I stopped, stunned at this beautiful young lady and her long dark flowing hair. Her eyes summoned me to come closer, but there was something else. I just couldn’t put my finger on it. I stood there as if frozen in ice. Sabina moved closer to me, and I could see the silhouette of her toned body. Her eyes were seductive and piercing as if she could see into my soul. I felt exposed. I was not ready for this — not today, anyway. “Uh hum,” I cleared my voice and said, “I am Annon. Um, this is my post-up spot.”
Sabina’s eyes squinted, and she replied, “Your who?”
I replied “Annon this is my place to get work”
She sighed and said, “Oh, what kind of work do you do?”
“Whatever anyone needs. I help people who pay me to do things for them.”
Sabina nodded her head. “Ah ha, so you do anything someone wants you to do, and they pay you?”
“Well, almost everything. Nothing illegal. I don’t want any trouble.”
Sabina looked at me closely and said, “My family is here for the festival, and we could use a laborer.”
“Well, alrighty then, what do you need me to do?”
She turned her head, winked, then said, “Follow me.”
The city is coming to life all of the hotels are full and all of the restaurants are packed. Money was in the air but not my pocket this was a problem. Not that I had a lot going for me right now I was in survival mode like I had been for the last 4 years. The plague changed everything, and I was left as an orphan. There was so much chaos the streets were filled with bodies and the smell I will never forget that smell.
We walked for a bit to a secluded area on the waterfront where I saw a familiar sight: the colorful wagon. As we walked up, I heard giggling and water splashing. I turned my head and got an eyeful as the women were bathing out in the open. I stepped into a hole and almost broke my leg. Sabina stuck out her hand to help me out of the hole. I took her hand, and she pulled me out of the hole, and we tripped, and she landed on top of me. I looked deeply into her mesmerizing eyes, and I can’t explain it, but it was almost like time stopped.
Singing and dancing are very contagious, and I can’t do either, but the gypsies are naturals. However, I feel the kinetic energy and the high-energy vibes of all of these people. Somehow, I feel a deep connection to all of them. The little children are so vibrant and full of life. I have never seen people so happy. At the end of the day, my whole body ached. I happily did three days’ worth of work. The one thing that hurt the most was my cheeks from smiling and laughing. Sabina walked up to me and asked if I was ready to eat supper. I said sure.
She said, “Okay, but you’re dirty and stinky, and we never eat dirty.”
I replied, “Well, I can just get paid for the day, and I will go home and get cleaned up.”
She had a smirk on her face and said, “You’re not going anywhere. You can’t just leave us out here.”
I said, “What do you mean? I will be back in the morning.”
Sabina took my hand and walked me to the water’s edge and said, “You can’t leave now because I need you.” Then she leaned in as if to kiss me and sniffed my shirt, then pushed me backward into the water.
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