The Girl with a Mona Lisa Smile - LAZARUS (online e reader txt) 📗

The girl with a Mona Lisa Smile
Chapter one

In the corner a jazz player was making love to his sax.
The smoke filled room was alive with men and women living out their un-realities. For this booze perfumed dance floor was the place where intoxicating fantasies were played out to mask the mundane lives of these players, those mired down in the doldrums of mediocrity.
A kiss here…a stolen touch there. The mood was mellow. A lonely piano joined and married the sax, and harmony permeated the toxic air. The aura of this joint was exactly where I wanted to be…where I yearned to be. I felt at home here.
Across the patron filled club I saw the two most enchanting eyes looking straight at me. Boldly, those eyes stared as if trying to peer into my soul. I returned the challenge and for an eternity we fused together as one. I then blinked; she smiled a Mona Lisa smile at me.
Not totally convinced as to her intentions, I stood my ground, not wanting to leave my cold glass of beer.
She approached…walking like a catwalk artist, closing the chasm between us. Slowly, she parted the haze that was as thick as an early morning mist over a lake in late autumn. Without blinking she now stood a mere few inches from my face.
“Hi, I’m Liza. What do your parents call you?” She whispered into my ear.
“Leo. Short for Leopold,” I answered, while still looking into those hazel eyes. Those eyes, their hue should be patented; bottled… if it were possible to keep such a color from becoming adulterated by corrupt surroundings. They belonged not on earth.
Behind her I heard, “We’re taking a half hour break: we’ll be back soon. Ya’ll enjoy yourselves.”
She said, “Well Leo, my lion, are you just going to stand there, or are you going to ask me to dance?”
I was glad that Nora Jones’ song, “Sunrise” was playing. I’m not into fast dances.
On the crowded floor she held me close. I was able to feel her body heat through my thin t-shirt. I inhaled her breath as if I depended on it for survival. Her breath was intoxicating. Her arms around me, lead me to believe that we have been lover for as long as eternity. I closed my eyes, and imagined that we were the only couple here that evening on that crowded dance floor. She whispered the old cliché “Your place or mine?”
I paid for our drinks and bade Frank the waiter goodnight. He looked at me and winked, and under his breath he said, “You lucky son-of-a gun.”
We skipped across the wet boulevard and headed north towards my place, that was just around the corner on Fifth Street. The October air was crisp and warned us that old man winter was peeking around the corner. Here in upper New York State winters can get brutal.
With her arms wrapped around mine, and me with both hands deep in my pockets, it reminded me of Bob Dylan’s album cover, “Free Wheelin’.”
With Nora’s haunting voice still echoing in my mind, we raced up the short flight of steps that lead to my place. I fumbled for my keys, as she placed a kiss on my flushed cheek.
We tumbled; practically falling into my one bedroom flat…it is humble but neat. Samantha greeted us with a friendly rub and a purr that seemed to ask, “Where the heck is my dinner?”
Liza patted my cat and Samantha raised her back to accentuate the feeling. She is such a moocher; not just for food, but also for affection. She lives for food and sweet attention. Come to think of it…I’m as shameless as she is.
Tonight promised to be an evening that will satisfy one of those two desires.


Chapter Two

Immediately Liza settled herself on my ratty couch. I was given it by a good friend who moved back with his parents. The coils were good, so I just threw a large blanket over it and it was as good as new. Many times, after a wild party I had insisted that a too-drunk-to-drive friend should sleep on it overnight.
Liza looked so comfortable and lovely sitting there on it that I vowed to keep that piece of furniture in my possession for the rest of my days.
“What would you like?”I asked her. “I have beer, imported, also an opened bottle of Pinot Noire. Or my favorite rum: Mount Gay from Barbados.” I added.
“Rum will do, Leo. Neat.”Her voice was mesmerizing. I almost pinched myself; for maybe this was just a dream, and she was an earth angel sent to please me, or to punish me for some grave sin that I may have committed. Oh, I hope the punishment would be sweet.
“So? Are you going to stand there? I’m getting thirstier by the second.”
That snapped me out of my day-dream, and I left for the kitchen, where I kept my booze. “God, I hope I’m not making myself look juvenile.” I said to myself.
I came back to find her looking through my collection of music. “I see that you are into just about all genre of music. Is there anything that you favor?”
“It’s hard to say, but I love the classics, such as Mozart, Bach, and Vivaldi, to name a few. But right now I’m focusing on the old masters of jazz. You know…like Ella, Etta James, and Benny Goodman. Even the salty sounds of Billie Holiday. That era was so grand…I wish that I could transport myself back to those fantastic days. Smoke-filled clubs with awesome live band music. Those were the days of unforgettable tunes. Now, they are merely called ‘oldies’. What a shame!”
After accepting the drink, she took a sip, and patted the place next to her on the sofa, and said,” Sit here. I have to tell you a secret.”I sat down, as she continued, “I’m not what I seem to be. I’ve been watching you for awhile. You frequent that club and others similar to it. I have seen that lust in your eyes; the lust for that sort of music. So, my dear Leo, I have something that will blow you away. A proposal.” As she said this I was looking at those enchanting eyes of hers, and because of them, I only caught part of what she was saying. But, I nodded in agreement.
“Good. So here’s the deal. You are to be my escort, and we can go back in time to any place you wish to visit. New Orleans, New York, Memphis in the thirties…you pick, and poof we will be there. What do you say, my Leo, the lion?’
“I don’t understand. Are you telling me that you can make my dream, the one of actually being able to live in or visit any era I choose? Imposssible!”
“Do you want proof, my ’doubting Leo’? I will show you, but first, my drink. Tell more of yourself. I see a stack of old dusty lps on your shelf. Do you actually listen to them? Today cds and dvds sound so much clearer.”
“True, but the ‘feel’ of the sound is lost; not unlike those old 33 1/3 long playing vinyl records. Here, let me put one on for you.”
I picked up one from my vast collection. It was Sarah Vaughn’s A Prelude to a Kiss. I dimmed the lights and told Liza to imagine being there when Sarah crooned out this wonderful song. I took a sip of my rum, and as the music filled our space I took Liza’s hand we started to dance. Her long brown hair with reddish highlights brushed against my face. It smelled like spring in early April when nature comes alive. I closed my eyes and imagined lying down in a meadow strewn about with wildflowers.
Next, to my surprise, the song that we were listening to prematurely faded away prematurely. I opened my eyes to find us standing in the very field which a couple of seconds ago was merely my imagining.
“How..?” I began. She touched my lips with a slender finger and said, “Shh, Enjoy the moment. I’ll explain later.””This is the same place where I used to play in. This hill that we’re on, and that small lake down below.” I told her, as I gazed in amazement.
“Yes, Leo, I remember that also. When you were about twelve, you came here by yourself to try and catch a few butterflies. I came over, and ask to see your collection. Do you remember that day?”
“That was you?” I cried. “But, how?”
“As I already said, I’ll explain later. Ok?”
She lay on the soft grass and pulled me down next to her. I was sure that I was dreaming all of this…or was I? But the look in those lovely eyes and the sensual kiss that she gave me next, surprised me and made me wish that this wouldn’t end…be it a dream…or not.

Publication Date: 10-23-2010

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