The Other Side (short fiction) Ch. 10 by Leanne Dyck

 Ch. 9 Mara has a magical day--a customer calls to thank her, her boss compliments her work, and she finds the perfect dress.

The Other Side

Chapter ten

I got to wear my dress that Saturday night when Owen took me out for diner at Mickey's--a new restaurant that had just opened. He said it was my reward for not being a--well, you know what--when he'd gone to hockey with the guys.

Owen squeezed us into one of the last parking spots. As I climbed out of the car, he directed my attention to the marquee.

"The Beat Tells," he read. "Clever, eh? They're a Beatles cover band."

Inside, colourful Flower Power posters decorated the walls and a mirrored disco ball hung over the dance floor. A bottle-blonde in a tie-dyed tee with bell-bottoms hugging her hips ushered us into a high-backed booth.

"See, I told you your dress would be perfect," Owen said when the server left. "You don't have to feel embarrassed by the way you're dressed. Well, at least not here."

His comment kicked me hard in the ego. The dress was someone's reject. Was I really that poor, that tacky?

The server brought us menus. The lava lamp in the middle of the table set the mood but offered barely enough light to read.

"Find something to eat?" Owen asked.

"I'm not really..." 

"What's the matter? Do you want to leave?"

The restaurant filled with applause as the band took the stage.

The soothing tones of Here Comes the Sun comforted me. I looked down at the dress and ran a hand over the fabric. "No." I breathed in and told myself that I liked the dress. "I like it here." I breathed out and told myself that I looked pretty--and if no one else thought so it was too bad for them.

Owen ordered for us. The service was prompt; the food delicious.

Owen leaned across the table. "Do you want to dance?" He leaned back. "It's okay. Of course, you don't and I understand you're--."

"Yes, let's," I told him.

"You would? Well, okay... Okay, great." He stood up and walked over to my chair.

I tried to get up but couldn't move. I was stuck between the old and new me. 

Owen wrapped his hand around mine. His touch comforted me.

Hand-in-hand, we walked to the dance floor. He drew me into his arms; I closed my eyes and let the music pick me up and carry me away.

***

Inside the car, headed home, Owen was so quiet that I began to worry.

I thought he knew:  about the wall, about the world, about the bunny, about--.

"You know," he said, "I think that was the first time we dance in public."

I could breathe. I forced sunlight into my words. "No, silly. We danced at our wedding."

"Oh, yeah, I forgot. We danced for half a song and then you had to go throw-up or something. You've always been way too shy, but you weren't tonight." He fell silent, but finally asked, "Have you met someone?"

Married people aren't supposed to keep secrets from one another, but how could I tell him. What could I tell him? He'd think I was...

"Is there another man?"

"I love you," I said. "It's just that my work is going so much better."

"Great."

"And," I added, "I really like living in our new house."

"Oh, yeah, about that," he said, "What's the world behind the wall?"

The floor fell out from under my feet. "What?"

"You've been talking in your sleep. 'The world behind the wall. The world behind the wall.' Over and over again, like that. You keep waking me up. So, what's up?"

"I...I...have no idea. It must just have been a dream."

photo by ldyck

Chapter eleven

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On this blog in August...

Every Sunday and Wednesday in August

from Sunday, August 1 to Wednesday, August 25

I will continue to publish installments of 

The Other Side

until...

Sunday, August 29

Book Review

Skinny Legs and All

Tom Robbins

photo by bdyck

I don't have a driver's license. Even if I did I'm not sure I would be courageous enough to drive in Vancouver. And yet there were many literary treats--author readings, writing workshops, literary festivals--beckoning me to that huge city.

What did I do?

The Other Side (short fiction) Ch. 9 by Leanne Dyck

 Ch. 8 When Owen leaves to spend the evening with his friends, Mara runs down to the laundry room. She hears the music again and finds a secret passageway to an exotic world.

The Other Side

Chapter nine

The next day I pushed back the covers before my alarm clock rang. "Feeling groovy," I sang.

"Not," Owen groaned and pulled the covers over his head.

I followed a rich aroma to my first mug of coffee. One tasted so good it led to another. Gazing out the kitchen window, I wondered was there really a bunny living inside my laundry room wall? Exactly where did I go last night?

The clock on the microwave screamed at me, You're going to be late for work. Boogie!

I flew from the bathroom to the bedroom to the front door and down the sidewalk. The bus raced me to the stop, but I won and climbed on.

"Good morning," the driver said.

"Good? It's magical," I told him.

Halfway through the morning, a customer called to thank me for being so patient with her.

"Feeling," I sang in the stall of the woman's washroom.

"Groovy," someone sang in reply.

My...boss...stood at the sink. "So, you're a Simon and Garfunkel fan, too, eh?" She dried her hands. "I heard that a customer called to thank you. Keep up the good work." She smiled...at...me.

I drifted on fluffy white clouds to the end of my shift.

***

My route to the bus stop led me past a mom-and-pop shop, a bookstore, a bank, and a second-hand clothing store. On one day or another, I'd stopped at them all except the rag shop. I always sped past it at a quick clip without even peeking, but not that day. That day I looked. The ivory dress with small purple flowers had a full skirt and wide sleeves. 

Bells chimed as I pushed the door open. I thought the store would be messy and smell like someone's attic, but it was bright and clean. Clothing was organized under calligraphy signs. Baroque music played. Light bounced off the mirrored wall behind the sales counter.

"Welcome to Mary Claire's." The sales clerk was stylishly dressed in what appeared to me to be a look right out of a 1960s copy of Vogue. 

"I'd like to see..."

"Ah, the dress."

Was she a mind reader? Or had she simply noticed me outside transfixed by it?

She removed the dress from the display window and led me past the mirrored wall to the first of three dressing rooms.

I pulled the dress down over my head and the transformation was immediate. My mousy brown hair appeared two shades lighter. My eyes shone and my skin glowed. Of course, I bought the dress.

Chapter ten 

Ensure you don't miss a chapter, follow me on Twitter, Linked In, and Facebook.

On this blog in August...

Every Sunday and Wednesday in August

from Sunday, August 1 to Wednesday, August 25

I will continue to publish installments of 

The Other Side

until...

Sunday, August 29

Book Review

Skinny Legs and All

Tom Robbins