Alice had spent the night tossing and turning in bed, worrying over thoughts of Adam. When she woke up, close to ten the next morning, she dragged herself out of bed and turned on her laptop. The familiar sounds of a skype call dinging sounded moments later. A video of her mum flickered across the screen.
"Hello darling!" her mother cooed, though her warm voice was blurred by the loud sounds in the background. "George, Megan, Alice's on the screen!"
In the background, Alice could hear high-pitched screeching and giggling – the sound of carefree laughter. A moment later, her sister, Megan, appeared on the screen along with one of her nieces.
"Look, Lily, it's Aunty Alice, say hi Aunty Alice!" Megan cooed in that annoying baby voice she'd acquired since giving birth to her eldest child five years ago.
Alice smiled at the video of her sister and youngest niece, adorable with her little pigtails and diapered bottom. From the corner of the screen, Jasmine, Alice's eldest niece came toddling across to her mother's lap, big blue eyes spotting her Aunt Alice.
"Hi there," Alice waved.
"Look, Jasmine," Alice's mother cooed while Megan continued to coddle Lily. "It's your Aunty Alice, can you see her? Why don't you give her a big wave?"
Alice leaned back, suddenly overwhelmed by all the baby voices and high-pitched giggling that was coming from the other end. Yes, her nieces were cute, but she could only take so much of that cuteness. Of that happiness. Of that perfection that was so far contrasted from her own life.
Jasmine grinned and waved at the screen. Ok, so the cuteness won over, so God help her. Just look at those pudgy little fingers, those rosy cheeks and tiny little features, Alice thought. It was impossible not to love those little munchkins at first sight. And she wasn't just saying that because she was their aunt.
Brad, Alice's brother in law popped his head into the screen, giving Alice a big toothy-white grin.
"Hey, Alice, how's things?"
"Not bad, how're things over there?"
Brad chuckled, a deep velvety voice, "Well, we're home, as you can see. Nana and pops are glad to see their grandchildren."
"Now when are you and Adam going to tie the knot?" her mother suddenly interrupted with.
Alice's eyes widened, "Mum, we've only been together for a year and a bit!"
"Oh rubbish," Megan said, "Time means nothing when you're in love, right Brad?" Megan smiled at her husband.
… Which was easy for Megan to say, given she'd been 'deeply in love' with Brad since college and had hence married him straight after graduation when Brad'd been secure with a job as a doctor - the most respected profession. A trophy husband with a trophy wife. And two angelic children. What more could they ask for?
Alice thought back to her own life and where she'd left things off with Adam. She sighed.
"Aunty Alice doesn't want to marry Uncle Adam."
For a moment there was silence. Everyone turned to look at Jasmine who looked innocently sincere. Despite being only five, Alice swore that girl was much more mature than her own age.
"Jasmine, darling, this is adult's talk," Megan told her daughter. Jasmine shrugged her shoulders.
"Adam and I are taking things slowly," Alice said.
"Well, don't wait too long. You don't have forever, you know," her mother chided.
At twenty-six, it wasn't exactly like she was in a rush to get married though.
"So how long are you there for?" Alice asked Megan and Brad.
"Oh we're just here for the weekend. You know Brad can't leave his job too long."
"Got lives to save," he grinned.
Alice smiled, "Of course."
"Daddy, I wanna go outside and play," Jasmine tugged at her father's pant leg.
"Alright, sweetheart, daddy'll take you out, let's go."
Alice grinned, "Those little girls have Brad wrapped around their fingers huh?"
That night, Alice drove out to meet her best friends at their usual diner. Stella and Veronica were already in their usual seat when she arrived.
"Hey girl," Veronica greeted.
Stella stood up to give her a hug.
"We ordered your regular for you."
"Thanks," she replied, slipping in next to Stella.
The waitress arrived with their drinks so Alice passed Stella's onto her. Suddenly Stella had a hand over her mouth, looking as if she was about to vomit.
"What's wrong?"
Alice gently rubbed her friend's back.
Stella shook her head, "I'm fine. I've just been feeling a bit out of sorts lately, must be the tummy bug."
"You sure you should be out with us?"
"Yeah, don't worry, the tummy bug doesn't last long."
"So how's everyone been lately?" Alice asked.
"Same old," they all murmured. "You?"
Alice wrinkled her nose and played with the straw in her drink.
"Pretty much the same," she sighed, "You know my boss asked me to write an article about Melissa Hamiltons the other day. Apparently she's got some secret man."
"No way," Stella gasped.
Veronica shrugged, "Wouldn't be surprised."
"But are you really going to write about it?" Stella asked, "You'd be exposing her."
"The way I see it, celebrities ask for it, it's part of their job to be gossiped about. Nothing to it. You do what you have to."
"But surely Melissa's been keeping it low profile for a reason."
Alice sighed, "I don't know."
"Don't stress too much about it, girl," Veronica consoled.
After hours of chatting non-stop about endless nothings, the girls leaned back, ready to go home for the night.
"Hey," Stella suddenly chirped. "You know, I heard about this new fortune-telling place just around the corner. Apparently she's eerily accurate."
Alice looked at Veronica who raised an eyebrow.
"Oh don't give me that look, what do you think about giving it a try, for fun?"
"I don't know," Alice said.
"Aren't you curious?"
Alice considered the notion of fortune telling, "Do you really believe in that stuff?"
"Believe?" Veronica scoffed, "That woman's gotta be a scam. There's no way a woman can tell your future."
"But I heard she's told heaps of fortunes and they've all come true."
"Stella, darling, you know, you do have a tendency to be a little naïve," Veronica laughed.
Stella pouted, "But imagine that! Imagine if you could have your future foretold!"
Alice wasn't exactly sure she wanted to know what the future had in store for her.
"Well, only one way to find out whether this woman's real or a scam."
Stella grinned at Veronica before they both turned to Alice.
"What do you think?"
"This all sounds a bit dubious to me."
"Aw come on, just come with us, for fun?"
Alice looked at the puppy eyes on Stella's angelic face. How could she resist?
"Oh, alright."
"Yay," Stella cheered, grabbing Alice's arm as they strode out of the diner. "I'm really curious to see what this woman will say."
"I wouldn't take anything she said seriously," Veronica stated.
"Well, you never know."
"There you go, being naïve again," Veronica teased.
"Remind me again how you two are friends," Alice asked. "You two are like polar opposites."
Stella laughed and swatted Alice's arm, "Oh, here we are!"
They'd stopped in front of an old store with a chipped wooden frame and glass storefront. Stella pushed open the door as the bell dinged to signal some visitors. It was eerily quiet inside and the quiet compounded by the darkness of the room. There was a sneeze from behind them, causing both Alice and Stella to jump in fright.
"Oh my goodness!" Stella clutched at her chest.
Veronica shrugged and waved at the air in front of her, "Sorry, it's all the dust. What is this place? Some kind of old shack?"
"Ahem."
This time, all three girls jumped. They turned to where the sound had come from, in a dark corner of the room, where they'd not previously noticed a cloaked figure.
A light came on behind the cloaked figure, illuminating the outline of her frizzy black hair. Despite the woman's slight figure, her presence seemed magnified by the stern look etched permanently across her face. Red lips were drawn in a thin line across her face and the wrinkles were deepened by the shadows in the room. Behind the woman, one could just make out a hallway to another room.
"I was just about to close."
Ok, time to go then, Alice thought.
"Oh, you couldn't do any readings for us? Just quickly?" Stella pleaded. "We've heard so much about you and came all the way here, especially to see you."
Veronica's eyebrows shot up again. Alice nudged Stella in the ribs and gave her a wide-eyed glare. The old woman's grey eyes travelled from Stella, to Veronica, then settled on Alice. Alice attempted a smile as she shifted uncomfortably beneath the woman's gaze.
"Follow me."
The woman turned to head towards the adjoining room. Stella did a silent fist pump and followed the woman. Alice gave Veronica a pleading look, but she shrugged her shoulders and followed behind Stella. Alice was left with no choice but to follow her friends. Alright, she could go through with this. But she wouldn't believe a word of what the woman said.
The next room was even darker than the first with a single small table draped in velvet cloth and a wooden stool either side of it. The woman sat down on one.
"Who's first? Take a seat."
Stella looked at Veronica and Alice before taking a seat opposite the woman. Taking her palm into her hand, the old woman studied it before placing her other hand on top and closing her eyes. Moments later, she opened her eyes again.
"Life. I see another life."
Stella blinked, "Excuse me?"
"Look after yourself well. That's all I can say. Next."
Frozen for a moment, Stella stayed where she sat. Then Veronica stepped forward and took her seat. The woman did the same with her.
"Famous, someone famous," she said.
"What?" Veronica said.
"Next."
Veronica shook her head and looked at Stella and Alice with a face of disgust. Stella shrugged.
"Your turn."
Alice let out a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding and took a seat opposite the old lady. Her hand was surprisingly warm when she held Alice's. Alice could feel her heart thumping as the old woman closed her eyes. This is just for fun, she told herself.
"I see a union with someone. There's bright light. Yes, a union."
Union?
The old lady let go of Alice's hands. Alice withdrew them.
"Now, that's twenty dollars each."
Veronica's jaw dropped, "What?"
The old woman tsked as she rummaged along the shelves for something.
"What a rip," Alice heard Veronica muttering under her breath. Stella nudged her in the ribs. "What?" she hissed.
"Er, I'll pay first," Alice suggested, reaching for her handbag and getting a twenty dollar bill.
The old woman took the twenty dollar bill and tucked it somewhere inside her cloak.
"This," she said, holding out a necklace with a talisman dangling on the end. "Take it. You may need it. Bring it back once you're done with it."
Alice blinked at the old lady.
"Take it!" she barked.
Alice flinched and took the necklace, "Ah, erm, thank you."
"Now, twenty dollars, each of you," she said tersely to Veronica and Stella.
After they'd all paid, they were shooed out of the store so the old woman could close up. Veronica let out a litany of complaints as soon as they were out.
"What a scamming old wench!" she cursed.
"Sssh!" Stella hissed, "She can still hear us!"
"So let her hear! Twenty bucks, gone! Just like that!"
"Okay, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, it's my fault, I dragged us all into this."
"Whatever," Veronica replied, crossing her arms, "We did all agree to come along."
"What's with the fortunes she told us though? Could she have been anymore ambiguous?"
"Beats me," Alice replied.
"And you!" Stella exclaimed, turning her wide eyes to Alice.
"What about me?" Alice asked, startled.
"How come you're the only one who got a necklace?"
"Necklace, smecklace," Veronica teased.
Alice laughed, "She was pretty adamant I take it, huh? That was kinda scary the way she talked to me. But she did say to bring it back when I'm done with it."
"And how, exactly, will you know when you're done with it? For all she knows, you might run off with that necklace and never bring it back. Which, is, something, by the way, I would totally do."
Stella rolled her eyes, "Probably why she didn't give you one."
Veronica laughed, "And you're probably right."
They all laughed as they walked arm in arm away from the shop.
ns 15.158.61.20da2
