An Encounter

I took the first line from the book "Maya" by Jostein Gaarder and wrote my own little piece...

I will never forget the damp, windswept January morning in 1998 when Frank landed on the tiny Fijian island of Taveuni.

Most of us had been up for a large part of the night. The rain had been relentless, although many had taken the opportunity to indulge in a late night party despite the storm. It was no surprise to see the reception brimming with bleary-eyed tourists, those who were scavenging for that extra bit of good news about the weather and others who were submitting to a breakfast that seemed to be calling to them before its time. So no one paid attention to yet another visitor checking in to the resort. Frank stood at the counter, with suitcase in hand, the dark sunglasses he wore speaking boldly of a man who had something to hide; hardly befitting as a disguise.

“Good morning, sir. Welcome to Taveuni.”

“G’day. I have a reservation.”

Frank dug into his briefcase and handed Timi, the young man at the reception, a piece of paper while he drummed his fingers on the counter. It struck me as odd to bring along a briefcase to an island resort.

“Uhh, I’m sorry, sir, but there seems to be some mistake. Uhh..”

“I’m sorry?”

“This reference number, are you sure…”

“Of course, I’m sure! What seems to be the problem?”

“Your booking, uhhh, well I have no record of it.”

“Far out! I called and confirmed from the airport, twice!”

“I’m sorry, sir, but there’s nothing…”

“Look, will you just check me into any of your available cabins, er, bures, will you!”

“I’m sorry sir but we’re fully booked and…”

Frank slammed his fist on the counter as the argument quickly got out of hand. He was slowly attracting a crowd around him and murmurs started spreading from the guests nearby. Timi was shuffling through papers with one hand and balancing a handset to his ear with the other, his brow heavy with sweat drops, while Frank continued to hurl abuse. By then I had decided that enough was enough and I walked up to the counter.

“It’s okay, Timi, he’s with me.”

“What?” roared Frank, flicking his head around.

There was a moment of silence as everyone else turned to look at me before the murmurs started again. I waited until the moment faded and very soon the crowd dispersed, making their way outdoors, I presumed – a more fitting distraction. Frank slowly took off his glasses and I could finally see the shock in his eyes, a twitch forming at the outer corner of his right eye. His mouth fell open as he fumbled for something to say but all he did was to follow me out.

To be continued...