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Quillon was not having a great day. It started out, good enough and of course in the end his friends had to drag him to some backwater town on some backwater festival, that was so cool and interesting, and that Quillon would just love it.
In the end, it of course turned out to be a sham, and nothing really interesting was happening around this festival. The only thing good was the food, and unfortunately it was disappearing quickly.
For all their excitement and eagerness, all of his supposed friends already left and only him and Mace were still walking around this dump and laughed at all the vendors and performers. Maybe that isn't really nice, but Qui didn't care in this moment, because that was the only thing that kept him from breaking and lashing out on anyone who passes him by.
This day would be a waste if it wasn't for Mace. Precious, uptight but still lovable Mace, who helped him get over his anger and bitterness and actually enjoy this stupid festival, and not think about how he wants to burn it all to the ground.
"Hey, look at that Qui! A world known matchmaker. Is correct 90 percent of the time! As if! Wanna go for it?", He asked, giggling to himself and Quillon joined him and looked over the leaflet. He chuckled at the colorful commercial and nodded:" Sure it won't hurt".
Looking at the leaflet for directions they soon stumbled upon a small tent before which sat a sign that said:" World renown matchmaker! Come inside and find out who is your next romantic flame!". Both of us snickered at that, and bickered for a bit who will enter first. After playing rock, paper, scissors, Mace won so he was the one who entered first.
I waited patiently for him to finish, and because of boredom my gaze was scanning the crowd not focusing on anything particular, just flickering around. Spotting a couple from the corner of my eye, I started to wonder what nonsence will this matchmaker tell me. How will the matchmaker look like?
Some old hag, trying to get some change no doubt. Or maybe it is a real deal? I snorted at that, and continued to think about it, when a tap on my shoulder caught me by surprise and I turned around spotting Mace. "Hey how was it?", I asked, smiling at him and expecting him to smile back.
Both of us came over here, to see how bad it all is, and then poke fun at it. Sure, we were both single, but right now we didn't want nor look for more complications in our lives, so we stayed away from women and I must say we lived happier lives.
However Mace didn't return my smile. He actually seemed thoughtful and confused more than anything else, and because that caught me off guard I didn't know what to say next, so we fell into silence. I waited expectantly for his answer, while Mace just looked at me (more like through me), his eyes and mind somewhere far away.
"I don't know how to explain it. It was an interesting experience, and he told me many things", he said distractedly and I wondered what had rattled him so hard, he was so lost in thought. Not many things could surprise or scare Mace, so I was really curious what had happened.
"So it's a male?", I asked and Mace jerked out from his thoughts and for the first time actually looked at me. "Yes, yes the matchmaker is male. Come on your turn. I will tell you everything when you return", he promised and I nodded, punching him in the shoulder, giving him an evil grin. "It's a promise", Mace smiled back and waved me away.
Before I could enter the tent I had to hunch a little, because I was too high for the entrance apparently. When I got inside, I was still hunched over, because everything was too low for me. This matchmaker person must be pretty short, I mussed and started to look over the tent.
There was the smell of incense in the air and a lot of candles and lamps around. It was somehow pretty dark inside, even with all the candles, and a couple of chairs were standing around in no particular order. The chair in the center was occupied by a small being, that had a lot of wrinkles and almost didn't look human. The old man had a pale complexion, some white hair on his head, big ears and he was holding a crystal ball in his hands.
His eyes were closed and he didn't move even when I sat down opposite of him and cleaned my throat, to make him aware I was here. "What came you here for, hmmm?", the old man croaked and I flinched because for some reason his voice made my hairs on my back rise. It wasn't fear, it was more like.... anticipation.
"I thought you were a matchmaker? Do you have other skills I don't know about?", I asked wryly, finding his speech pattern weird. Is he doing it deliberately or not? "Matchmaker I am, but also see the future I can. Want something to know from it, hmmm?".
I thought about it and decided against it. I didn't need to know my future, because it would upset the present. My philosophy is after all live in the moment. And I abide by it. "No, I don't want to know anything from my future, except who will be my future lover".
The small man cackled and it sounded so otherworldly I found myself yet again questioning if he really was an alien or not. "Good that is. Simple task you have given me. Too curious for their own good others are. Not like them you are. Wiser beyond your years you seem. For making my life easier I thank you", the smaller being said, and returned his focus on the ball in front of him.
I waited patiently, intrigued by what the man will say. When the man opened his eyes, his voice became powerful and spread across the room, and I felt his voice vibrating through my own body. "What your name is?", he asked and I answered:" My name is Quillon. If you don't mind me asking what is your name?"
"Yoda", answered the man, and I frowned. "Yoda? That is your name?".
"Yes", a pause then:" Now don't interrupt me. Important this is. Lose the concentration I will". I was silent, until Yoda (it must be his stage name, nobody is called Yoda in real life. Right?) continued.
"Find you it will. A great and hard experience I see. In the end worth it, will it be. When you most need it, appear before you it will. Don't ignore the signs, or the chance pass it will. Never again presented it will be to you. Too stubborn you can be, but for this you must not. Don't let the mistakes of your past define you. Fight against them, you must", Yoda finished seemingly satisfied with what he said.
I blinked, and blinked again, frowning in confusion and disdain. "What the hell was that? It's too vague for me to decipher it at all. It is all just stupid useless gibberish to me. This was a waste of time. I am going home", I got up and started to leave, when I felt something hit me on the leg. I yelped and clutched the spot, hissing in pain.
"Didn't listen at all, did you hmmmm? Important this is. Change your life it could. For the better. Yesss, for the better. Why so stubborn are you? Happy don't you want to be?"
"Sure I want to be happy! But what you said doesn't make any sense! I can't do anything with it!", I shouted, really angry at the way I was treated. Yoda just narrowed his eyes at me and said sagely (he sounded so creepy like that):" The point that is. When the time comes you will know. These are just advices, heed them you could. But heed them you don't have too. Your choice, your decision that is"
I sighed in exasperation and added as an afterthought, not really thinking it through:" Can't you give me something more concrete? I don't know like the time, place, how she looks like? Anything actually useful?". The old alien man scrutinized me for a couple of seconds, and then he clutched the crystal ball, yet again, closing his eyes and drifting somewhere far away.
I was contemplating about leaving without another word, but yet again curiosity won over, and I stayed where I was waiting to see if I get something else. "A great person your lover will be. Yes, kind and compassionate. Full of love to give, but not ready to receive. Change that you should. Work together for betterment of one another, you both will. If this path you choose to walk on".
"So it's not set in stone?"
"No the future always in motion it is. Never same, never stagnant".
"Meet your lover you will, when the sun shines the brightest while drinking your favorite tea Rooibos", Yoda finished, and I was surprised that he knew what my favorite tea was. It made me a bit uncomfortable.
Then Yoda basically jumped from his chair and started to wave me away, almost tugging me by the shirt and dragging me away. "Finished we have. No more to tell you I have". Before I could protest I was already outside, a cold wind blew on my face, while I just stood there, gazing into the distance.
Mace came over smiling at me and asked:" How was it?". I stared at him and then answered:" Weird, it was really weird".
"Yeah I know, it was weird for me too".
+++
A few years had passed and somehow I find myself here again. In my old hometown. I didn't really want to be here, but as always I didn't have much choice, because here is where the seminar was held. Why, though that is the question?
Well this trip was not a complete waste of time. I talked and worked out many things with my colleagues and with people from other firms. And also I met with a couple of my old friends.
Right now I was in a caffe with Mace and his wife Adilyn, reminiscing about old times and remembering many actions we participated in. "And do you remember that right after that, you just came over and dumped a whole bucket of slime on her? She smelled like that for weeks!", Mace talked animately, while Adi and me laughed.
"Yeah those were the good times. So how is your life going? Some children coming along?", I asked teasingly, and both of them blushed adorably. "Well, no not for now, but maybe in the future", he said and shyly looked at Adi, before taking her hand in his.
I felt a pang of longing and loneliness, before I sent it away. "That's great I am happy for you!". And I really was. Out of all my friends Mace meant the most to me, and I really was glad he was so happy in his life.
"Thank you, Qui. And what about you? Someone new in your life?", He asked wiggling his eyebrows and giving me a pointed look. I snorted at that and answered honestly:" No, no one new in my life. I am not sure I even want someone new in my life". I though I already got over it, however as soon as I mentioned it a new wave of pain flooded all over me.
I felt the weight of it as clear as day, and I slumped my shoulders, feeling my eyes water. I thought it passed, I thought it became easier with time. But apparently it has not. I am still mourning both my loves that had passed. A face of Talina, my beautiful wife danced before my eyes.
Talina a perfect being, so perfect for me I thought I found my soulmate. Alas she died before we could grow old together. And Xavier, so young, so full of life, but also so full of anger and hate. He was not good for me, and he hurt me more than I thought it was possible. In the end I probably really was too old for him, or just too nice.
Adi put her hand on mine and looked at me with pity,and I wasn't sure if I felt ashamed or angry because of it. I knew she wanted to comfort me, but right now it wasn't much of a comfort. "It's fine to be hurt Quillon. You don't have to hide it, you don't have to pretend it doesn't hurt, it is perfectly normal. I wasn't there when it happened, but Mace told me everything. You had a hard time, and it's hard to move on, but you don't have to force yourself. Let it pass with time. And believe me I went through it, I know it doesn't look like it, but it will. Trust me".
I thought about what she said and I must admit that was good advice. It will probably help me if I accept it, so I squeezed her hand and gave her a sad smile:" Thank you, Adilyn. It is a sound advice and I will honor it". For some reason she laughed at that and put her other hand over mine, locking her eyes with mine:" You don't have to. But it will be easier if you do. If you ever need someone to talk to, don't hesitate to call Mace or me. We will be glad to be there for you".
Mace nodded in agreement, and I felt my heart swell in warmth for these two wonderful people. I thanked them sincerely and I changed the theme of the conversation, and they both let me, for which I was really grateful. I still didn't feel ready to talk about it. I hoped one day I will, and they will be the first ones I will tell the whole story to. Adilyn is hopefully right and it will be easier as time passes by. That is really the only thing I have left. To sit and wait for this wound to heal by itself.
We were yet again having an animated conversation, when Mace suddenly shouted:" Hey wait a minute! While we are talking about good old times, I just remembered something important". I looked over at him curiously and asked:" What is it?".
"Yoda", he said with a teasing glint in his eyes. "Yoda?", I asked confused trying to remember that name, shuffling through my memories fast. "Yeah, you know Yoda the matchmaker. That old wrinkled man, who didn't even look human and talked funny all the time. We went in there and wanted to make fun of him, but we got out more confused than ever", Mace tried to help me remember, and then something clicked.
"Oh, oh yes Yoda! My God that was a weird experience!", I agreed and we both laughed out loud, teasing each other how our faces looked funny. "What are you both talking about? I don't remember you mentioning this Yoda guy to me. Should I be worried?", Adi asked serious, but by her small smile I knew she was teasing.
"Oh, no, no there is no need to be worried. You see there was this old guy we met on a festival one day...", Mace started the story and while he talked I thought about what Yoda had said on that day to me. "He told me I just have to stomp my pride, suck it up and accept that I don't always have to look under control and that I should show some emotions sometimes. When I asked him for more, he told me the one for me is right by my side, and that I should open my eyes and look. You know now that mention it, doesn't that sound....".
"Familiar? Yes it does sound pretty familiar to me. Those were some of the things I told you too, while we danced around each other and tried to see how we work out as friends and as a couple", Adilyn said amused, and both of us froze at that. "Qui? What do you think about it?", Mace asked, his voice cracking a bit from sheer surprise.
"The old guy told me that it will find me, and that he sees hard times before me, but that it will all be worth it in the end. He said that I shouldn't ignore the signs and not to be too stubborn or my chance for a relationship will pass. He also said to forget the past, and that I shouldn't let the mistakes of my past define me", we both looked at each other amazed that we remember so much.
"I don't understand. I didn't even thought about it before, and now somehow I know everything he told me from word to word. What kind of magic is this?", Mace said bewildered and I just nodded too puzzled to speak. "I now know he was talking about Adi, and he was right on the money. What about you? Who do you think he was talking about for you?", Mace asked intrigued and I sighed, still not sure I liked this much.
"Well if you look objectively he could have been talking about Talia, because I still do think she was my soulmate. Although I really hope he wasn't talking about Xavier. That would be really stupid if it is true". Mace just shrugged and answered:" Well you never know. Do you remember what he had said about the future. 'Always in motion the future is' or something like that. So maybe it was Xavier but you fucked it up".
"Yeah maybe". Adi then jumped in and said:" Or maybe it's someone you still haven't met". I shook my head wanting to negate it, but then it suddenly popped up in my head:" I would disagree, but now that I think about it. He also told me another thing", I said and stopped for some reason feeling embarrassed. "What?", Both of them asked and I continued.
"Well he told me I will met that person, while drinking Rooibos in a caffe, and when the sun shines the brightest", I admitted, and there was a bit of an awkward silence after that. "And you haven't met either Talia or Xavier like that?", Mace asked and I shook my head, feeling a bit scared now. What if Adi is right? What if I haven't met the person yet?
That's not good, I am not ready for a new relationship. I don't want to do it all over again. I could never survive another heartbreak. "Well whatever the case is, we will always be there for you, to encourage you to move on Qui. Believe in that, and believe in us", Adi said and I gave her a sincere smile, really honored by their care and friendship with me.
"Yeah what she said", Mace said with a crooked smile, and Adi elbowed him in the ribs, making him groan. I giggled at that and the conversation soon turned to another themes as the time slowly passed by.
+++
Mace and Adi left me alone after some time, so I sat on the same table, finishing my tea and enjoying the solitude. I didn't have to go anywhere for some time, so I didn't need to rush.
When I finished my tea, I looked at the clock and saw that it was almost twelve o'clock. Because I didn't feel like walking anywhere I called the waiter and ordered rooibosh. "Coming right up sir", the waiter told me and I nodded, content to wait a bit.
The tables were a bit small, so I wondered if I should bring another chair, making it easier to work on my computer. I looked around, and when I saw an empty table I went over to it and borrowed a chair. Concentrating on my work, I only felt the waiter arrive and bring my tea over. I thanked him and got back to work.
I just needed to get over the papers I wrote yet again, to see if there were any mistakes and to look over my presentation, hoping everything was in order. While I was working on it, I didn't notice a shadow come near me. Someone cleaned his throat and I jumped, not expecting someone to bother me.
I turned my head around and looked at the guilty party. It was a man of short stature (shorter than me that is for sure), with brown-red hair (a ginger how rare), and blue-green eyes, wearing casual clothes and a handsome beard (in my opinion at least). He had an amused smile and he looked polite enough, so I nicely asked him:" Yes, do you need something from me?".
"Yes, as a matter of fact I do. I think you stole my chair. You know that one over there", he said and pointed to the table, where I really did get the chair before me. "I was sitting there, before I went to the toilet", the man said and looked at me expectantly.
I laughed nervously and gulped, feeling really apologetic so I answered honestly:" Sorry, I didn't know anyone was sitting there. That was the only blank table I saw and I needed another chair so I could put my laptop on it. You see these tables are really small, I needed a bit more space. If I knew you were sitting there I wouldn't have taken it. I am sorry, I will give you back".
I started to raise my laptop, when the stranger stopped me with what he said next:" You know now that we are in this situation, maybe we could sit together, get to know each other, if you want. You seem like a good man, and I would love to know more about you. And beside you wouldn't have to carry the chair, I will find another one and bring it here. So you know, less work for you. Of course I say that only if you want to, if you don't that is fine with me", he said and I gaped at him for a couple of seconds.
When my mind unfroze I wanted to say no, but I stopped myself. I remembered the conversation with Mace and Adi and wondered if this was the moment we talked about. Yoda's words flouted in my head, echoing and repeating like a broken record. Then I also remembered Tali (my beautiful, honest Tali, my wife) and how she constantly told me I should be more open to changes.
"You can't do the same things over and over again. Don't you ever get bored with it? Try sometimes something new, meet new people, eat new food. It will make your life more interesting I guarantee it!", She used to say, and I loved her for it. Then I also remembered Xavier (even though I didn't want to) and his tirades about me and my inflexibility.
"Can't you change a bit? Why is it so hard for you? Too old for trying new things? Too set in your ways, and following the old people's code 'It worked before, so I don't have to change it, it will work now'? Life rarely works like that you know, old man. When the world changes you have to change with it, or you will be left behind. Trust me on this, I know".
All of this and more had flown through my head, while I contemplated if I should accept or deny the strangers offer. He stood there completely quiet, biting his lip in worry, or anticipation? I couldn't know. But I wanted to. Maybe I should accept it. Could everything really go wrong if I just talk to someone I don't know for some time and then never see him again?
Maybe he isn't that person, Yoda talked about. Maybe he is just a guy who is lonely and wants some company. And if nothing else I can give him that. So I turned over to him and smiled finally coming to my decision:" Sure, I don't mind having your company. Sit if you want to". The strangers face relaxed and he let out a breath, that he was apparently holding in, and sat down next to me, smiling shyly.
"My name is Obidaya Ken. People call me Obi or Ken, or sometimes Ben. You can choose whatever you like", he said and extended his hand. "My name is Quillon Jinn. It is nice to meet you Ben. I hope you don't regret your decision to move places and sit next to me". We shook hands and Ben giggled at my joke, smiling widely and answering:" Nice to meet you too. And no, I don't think I will regret it".