Post 6

Peter woke up on Saturday morning with the last vestiges of a very strange dream at the edges of his mind. He remembers that in his dream, he was free-climbing – climbing without ropes or hammered spikes, though he has never been a climber before. There are climbing walls and gyms around Denver, even inside some of the larger sporting goods stores, but he has never used one. In his dream, he was able to summit the most difficult rock face with ease, barely stopping to search for his next handhold. He remembers that it was almost like flying. He would look back behind him and watch the ground fall away below him, and the sky unfold above.

He shook the fog of sleep from his mind and got out of bed. Today was not only the day that Dan came home, but also the day he got to drive the Mercedes! Sure, he has driven it before, but every other time he was behind the wheel, his father was in the passenger seat, directing him on what to do every step of the way. He looked out his bedroom window and noticed it had rained. Clouds were low in the sky, and the tree outside his window was dripping. It was probably going to be cool this morning, but he was optimistic that it would be much warmer later in the day, so he decided to wear shorts, a purple Colorado Rockies t-shirt and white Rockies ball cap. Looking out his window, he saw his mom walking towards the front of the house where the truck was parked. The door slammed on the first floor as he turned to make his way downstairs.

After rushing through a quick breakfast of cereal and milk, he walked into the living room where his dad kept the car keys. One set of keys was missing – his mom, dad and sister had already gone to start the process of picking up his sister’s stuff from her house. There was a note under the other set of keys. It was from his dad: “Be careful.” Peter picked up the keys and put them in his pocket, and noticed that the note was written on a printout of a map to the airport. Dad was certainly thinking. It was then that he realized he didn’t exactly know how to get to the airport! He’s driven around the neighborhood, and he’s been in the car several times for a trip out to the airport or to relative’s houses, but he hasn’t driven there himself. Taking the map, he made sure he had his wallet and the cell phone that Laura gave him, and he walked out the door. The Mercedes was sitting in the driveway, ready to go. He didn’t even have to back it up.

After adjusting all the mirrors – he was still doing things “by the book” as his dad taught – he put on his seatbelt and started the car. He put the directions on the console between the seats so he could refer to it along the way. One foot on the brake, he put the car in gear and began rolling slowly before he looked up to start driving when he noticed that Laura was standing in front of the car! He stepped on the brake hard, both hands gripping the steering wheel. The car stopped immediately. Laura laughed at the surprised expression on his face, and he instantly turned bright red. He put the car back in park and turned it off before getting out. Laura had walked around to the driver’s side door.

“I was in the neighborhood and thought I’d see you off,” she said.

He looked her over. She was wearing tight-fitting jeans and a light-colored zip-up sweater that was open, showing the tank-top underneath. She had done her make-up and pulled her hair back in a braid. She looked beautiful. “You are lucky I didn’t run over you. It’s bad enough I’ve never driven this car alone before!”

“You looked right at home in that Mercedes, Pete,” she said. “How long until you get one of your own?” Her hand reached out and lightly ran long the curve at the top of the door.

“Well, if my baseball career takes off, I figure only a couple years.” He winked at her and set his hat back on his head. “Otherwise, I’m guessing it’ll be a while. I don’t know how much scientists get paid, but I bet it isn’t a ton.”

They hugged and kissed briefly before Laura looked in his eyes and said, “Are you sure you can’t take me with you?”

He wanted to. He really did. They were growing closer by the day, and he really enjoyed her company. He couldn’t say he wasn’t tempted at the prospect of her going with him, but he couldn’t betray the promise he made his father. “Dad would kill me! He told me ‘just me in the car’ and I know he was talking about you,” Peter said with a worried look on his face. He hated to be the bearer of bad news.

“Alright,” answered Laura, “so give me a call when you get back home. Maybe we can get together later.” Then she added, “Hopefully,” and smiled at Peter. He wasn’t sure what was behind that smile, but it made him smile, too.

Peter got back in the car and started the process all over again. Mirrors checked, seat belt on, key in the ignition, and he started the car. This time, before putting the car in gear, he checked to make sure there wasn’t anybody standing in front of him. He pulled out of the driveway and was on his way. After a couple blocks, he turned on the radio. He winced at the classical music that was playing and quickly changed the station to something a little more tolerable – rock.

The trip to the airport was easy. He followed the map that took him around on the main roads and up I-25 to I-70. The signs pointed him in the right direction after that. He had to remember to look for Pena Boulevard, not Airport Road. He found it easily, and before long, he could see the pointy, white roof of Denver International Airport’s main terminal building. As he drove up Pena Boulevard, planes were taking off and landing almost right next to him. He checked the signs and pulled into Terminal West, parking on the top level. The sun was breaking through the clouds and shining overtop of the bright, white roof. He walked across the bus and taxi lanes, went inside and found the monitors showing arrivals, only to realize he was about an hour early to pick up Dan. At least he wasn’t late. He knew that if he was late, his brother would give him a hard time about it.

He made his way to the newsstand and bought himself a soda. This was an indulgence since his mother would never have the stuff in the house. He sat by the fountains, which is the waiting area for people meeting arriving passengers. The air inside was cooler here, but the sound of the fountains drowned out the sound of the people’s conversations all around. He never understood the point of all the extra security that kept people from going to the concourse and meeting passengers as they got off the plane. If somebody wanted to get onto a plane to do bad things, they would find a way. Not having a ticket wouldn’t deter them, he was sure.

As he sat drinking his soda, he watched the people as they walked by. Some were in a hurry. Some had all the time in the world. There were people with children, couples, and lots of people by themselves. He thought it a little sad that so many people travel alone, including his brother, who didn’t have a girlfriend or a wife at the moment. He checked his watch a couple times and felt that time was passing slowly. He counted at least four times that the droning, pre-recorded security announcement warned him of some ambiguous, elevated threat to everyone’s security, and to watch out for the suspicious person or package that you were likely to never see in your lifetime.

At about the time his brother’s flight was slated to land, he got up and walked over to the gathering of people standing at the rail across from the top of the escalators where “ticketed passengers” emerged in waves, each wave caused by the arrival of the underground train connecting the terminal to the concourses. When the wave would subside, he could see the bored security guard standing at a podium between the escalators, serving as the last line of defense in case someone try to enter the secure area in this direction. As he stood there, people found the ones they were waiting for and cleared out, as more people joined the gathering. After a few minutes, he was standing with his hand on the rail next to an older woman wearing too much perfume on his right, and a sharply-dressed driver holding a sign for Mr. Klein on his left. The next wave of passengers came swarming up the escalators and emerged in the terminal, some looking determined, others looking lost and still others scanning the assembled crowd for some familiar face. It was in the middle of this wave of passengers, with his nostrils full of bad perfume and the speakers droning the same security message overhead that he saw it.

At first, he noticed it on the edge of his vision. Something moved above the throng of people emerging from the secure zone. The lighting in this area is not good, and he wasn’t looking directly at it, so he couldn’t be sure what it was. He turned his head to look there more directly when he saw it again, just to his left. A shadowy form appeared just above the crowd again, only this time, he was able to home in on where it was coming from. There was a man wearing camouflage pants, military-style boots and a white t-shirt proclaiming “Proud to be an American” around an eagle gripping an American flag making his way through the crowd towards the other end of the railing. His close-cropped hair would have completed the picture of a military member, except that he hadn’t shaved in a few days. Although he was walking with a pretty severe limp, he was moving pretty quickly through the crowd.

What caught Peter’s eye is the fact that this man was surrounded by a strange, dark aura. It reminded him of what he saw when the squirrel died in Mr. Sinclair’s yard, only it had settled around this man. The white shirt helped him to see it more clearly, and as the man moved, the aura swirled and distorted the area around him.

Peter doesn’t react at first, except to stare in astonishment at the man walking away, his mouth slightly agape. He doesn’t even notice Dan walking towards him until he feels the playful punch in his arm and hears Dan’s voice say, “What’cha lookin’ at, Peter Pan? Some hot chick?” Peter realized that nobody else was reacting in any way to this strange man walking through the crowded airport, and decided to play it cool.

Peter looked at Dan as Dan looked in the direction that Peter was looking. Thankfully, the scene had completely changed as the crowd moved on so that Dan wouldn’t ridicule Peter about staring at some guy. He looked back at Peter and the brothers hugged, slapping each other’s backs. It was a little awkward with the railing in the way, but it was quick. Dan directed Peter towards the other end of the railing, saying, “I’ve got to pick up my suitcase at baggage claim. This way.”

The two walked on opposite sides of the railing and met up, walking in the same direction as Aura Man. They made small talk about Dan’s trip, and the fact that their father allowed Peter to drive his car. When they rounded the corner, Peter saw Aura Man standing at the same baggage claim they were heading to. There were a lot of people there, but he noticed him right away. He was standing on the opposite side, watching bags go by on the carousel. Peter steered Dan in that direction without telling him why. They stopped a few dozen feet from Aura Man and Dan put his carry-on on the floor. They stood watching the carousel go around while Peter stole glances at Aura Man. He didn’t know what to make of the guy, but he knew that the aura around him was definitely not happy. It was seemingly in pain, writhing, crying out for someone to help. But nobody around Aura Man even noticed this. Peter thought it was like a page out of a bad horror movie. He just wanted to wake up!

“Do you see this guy?” Peter asked Dan, surreptitiously pointing at Aura Man.

“Yeah, he was on my flight, a few rows in front of me. He was kindof an ass hole to the stewardess.”

“There’s something weird about him,” Peter continued, without taking his eyes off of Aura Man.

Dan looked for a moment, then looked back at the carousel. “Nice going, Peter Pan. That’s my suitcase there,” he said as he walked away from Peter towards the carousel. Aura Man was walking towards the carousel, too, and while his back was towards Peter, Peter walked towards him quickly. His brother wouldn’t notice since he was preoccupied with his suitcase.

Peter stood about two feet behind Aura Man, trying to see the strange cloud around him more clearly. He was stunned when Aura Man suddenly picked his duffel bag up off the carousel, turned around, throwing the bag onto his back in one smooth, practiced motion, and started to walk away. Aura Man bumped right into him as he began to walk, and Peter could feel some kind of strange energy wash over him. For a moment, he was disoriented and lightheaded. The terminal suddenly went quiet for him. The motion of the carousel was a blur in his vision. He barely heard Aura Man quietly say, “How about a little room, dumb-ass.” He took a deep breath, trying to focus. As his head cleared a little, he was overcome with fatigue. He turned and walked away from the carousel and found a row of seats near a pay phone. He nearly collapsed into the nearest one, trying to catch his breath. Sitting down helped him, and his vision seemed to return to normal pretty quickly.

A few minutes later, Dan found him there. “There you are. Why’d you disappear like that? I turned my back for a minute and whoosh you were gone just like...” His voice trailed off as he saw Peter. “Hey, you okay, little brother? You look a little pale.”

“I’m fine. I just got a little dizzy or something. I’m okay now, though,” he said in response.

“I don’t know if dad’s going to want you driving his car being all dizzy like that.”

“You’re right. Why don’t you drive.”

The brothers got up and walked out of the terminal building. Peter carried Dan’s carry-on, and Dan carried his suit case. They found the car and loaded the suitcases into it. Dan drove back to the house. The drive was pretty quiet, the silence in the car filled mostly with the radio, and only occasionally with talk. Dan talked about returning to work on Monday. Peter talked about getting ready for graduation and mowing lawns again this summer. Dan tried to talk Peter into taking a “real job” over the summer, but Peter was adamant about his plans.

When they got to the house, Peter went upstairs to his bedroom and immediately fell asleep. He was still asleep at 6:30 that evening when his mother came into his room to wake him up for dinner. He felt better, but again, remembers some very odd dreams. As dreams do, though, they faded as he woke up and went downstairs.

Dinner was roasted chicken with mashed potatoes, gravy and green beans. Around the table sat Dan, Sarah, Heather and Patrick. This was probably the first time the kids were together for dinner since Christmas, though Sarah’s husband Jason was absent this time. Peter felt out of sorts all evening, and didn’t talk much.

After dinner, Peter grabbed the phone and called Laura. He felt like he could use someone to talk with, after the strange events of the day. He still occasionally felt that odd tingle of energy as he did after Aura Man bumped into him, though it was not as strong now as it was when it first happened. Laura said she would come over in a little while. Peter had some time to himself.