Chapter 3

Laylah felt someone lightly shake her shoulder, and she snapped quickly out of the slumber that had over taken her. "Ma'am. It's time to get off the bus." the older lady had said.

The sudden fluttering of her heart took Laylah a little by surprise as she quickly got out of her seat and proceeded to retrieve her things from behind the stretch rubber band-like overhead compartment. The impeding moistness of her nervous hands made it just a second difficult to retrieve her bag, but she managed.

Laylah took survey of her surroundings as she stepped off the bus. As she inhaled, she was reminded of the time she had taken the bus to Chicago, similar bus-y type smells, yet the breeze seemed a little cleaner. Yes, the air was how it had always seemed to her, for some reason Canadian air just smelled different.

The oddly comforting hustle of a bus terminal greeted Laylah as she opened the door. Stepping into the main terminal, she quickly looked around to see if she saw David. She was satisfied when her eyes made connection with the large clock above the ticket counter. The bus had arrived early, and David was not supposed to be there for at least another 15 minutes.

Laylah took the opportunity that she had and made her way to the nearest women's bathroom. She wanted to make sure that she looked her best when David first saw her. Insecurities had plagued Laylah for most of her life and this time, she wanted to 'play the part' and ACT confident.

Digging into her bag, Laylah produced her usual barrage of facial enhancing 'tools' and went on to applying that which was to make her look like a mysterious person. The ladies that were coming and going out of there at the time were giving Laylah some odd looks, but she didn't mind. She was here to see David, not them. She knew what David liked his ladies to look like, and she wanted to fit that type, to make him happy.

Replacing the cap on her dark burgundy lipstick, Laylah took her mirrored compact, and gave herself the once over. Her naturally pale skin nicely accentuated her darkened lips, and darkly lined eyes. A smoky grey powder kissed the lids of her eyes, making them seem a little bit larger than they were. Her recently dyed black hair had a hint of a blue shade in certain angles of the light. Yes, she was ready.

The length of her white cape gently fell and wisped the ground as Laylah stood from the bench on which she had been sitting. Her fingers slightly trembled as she carefully positioned the hood on her head. Damn, she looked good and she knew it.

The door opened easily for Laylah as she again stepped into the hustle that was the Guelph bus station. She looked around to see if David had made it there or not, but could find anyone that resembled the pictures that she had seen.

The usual types of people stared at Laylah as she made her way thru the terminal to the main panel of window that were the front of the terminal. Placing one hand on the glass, Laylah gently cocked her head to the side so that she was able to see up and down each side of the street.

With the clamoring sounds of footsteps around her, Laylah really thought nothing of it when a pair of them stopped suddenly behind her. At the moment she was about to turn around, she heard someone whisper into her ear.

"Nice to see you Laylah."

Her heart quickly beat beneath the black velvet dress. The soft, and familiar, scent of sage gently brushed the inner depth of her nasal passages. The smell reminded Laylah of the comfort in the familiarity of home, yet she wasn't back home.

Inhaling deeply, Laylah got a half-cocked 'pleasant' smile on her face as she turned around to greet the person that had just recently whispered into her ear. This was the moment she had carefully contemplated for many months.

"Nice to see you David, finally." Laylah managed to say after a few seconds of first encounter awkward silence.

David gently took Laylah by the hand, softly closed his eyes and brought her hand to his lips. "Yes, love, it has been too long, but come. There is a lot we could be doing in this short time that you are visiting."

Laylah smiled in agreement, and gently bent down to retrieve her bag. She then followed, in step, behind David as he led the way through the terminal. She knew that they would not have to long of a walk ahead of them, as David had often made mention of the fact that he live quite near the station, and that if it were a nice day, like it was, they would be walking to his home.

There was a slight breeze as the pair walked down the side walk, past the bus terminal. The wind had caught Laylah a little by surprise, to the point where she had to stop for a moment. Adjusting the hood to her cape so that the wind wasn't catching her face, Laylah noticed that David had gotten a few paces in front of her.