   “Someone noticed my matching socks, look at you.” He ribbed. 

   “I just find it odd when a man matches. Usually they just put on whatever is in the floor. Well, the men in my life pick up whatever is in the floor.” She shivered, “is there no hot water on this train?” 

   He smiled, “Luke warm at best.”

   She plunked her suitcase back in the closet, quickly folding her arms across her chest; then placed her hands under her arms. “Oh my Sweet Jesus.”

   “Lay down.” He instructed calmly.

   She sat there a moment just shivering. He got up, kneeling she thought, but in reality falling in front of her. She slowly lay down. He opened a compartment under her seat. It was full of pillows and blankets. Gently, he lifted her head placing it back down on a pillow.

   “Do you want to dry your hair?”   

   “I never do. I don’t even own a hair dryer.” She chattered.

   He then took out a blanket wrapping her in it. He even tucked it under her feet.

   “I don’t think I can survive another shower like that.” She closed her eyes, snuggling into the blanket.

   Orion became dizzy. He steadied himself with his hand on the edge of her seat. His lungs began to burn with a different ache. “What kind of perfume are you wearing?”

   “Why?” His question caught her off guard.

   His breath jammed in his chest. All he could feel was his heart pound in his ears. His senses were flooded with her smell. 

   “Please don’t wear it any more.”

   “That’s all I brought.” She opened her eyes. His back was toward her now. She watched his head weave on top of his neck. 

    “I’ll buy you some at the next stop.”

    “Is it that bad?” She giggled. 

   He covered his mouth with his hand to conceal his rapid breathing. She was afraid he was going to be sick again. “Quite to the contrary.” He crawled on his hands and knees over to his seat, stretching out with his back to her. 

   Okay, she thought. That’s never happened to me before. She shrugged it off, drifting into sleep as she became warm.