& that's the way life goes

Writing Exercise 11: Gypsy

It almost seems impossible for me to go back to that split second when…

I was at a bus depot, headed for New York. I was the aspiring actress that was convinced I’d make it on Broadway. I was disgusted by all the people around me and that started me thinking about all the people that live in New York. Would I feel claustrophobic? Should I have chosen LA instead? My hands gave a sudden shake and I breathed deeply trying to rid myself of panic. Once in through the nose and out the mouth. There. Much better. I didn’t see her coming towards me, I probably would have moved if I did. She was dressed in coordinating purple. Everything, from her long flowing skirt to her loose cotton blouse. The beads around her neck were a lilac color that stood out from the deep amethyst of her clothing. she came at me with purpose, holding an index card with symbols drawn on it. When I opened my eyes from my cleansing breath I was face to face with her. I held back a shriek and looked into her eyes. They were an odd mix of hazel and blue. I couldn’t look away. She smiled at me and I realized she was missing a front tooth, this immediately made me panic.

“Don’t worry, I’m not here to hurt you,” she said quietly reassuring me.

I tried to play it off, like I wasn’t thinking that, “oh no, I’m not afraid of you, I’m just wondering if I should be waiting somewhere else for my bus.” Her hazel eyes burned into me and I bit back the words of untruth.

“I just need to give you this,” she pushed the card on me.

“What is this?” I wondered out loud staring at the symbols I didn’t understand.

“If you follow these signs, on the order of the card, you will find great success. Broadway will love you,” she said her eyes gleaming at me. “But if you refuse and throw that card away, you will lose everything.” With this she turned and walked away. Her feet didn’t even seem to hit the floor. She glided until I couldn’t see her purple outfit anymore. I stared down at the card. I wasn’t superstitious, but I didn’t want to take a chance with my success.

The PA system came alive and announced my bus was on schedule and proceed to area A. I hiked my bag higher on my shoulder and made my way over to the crowd of people that had gathered. In front of me a teenager had a backpack with patches on it. The one front and center was a pair of scissors cutting tape. I glanced down at the card and realized it matched. I sucked in a breath. The whole train ride I couldn’t help but wonder if it was a coincidence. I must have fallen asleep because the next thing I knew it was time to get off.

I was about to cross the street when the red hand started to flash. again I choose this moment to look down. “A hand,” I muttered to myself as I waited for the crosswalk to change. That was two symbols in a row, I decided not to chance fate, I would pay attention. The next symbol on the card I wasn’t familiar with, it was the letter n mixed with a letter x. “Odd,” I said continuing to talk to myself.

I had no plans other than to hail a cab and find a cheap motel room. With only a shoulder bag and a purse I had traveled lightly. The sun was shining and I was headed toward Time Square, I decided to walk. I almost missed the sign that held the symbol. And underneath that particular symbol was an arrow pointing left. My heart beat a little bit faster as I followed it. A blank white flag waving was next and I didn’t have to walk far. It was outside a restaurant, so I kept walking straight. Glancing down to check the next symbol, poison.

I started to get nervous when I didn’t see it right away. Did I miss it? I was a crazy for even believing that woman? But it was so big that I couldn’t miss it. It was part of building graffiti and again an arrow. This way pointing right. I started walking a little bit faster, looking for a snowflake. I found it 4 blocks down outside a small shop. Beneath it said north. I had been a hiker so I was good with directions and made a left down the next street. Not far down I saw a yinyang hanging in someone’s window. I was on the right path, I was almost there. One more symbol to go, a cross with a circle around the top. Again, no idea what this one meant, but I was determined to see where it would lead me. I started worrying, I hadn’t seen it in the last ten blocks. My feet were aching and my stomach had started to growl. I stopped on a corner to brush the hair out of my face and reassess. There it was, painted on a stage door, with a sign out front that read: Auditions.

No related posts.