A Grain in the Sands of Time - 3. The Fool Revealed

Matt was standing in front of the mirror dressing and thinking seriously about what vehicle he would like to take for his date. What kind of person would this clerk think I am if I show up in a Jaguar or an Audi? He is a clerk at a convenience store after all, and I don’t think that overwhelming him would be a good first impression. Listening to his thoughts he chided himself for his assumptions. Maybe he works there because he wants to and not because he needs money. He wasn’t convinced though, so he settled on the Jeep. It was a fun ride, and this should be a fun date. Besides, the weather was great, the top was off the Jeep, and it matched his casual attire – slightly faded jeans, a nice white dress shirt worn loose with the cuffs rolled up high on his biceps, and elegant grey dress shoes. He could get into the fancy places if that’s where his date wanted to go, or to a pub or club. Dress for every occasion, it’s perfect. At least I hope it’s perfect. What if I come under dressed? What if I show up and my date has a suite on? But why would he have a suit at the convenience store he’s working at? Maybe I should take one just in case. Good idea!

He grabbed the suit that he always kept in a travel bag, finished one last task in the kitchen, packed his knapsack, and headed out the door of his room.

In the elevator he realized just how nervous he actually felt. He wondered if it was just the date or the larger course of action he was taking. It wasn’t every day that you found out that you would die soon. Maybe he was right to feel a little nervous. He was adjusting his shirt in the elevator mirror when the doors opened. He got out of the elevator before the rush of people trying to get on, made his way across the lobby and out the door before Keri turned her eye on him - avoiding her was his preferred method of interaction and he kept on going despite knowing she wanted to say something to him.

Carl was outside at the valet stand when Matt sauntered up with his suit travel bag slung across his left shoulder and his ever-present knapsack hanging from his right hand. Carl was stunning as always. He was almost forty Matt guessed, but in great shape. He often saw him in the hotel gym on his way to the pool for an evening soak in the hot tub, so he knew how he kept his body in such nice condition. His skin made him all the more appealing – rich, deep brown, which set off his brilliantly dark eyes. If he knew Carl wasn’t married, he might have asked him out eventually. Of course Carl, the consummate professional valet, would offer him a smile, politely refuse, and end by calling him sir. He approached the man from behind – his best side according to Matt.

“Good Afternoon Carl,” Matt said pleasantly.

“Ah Mr. Matt,” Carl greeted him lightly, “how are you sir?”

“Good, thank you. Got a date tonight Carl, or I would stay and chat. Could you get the Jeep please?”

“Sure thing. He’s a lucky guy sir. You just let me take these bags now.” He placed Matt’s suit and ever present knapsack on the valet stand, opened the lock box that was tucked out of sight of the public, and searched for one of the four sets of Matt’s keys inside.

“Thanks Carl.” Matt waited as the valet disappeared under the building to retrieve his vehicle. He spent his time watching the masses of people moving in and out of the Fashion Mall across the street from the hotel. What a waste, he thought to himself. He noticed the heat again and hoped it would cool off as the breezes started to flow through Vegas as they always did in the late afternoon. A few minutes later his white Jeep pulled around the corner and turned into the sweeping driveway of the hotel and parked in front of him.

“Carl, did you have my Jeep washed?” Matt asked impressed with the look of it.

“Well sir, I don’t know if you remember, but the last time you had the tow truck return it to the hotel it needed a little work. The shop washed it as a courtesy. The bill was sent to your room. It looked like you had a lot of fun that day, sir.”

“Ah yes, that was a fun day,” Matt recalled with a smile thinking about his time at the Amargosa Dunes about an hours drive Northwest of the city. His Jeep broke an axel when he jumped one dune and landed too hard on the next. “Well thank you for taking good care of it Carl.” He slipped the valet a bill and put his bags in the back seat.

The trip out of town was quick after a short time on the strip passing the crowds around the major hotels. “O” was playing at the Bellagio and he wanted to go eventually. He loved Cirque du Soleil and hadn’t seen this production yet. He cruised past the outlet malls and saw the store appearing in the distance. He glanced at the time, he would be 15 minutes before the end of his date’s shift, but he didn’t think he would look too desperate if he arrived a little early. He pulled up in front of the store, hopped out and noticed Amy’s car in front. He was hoping she would be here.

We walked inside; very conscious of the fact that the last time he walked into this store he created a lot of havoc. He peered cautiously in before making his way fully though the door.

“You trying to avoid knocking something over?” Amy’s voice called out to him.

He smiled at her ruefully as he approached the counter that she was standing behind. She was a slight woman, close to Matt’s age, well the age that he looked anyway. They hit it off the first time he came into the store and had been friends ever since. Amy had actually tried to set him up a couple of times with some guys she had known, but he had always refused. He didn’t like it when people close to him tried to set him up, as the relationships would inevitably fail and then his “friends” would choose the other person over him. It was depressing and Matt wasn’t too good with feeling depressed.

“Funny girl.” Matt tried his best sarcasm on her.

She laughed and pointed to a monitor behind the counter. “We got the whole thing on video! I’ve been showing it to everyone that comes in. It’s been great for business, we’re thinking of selling tickets and doing a midnight screening.”

“Oh you are in fine form today. Where were you earlier by the way, it was you that was suppose to be here helping me clean up, you always work the day shift on Fridays.”

“I needed to take my cousin to the airport, so I switched a shift with Andrew.”

“Is that his name?” Matt whispered as he leaned over the counter at the same time as he looked around making sure his clerk date wasn’t near.

“Yes Matt, that’s his name. Gees, you asked him out and you didn’t even ask him his name?”

“Well he didn’t ask me mine.”

“He knows yours, it was on your bank card.”

“Hmmm… smart man, I’m liking him more and more all the time. Tell me about him. By the way where is he?”

“He’s getting dressed in the back, he’s been pacing back and forth here for the last hour I think he’s a bit nervous Matt.”

“Oh that’s good, because I sure am.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you like this Matt.” Amy looked pleased.

“Okay, okay, let’s get on with telling me everything you know about him before he comes back.”

“Too late,” she whispered as the back door opened and his clerk walked out and toward him.

Matt had to wipe his hands discreetly on the back pockets of his jeans and tried to make it look like a casual stance with his hands in his back pockets. Andrew walked toward him with a pack in his hands. He was wearing tight black jeans that hugged all of the curves of his legs, and a light blue Adidas jacket with a white t-shirt underneath. His red Converse sneakers finished the look. Damn he’s cute! Matt swallowed.

“Hey,” he managed to croak out.

“Hey, yourself.” The young man extended his hand, “Andrew.”

Matt took the offered hand in his and felt Andrew’s pulse through his warm skin. “Matt,” he replied.

They looked at each other and smiled. It got a bit awkward because neither one of them knew what to say next.

Amy cleared her throat loudly and rescued them both, “Well... you crazy kids don’t get up to no good out there.” It broke the tension and both Andrew and Matt laughed.

“Ready to go?” Matt asked with a smile.

“You bet,” Andrew replied, and they made their way to the door.

“Oh hey,” Amy called after them, and they stopped short of the door to look back. “You made a friend today Matt, in that little boy you saw in the store. His mother was in here and when she found out I knew you, she asked if I thought you might be interested in babysitting her kid once in a while. Apparently the little guy has been talking non-stop about how funny you are, and it would help her out if she had someone that was good with kids.”

“What did you tell her?” Matt asked.

“I told her as far as I knew, you were kind of like a big child yourself, so you would probably make a good big brother, and I would take her number and get it to you, and if you were interested, you could get a hold of her.”

Ignoring Amy’s barb, Matt thought quickly, wondering whether Fortune’s hand played a role in this development. Regardless, it was the opportunity that presented itself. “Text it to me, would you?”

“Sure. Have a good time guys.”

Andrew and Matt both waved and were out the door. Matt scooted ahead of Andrew as they approached his Jeep and opened the door for him.

“Mmmm… a chivalrous man. Don’t see that much anymore!” Andrew chuckled.

“Well I know your arms must be sore from swinging that mop, so I figured I would help out as much as possible today.” Matt smiled widely and was greeted with Andrew’s laughter.

He swung the door shut as Andrew settled into his seat, went around to the driver’s side, hopped into the Jeep and put the key in the ignition. Matt saw Andrew’s hand cover his own, stopping him from turning the key. He looked into his date’s eyes as Andrew closed in on Matt’s lips and let himself sink into the electric kiss that was offered to him. He felt like he could kiss Andrew for hours, but in only a couple of agonizingly tender moments, it was over and he was staring once more into the grey eyes he marveled at earlier that day.

“Wow,” was all Matt managed, “I think I really needed that.” He watched Andrew again move closer and this kiss was more passionate and fierce than the first. Once again they broke apart. “Oh yeah, I really did!”

Andrew put on a grin. “I have been wanting to do that since I saw you standing over some spilled juice earlier this afternoon.”

“Well next time, don’t hold back!” They looked into each other’s eyes for a second longer. “So,” Matt began, “where would you like to go?”

“Oh it doesn’t matter. Are you hungry or could you wait for a while?” Andrew asked.

“I can wait. You want to do something first and then go for dinner?”

“Sure let’s do that. We just need to decide what to do.”

“You want to go for a walk?” Matt asked, not really liking the idea, but he wasn’t really sure what to suggest.

“No I’ve been standing up all day. How about we just go for a drive. It’s a beautiful afternoon, and we’re in a Jeep with no top, so let’s take advantage of it.” Andrew suggested.

Matt smiled, “A drive it is, I love to drive.” Matt did love to drive. In fact, one of his favorite things to do was drive. Wandering aimlessly through life came naturally to Matt, but he had avoided drives lately as he tended to think too much and his loneliness was apparent to him when he started thinking.

Matt turned away from the city as they left the parking lot in front of the store and took the No. 15 South out past the airport, then East on the 215 and headed toward Lake Mead. He loved this drive and knew it well enough that he would not embarrass himself by getting them lost. A feat he managed quite regularly on his own when he struck out to explore the area that surrounded Las Vegas.

Matt and Andrew found themselves talking about Amy, as it was the one thing that they both had in common, but it couldn’t last as a conversation piece. Eventually, Matt knew it would lead to the two things he feared talking about the most – work and family. These were uncomfortable discussions for Matt given the sensitive nature of his immediate family and what they did. Matt knew these conversations would make or break any potential he had with a date. Fortunately, for him, if it went bad on this trip he had the drive home to remedy the situation.

“So,” Andrew began, “what do you do that allows you to take cycling trips on a day that most people are working?”

“Well…” Matt started cautiously, “I’m a consultant of sorts.”

“Rather vague,” Andrew looked at him curiously.

“A consultant that helps people.” Matt tried again.

“Like a therapist? Or a mafia hit man?” Andrew asked pleasantly.

Matt laughed, “No, not a therapist or a hit man. When people come across problems in life I’m there to help guide them through the problem. For me it’s like helping people discover the fun in life again. It’s a business that my family has been involved in for a long time. In one way or another, we all help people. Passed down from generation to generation so to speak.”

“That sounds rather nice. Your family must be quite caring people.”

“You’d think, but they’re all quite … different might be the best word.”

“How many of them are there?”

Oh man, Matt thought, this will be a little awkward. “Ah, well… there’s twenty-two of us to be exact.”

Andrew stared at him with his mouth hanging open. “Twenty-two! You have twenty-two people in your immediate family? Oh my God you’re Mormon aren’t you?”

“No, I’m not Mormon! I have a father and only one mother. They’re just a little … different, like I said.” Matt wanted the conversation to end and Andrew seemed to read it in his tone.

“Well, you’ve told me that you work with your family, so you must be close on some level, and the family business is involved with helping people. It can’t be all that bad. Do you enjoy your work at least?” Andrew asked, trying to change the subject.

“To be honest, I’m looking at retirement from the family business, I think I’ll take up…. hmm, you know what? I actually never thought about what else I would like to do. Maybe I’ll go to school. Have you gone to university or anything Andrew?”

“Fours years worth, and ended up with my degree in business. This makes me exceptionally over qualified to work at Harris’ Roadside Convenience Store.”

“Why work there then? You could probably get a job in the city of lost wages somewhere.”

“This is true, but I despise Vegas. It makes me nauseous just driving into the city, so I go elsewhere, hovering on the outskirts, waiting for a man to come and take me away from here.” Andrew feigned a swoon with the back of his hand resting on his forehead.

Matt laughed, “Well I’ll take you if you let me.” Matt colored when he realized the double meaning of what he said. “Oh crap, I didn’t mean that really… I mean your gorgeous and I would love to … I mean, I wouldn’t, or I would, but… Oh man, I have no idea how to dig myself out of this one!”

Andrew laughed loudly, “You really do stumble over your own tongue sometimes don’t you?”

“You have no idea.”

“Well I’m glad you do, it makes you less perfect.” Andrew looked at Matt affectionately and kissed him on the cheek. Matt smiled in appreciation and felt giddy.

They had been driving for almost an hour and Matt pulled onto the road that wound its way eventually to the Las Vegas Bay Overlook. Finding a spot he knew, which offered a panoramic view of Lake Mead, he turned off his Jeep and reached behind him to grab his pack.

“I have just the thing for a romantic view of the lake.” He pulled first one and then another of the hotel mugs from his bag that he had packed earlier, followed by the thermos full of hot chocolate that he made before he left the hotel. He never found a use for those damn packages that were endlessly left by the coffee maker by the cleaning staff, but he thought, if the time was right, he might get to use them on his date. His instincts, which he had grown over the past centuries to trust, had not let him down this afternoon. He poured the steaming mixture into Andrew’s mug and then filled his own.

Andrew had zipped up his jacket to fight the wind coming off the lake and wrapped his hands appreciatively around the hot mug. “Mmmm…” He sipped the warm sweet liquid that left a thin hot chocolate mustache on his lip.

Matt grinned when he saw it and leaned over to gently wipe it off for him. Without being too far from Andrew’s face, he said with his mischievous attitude, “So Andrew, just to get back to something you mentioned earlier, I’m pretty sure I heard you say that you thought I was perfect.”

Andrew looked at him seriously and considered. “Well, let’s see…” he replied quietly, “if we ignore your uncanny ability to break things, your runaway mouth, and your family propensity to reproduce like rabbits… and contrast that with your good looks, nice Jeep and superb hot chocolate making skills. I guess, all things considered… it’s kind of a wash,” he said disappointedly. “This puts you squarely in the average zone. I think I spoke too soon,” he remarked matter-of-factly.

“Ouch!” Matt groaned theatrically. “You really do know how to keep a guy in his place.”

Andrew laughed, “Well I wouldn’t want you to get a swollen head.”

Matt snickered when he heard what Andrew had said.

“You’re a sick man, you know that?” Andrew rolled his eyes.

“I’ve been told that on occasion yes,” Matt replied still fighting a smirk.

They stayed looking out over the water for some time, but eventually the sun began to move behind them and escaping with it was the warmth in the air. Matt undid the canopy that was wrapped around the Jeep’s roll bars and snapped it to the body of the vehicle. Once back inside he started it up and cranked the heat.

“Well, ready for something to eat?” Matt asked.

“Definitely! How about we go back to your place and you can cook me a meal?” Andrew suggested.

“Err, well…”

“Oh shit, you don’t live with your family do you?” Andrew sounded panicked.

“No I don’t live with my family! It’s just, that right now I actually live at a hotel, and I don’t actually do any of the cooking. Although, I could order room service and for us, if you’re okay with it?” Matt added weekly.

Andrew picked up his mug for a sip of hot chocolate, and as he was bringing it to his lips he looked intently at the Trump International logo and then back to Matt with an unspoken question in his eyes.

“Yup.”

“You live at the Trump Hotel in Vegas? Are you sure your not a hit man?” He asked Matt cautiously.

“No, I’m not a hit man!”

“Okay, okay, remain the man of mystery. I guess it may be a little too much to expect to know everything about you on a first date anyway.”

“Does that mean your already thinking about our second date?”

“Nice try on changing the subject,” but Andrew relented. Okay, why don’t we go back to my place and I can cook us a meal?”

“Really, you’d do that?” Matt was genuinely touched.

“Of course. I like cooking for people, and it seems that you are intriguing me to no end, so I figure I can weasel more information out of you about your strange life.”

Matt put on a disappointed look. “I was hoping you’d want to weasel something else out of me.”

“Oh you really do have a one track mind!” Andrew said with a hint of a smile.

It was enough to motivate Matt to start the drive back toward Vegas. They said very little on the way back. Instead they listened to music and found that they enjoyed some of the same bands. Matt told Andrew that he played music, and shared that it was something he inherited from his family.

In reality Matt could play any musical instrument. Over the years he found himself in royal courts as well as grunge bands. He could play equally to the elite enjoying a symphony or the mosh pit at an outdoor weekend concert. It was not, however, the endless practice that gave Matt this talent. Matt could play any instrument that he touched without ever having to practice. This was one of his gifts. Given to him at his birth when Time and Sun had first created him. This was part of Matt’s true purpose, his ultimate desire, his driven goal throughout all of the lives that he lived.

Matt was the Fool, the one who helped those move through transition, the innocent that didn’t know love, the naïve one that was the comic relief when the need arose, and the entertainer when the mood or the situation required it. He could be what anyone needed him to be, and through it all he gladly gave up all sense of who he could be – but no longer. Matt knew, as he was driving back with Andrew sitting beside him swaying back and forth to the music and singing along with PJPJ on the stereo, that he was, for the very first time, falling for a human. Matt knew it was crazy, after all he just met this guy a few hours ago, but he felt it as deeply as he felt the presence of love within others. He knew it in the very core of his being, and it scared him beyond any fear he had felt before. He didn’t want to lose what he was gaining, but he knew that his love was only one side of this coin. He wanted Andrew to feel it too, but also knew this may not be in his future. Andrew, like all humans had a choice, and he would need to be the one to choose Matt. If he didn’t, then Matt knew he would feel pain like he never felt before. This wouldn’t be the pain of other’s; that pain he was used to. This would be his own pain, his own broken heart. Driving in the dimming light, Matt wasn’t sure he could handle that.

But as always happens in life, Fortune reared her head, and gave Matt the distraction he needed to put these thoughts out of his mind.

“I think your cell phone buzzed.” Andrew called over the music.

Matt snapped back to what was happening. “What? Oh… can you check it for me, it would be a text if it buzzed.”

Andrew picked up Matt’s phone from the console between them and looked at the message. “It’s from Amy, she asks if you have gotten into my pants yet, and is passing on the phone number from that woman in the store earlier today. Are you really thinking about taking care of her kid?”

“I’m quite good with kids actually, and besides this particular kid is a lot like me, which means I can teach him a thing or two. And I have a feeling he’s going to want to learn what I have to teach him. In fact,” Matt said with a smile spreading on his face, “I would go so far as to say that he’d be a Fool not to learn what I have to teach him.”