Page 19 of Choose Us

“Me too.”

The artificial grass in the middle area of the open space offered the most unobstructed view. There were various ways to use the space: a mixture of solid white tables, waterproof sofas, and hammocks were strategically placed around the edges. When we saw a young couple vacate the sofa on the eastern side, we made a beeline for it.

We got comfortable and spent the next thirty minutes watching, admiring, and living in the moment. We didn’t say a great deal; sometimes it was better that way.

“I could stay up here forever.” I sighed.

“Me too.”

“I think I’d like to come back here again before I leave,” I said.

“We can do that.”Beth smiled.

My stomach made a loud grumble. The woman next to us looked my way—totally embarrassing.

“I thinkI’m hungry.”

“Shall we head back to the deck below? The guy said there was a smallrestaurant.”

“Sure, let’s do that.”

We took the stairs this time; after the galactic elevator I half expected a slide to extend from the side of the building and that be the only way down. Thankfully, it wasn’t.

Walking down the steps was surreal. I felt unstable in the vast open space. We were so high up in the Japanese skyline that my legs felt weak, and there was no other preferably more enclosed way down to the lower observation deck. I tried not to look beyond the edge. I concentrated on my feet; taking one step at a time. I wasn’t afraid of heights, but the altitude and lack of food in my stomach made me queasy.

I didn’t alert Beth. Instead, I focused on the people around me. There was an escalator to the right of the stairs. It headed up in the opposite direction, which did not help the ever-growing feeling I was floating in space.

Wait—

I did adouble take.

The escalator was filled with Japanese teens dressed extravagantly in bright colours and platform shoes, but that wasn’t what caught my eye. Behind the tall guy with the purple hair and black beret I saw the profile of a woman with bouncyblonde hair.

Surely that’s not—itcouldn’t be.

I stoppedimmediately.

The moment was like something out of a movie. I left Beth stomping down the steep steps and ran back up, one step after another, but the escalator was moving too fast. I tried to run, but the crowds charged towards me with purpose. I was the inconvenience shoving past people to get a betterlook ather.

It wasimpossible.

She was gone. I refrained from shouting. I only saw the back of her head as the person beside her whisperedin her ear.

No, my mind was playing tricks on me. I had a feeling that would happen.

“Hol, what are you doing?” Realising I’d gone AWOL, Beth clambered after me. “Holly, hold on. What’s wrong?”

It couldn’t have been her.

Could it?

The odds were slim at best.

I shook my head. “Sorry, I thought...Never mind.”

“You looked possessed. Don’t scare me like that.” She whacked my arm, and we continued down the stairs. I turned towards the elevator once, twice, and a final time—nothing.

Whoever it was, she was gone.