The Starlite Ballroom Page 4

to ask you and I hope you will say yes."

  Emma suddenly felt weak all over. She thought she was going to faint again.

  "I will be leaving for New York City next week to start working in my father's company. I would like you to come with me."

  This was it. This was where she had said "no" sixty years ago, too scared to leave home and take risks, opting instead for safety and familiarity. Emma opened her mouth but no sound would come out.

  He picked up on her nervousness. "I don't want you to answer right away. This is a big decision I know, so think about it first. But consider this -think about what your life will be like if you stay here. Think about what I can offer you in New York City. It will be so much more."

  Emma's head was spinning. "Jonathan, I . . ." then she stopped. From across the hall, she saw Jimmy and Fred coming back from the bar. They couldn't see her with him, not yet. "I can't talk now," she said, dropping his hands.

  He grabbed her arms though and pulled her close. "Meet me on the verandah in ten minutes." With that, he leaned forward and kissed her firmly on the lips. She was shocked, but did not pull away. He tasted like expensive scotch and tobacco. The scent of cologne rose off his sculpted face and swirled into her nose. He released her just as quick and headed off into the crowd.

  Emma stood there in a daze, her lips still tingling from the unexpected kiss. That certainly did not happen sixty years ago.

  Suddenly, Millie popped out of nowhere, making Emma jump. "Jeepers, he kissed ya! Right here on the dance floor! I don’t believe it! Jonathan Pierce kissed ya!. So, what happened? What did he say? What did you say?"

  "He wants me to go away with him to New York next week."

  Millie squealed in delight and flapped her hands like a bird. "Oh my God, oh my God. I think I'd melt if he asked me that."

  "He wants me to meet him outside in ten minutes with an answer.” She looked at her best friend. “Millie, what do I do?"

  "Are ya kiddin’ me? Ya have to ask? You have a chance to run away with Jonathan Pierce for gosh sake!"

  "Oh Millie, you're suppose to try and talk me out of it. Don’t you remember?” Emma sighed. “But I suppose we're sixty years too soon for that."

  "Huh? What the heck are ya talking about?"

  Emma scanned the crowd. Some questions had to be answered, right this minute, before she went any further. Heads turned and faces flashed by. Then she saw him, across the dance floor, the strange young man who brought her here.

  Fred and Jimmy arrived with their drinks. Emma excused herself though. "I’ll meet you back at the table. I just saw an old friend I have to talk with." Without waiting for an answer, she dashed off toward her target.

  He was a busboy this time, moving through the crowd and cleaning tables. The young man saw her coming and stopped.

  "Hello Emma. I figured you'd be looking for me about now. Are you enjoying yourself?"

  She ignored the question and pulled him to the side. "We have to talk. I need to know a few things before we go any further with this … well, whatever the hell this is."

  "Like what?"

  "Is this all a dream or is it real? I know I wasn't sleeping when all this started. Am I having some sort of senile hallucination?"

  "It's as real as you want it to be."

  Emma became flustered. "That doesn't answer my question. Is it 1945 or isn't it? Yes or no?"

  The man was quiet for a moment, then answered. "Yes, it is."

  Emma began to pace in front of him. "O.K. then, if I really am living through this again, can I change what happened? That is, am I just going to pop back to being seventy eight or can I live through my life again, but take a different course this time, live a different life?"

  The young man's face grew stern, his dark eyes boring into hers. "Is that what you want to do?"

  "I don't know yet. This is all so … bewildering. Please, just tell me."

  The strange young man came forward and took her hands. His expression was sad and something else … was it disappointment? Not with her, but with himself. "You can do whatever you want Emma. You can stay here or go back home."

  She backed away from him, not sure if that's the answer she really wanted to hear. It left too many tempting options open.

  "What are you going to do?" he asked.

  She continued backing away. "I ... I don't know."

  "Be careful Emma. Sometimes things happened for a reason and what’s past, is best left in the past." With that, the man turned and walked slowly into the crowd. It was all up to her now. Emma headed back to the others, checking the time on her wristwatch as she did. Five minutes left.

  "Here's your soda," Jimmy said, handing her a fizzing glass of ginger ale.

  "To tell you the truth, I think I'd rather have a sip of your beer right about now."

  Jimmy was surprised, but handed over his tall, frothy pilsner. Emma took a large gulp, hoping it would calm her nerves. She ended up coughing instead.

  "Atta girl Emma," Fred laughed. “That’ll put hair on yer chest.”

  "So this explains why you've been acting funny all night," Millie said.

  Emma wiped the foam from her lips. "No, I've just got a lot on my mind right now." She stared at her three closest friends - young and foolish. She knew what was in store for each of them. Soon they'd all be married, then have children on the way. James and Fred would get jobs in the local factory. She and Millie would be dutiful, bored housewives, faced with years of meals to cook and laundry to wash. Sighing heavily, her thoughts turned to Jonathan Pierce and the glittering avenues of New York City.

  "Well," Millie began, "I think it's time for us ladies to go powder our noses. Right, Emms?"

  Emma’s mind was a lifetime away, so Millie elbowed her.

  “Right Emms?”

  Emma glanced down at the time. Her ten minutes were nearly up. "Yes. Yes I guess we better."

  Emma and her friend headed off into the crowd. At the verandah doors, they stopped and faced each other. Then the two best friends began to cry.

  "I guess I won't be seeing much of you once you're off in the big city."

  She hadn’t thought of that yet. She and Millie had been inseparable for sixty years, sharing the ups and downs of their long lives. "Of course you will, I'll always come back.”

  Millie dabbed Emma’s eyes with a napkin. “Don’t cry now, your mascara will run.”

  Emma glanced at the veranda doors. “I just hope I'm doing the right thing."

  "Are ya kidding me? This is it Emms. You're living a dream, a real life fairy tale. Go get him girl."

  "You've been a good friend Millie, more than you'll ever know."

  They hugged each other tightly. "I'm really going to miss you."

  "Me too.” She smoothed out her dress and checked her hair. “Well … here goes." She turned and walked through the glass doors.

  The night air was fresh and cool outside. A faint breeze blew through the tall pines close to the Ballroom. High overhead, a thousand stars twinkled in a cloudless sky, just like the Ballroom inside. But where the Ballroom’s stars were make-believe, this sky was real. And it was time for real decisions.

  Emma saw him waiting for her. Jonathan was standing by the railing smoking a cigarette. She hesitated for only a second, then slowly walked towards him. How many people get a chance to live their lives over again? she thought. This time would be different.

  He turned at her approach and smiled. Jonathan extended his hands and she took them. Again she tingled at the touch

  "I was worried you wouldn’t come."

  "It's a beautiful night."

  "Not as beautiful as you Emma." He leaned towards her and they kissed deeply. Her hands rose slowly up his strong back. The transition was now complete. She was young again, in body and mind. There was no turning back now.

  Inside the Ballroom, the band struck up another tune. It was
“The Tennessee Waltz."

  ‘I was dancing, with my darling, to the Tennessee Waltz.

  When an old friend, I happened to see.’

  "May I have this dance?" he asked.

  She nodded and took his hand. They began a slow, gliding waltz around the verandah floor. She stared into his dark eyes, trying to shake the last threads of doubt still haunting her. Then she rested her head on his shoulder, the thoughts of her family fading like sunset.

  When the music finally stopped, he asked her. "What's your answer Emma?"

  She bit her lower lip, the decision still churning in the pit of her stomach. "I think it's yes."

  "Wonderful. You're going to have such an exciting time in the city."

  "Tell me about it, Jonathan. Tell me about the life we’ll live?"

  He held her close and smiled. "You'll live in a beautiful townhouse, just like the ones you see in the movies, right on Central Park."

  "What about us? Tell me about the things we'll do."

  Jonathan smiled. "We can go sailing, horseback riding, take long carriage rides, anything you want."

  "And our social life? Will we go to elegant restaurants, theater openings, high society parties?"

  Jonathan laughed. "Yes, all of those things too."

  "Oh Jonathan. I can hardly believe it.”

  The verandah doors swung open suddenly, banging against the outside wall. A young woman stood in the doorway. It took a few seconds for Emma to recognize her. It had, after all, been sixty years.

  Elaine Warner! The future Mrs. Pierce. The spell was broken. Elaine swayed heavily as she staggered towards the couple. Good lord, Emma thought, and she’s drunk as well.

  "So here you are. I figured I'd catch