"Guest shouldn't bring guests"

I was walking along the river in search of some free therapy. The sun was high in the sky signifying noon. The weather was still warm in spite of it being the middle of October. I happened upon a large mostly flat stone and decided to set up my afternoon picnic and chill session there. It was covered by brush on one side and provided a clear view all the way to the other side of the river, where I could see California buckeye, sticky manzanita, and buttonbush growing in district layers of natural excellence.

I had worn cargo shorts, my Jetson's tank top and hiking sandals, but remembered to also put on my swimming suit under my clothing, in case I found a reasonably exclusive spot to hop in.

Even though I had a clear view to the other side of the river, I also had, in my newly found haven, some wild grasses growing in the riverbank along side me, providing some shade, and a gold and green curtain. I wasn't feeling all the way secure in the adorable floral printed two piece I'd snagged a year before from an online boutique. I'd gained a few pounds in my thighs since then.

  The afternoon was perfect.

  I laid out my picnic blanket ever so precisely. Half in the sun and half out. Planning ahead to rotate my position according to my mood. Placed my beach towel over the side directly receiving sunlight. Switched my satellite radio to Corrine Bailey Rae, which I had blended with a native American flute station the night before, attached it to my Bluetooth speaker and poured myself a glass of champagne.

I had a placemat with my all veggie sandwich in it's baggie, wrapped with a rubber band and my fruit salad with the coldpack in my multicolored lunch bag.

I took my sweet time. Enjoying every bite and every sip. No one was on either side of the river that I could see or hear, and eventually, the music became more like a lullaby, and I was fast asleep in the hot valley sun.

  I must have been asleep for quite sometime. I felt someone standing over me and at the sane time heard,

"Ayah? Ayah Hill? Hi!"

I opened one eye, shielding my face with both hands.

"Oh my goodness!" I sat up, I could feel my heart inside my throat.

"Xavier? Xavier.... William Thomas!!"

We both burst into laughter.

I stood up, simultaneously grabbing my towel and wrapping it around me, remember my itty bitty bikini.

He reached his hand out, to help me up and then bowed once I was standing.

I realized I was still dry, and reached to hug him.

"How are you! Gosh, it's been about 10 years or so, right? Junior year in college?"

He was smiling from ear to ear.

"Yeah, I transferred to a school up north junior year. To be closer to my grandparents. I am working in energy renewal now. I actually saw your tattoo from our boat and was so sure it had to be you, I docked," he motioned towards a beautiful blue houseboat sitting about 30 feet from my picnic area that was peaking from around both sides of the bushes.

"Wow!!! That is impressive."

"Thanks. Yeah I figured no one to this very day would ever have a tattoo of a CareBear riding a dragon in such vivid color. I remember you yelling from Yoshito's dorm room."

I laughed, "It was absolutely worth it!!"

He gave me a few chuckles and a playful wink.

The afternoon was shaping up nicely.

"Listen, I am having a small get together on my boat tonight at 7pm. We will be docked at this spot until everyone has come aboard. You should come. Yoshito will be there. Chris Wright. Taylor, kebra, Joleen. It should be fun and I know they will all be excited to see you there."

It sounded like more fun than my plan for the evening which was to watch "Waiting to Exhale" again and cut my puppy's toenails. I accepted rather quickly even though three of those people, I couldn't even remember.

"Sure! That sounds like a great time. I would love to catch up with everyone"

"Well ok, I will... See you there. Oh, I will give you my number, in case you get lost." He added.

Motioning for my phone. I handed it to him. A few seconds later, his phone chimed, signifying he had texted himself.

"Oh... Kay. See you inna bit and should I bring anything? Is it formal and fancy?"

"No" he replied, shaking his head with a frown. "Don't bring anything but yourself and we will be inside mostly but bring a jacket. I can be a little chilly once we get out on the water". I knodded.

As I watched him descend I tried to remember who he said would be there. As if it mattered.

Xavier was handsome and polite. We'd dated briefly sophomore year of high school but when I went to band camp for summer, he had written me a letter to break up so he could date some girl from the suburbs and since then we were just good buddies.

As he faded out of sight, I gathered my things, and headed for my car.

I walked into my apartment, stripping my picnic clothes from the moment I locked the door.

It was already five o'clock and time was not on my side.

I jumped into the shower and after staying in there way too long, I could see my work friend Julia was texting me. As I was drying and moisturizing my skin, I clicked the message to see what she was saying.

"Hey Lady! Do you want to go out tonight?"

I text back," Actually, I was invited to a yatch party with some friends from college."

I thought to myself, it would probably be comforting to take someone I had actually hung out with recently and I was sure Xavier wouldn't mind, since Julia was single and beautiful.

I decided to extend the invite. "If you want to meet me here at my place, we can roll over there together? It should be fun."

Julia probably meant 'Let's go to a night club.' Which I had done with her on two other occasions and it just really wasn't my scene at our age.

I was curious if she would even be interested, but she accepted the invitation, stipulating however, that she would like to meet me there so she would have more time to get ready, and the ability to leave when she wanted if the even ended up being bored if the party was "whack".

  I put on my favorite silk China doll patterned top with the side buttons and my favorite jeans. Slipped on my matching red rhinestone heals and grabbed my small clutch purse adorned in the same print as my top. Strolling past the floor mirror in my entry, I caught a glimpse of myself and decided a small leather jacker was the best way to go.

As I pulled up to the docks, I could see Julia's car parked in the back corner of the lot. I parked beside her. I got out, locking my door. Julia's foggy driver's side window lowered.

"Hey sexy girl!" She yelled, sounding as if she may have already started her party at home before she'd even called me. I turned, walking towards her car," Hey Julia girl! How are you? Are you .....okay?" I was pretty much subtly asking her if she had been drinking.

"I'm GOOD!" She climbed out the car clumsily, dropping her keys. "Thank you for bringing me girl. My daughter's father was supposed to get her for the weekend and he ain't answered the phone. I had to get a sitter." I interrupted her in annoyance, "I understand. Let's see what's going on in here." I regretted inviting her and as we approached the dock***** I was saying prayers that she wouldn't embarrass me.

   The boat was exquisite. He had tables and table of food. Everything from barbecued lamb chops and salmon to an elaborate dessert display. The seating areas were raised and plush decorated in the same shade of blue as the boat and a light shade. There was a bar on the top level. Music coming from the third and people mingling and giggling everywhere.

"Let's get a drink and find somewhere to sit." I suggested. I hadn't recognized anyone from college or the old neighborhood aboard yet.

Julia agreed and we grabbed something the bartender called "The X Factor" a mix of Grand Marnier, guava, pineapple and vodka, garnished with dried berries and served in a chilled glass with a gold and blue "X" Etched into it.

I was scanning the room when I spotted Xavier. I leaned over and tapped Julia, "There he is, my friend that invited us Xa'.." She cut my sentence short "THAT'S XAVIER!!! The jerk..." Before I could ask her to clarify, she was all the way across the room, approaching him, pink tassels from the shoulder straps on her tank top in tow.

"XAVIER!" She shrieked. "Julia?" He responded appearing to be both scared and confused. "What are you doing here?"  She put both hands on her hips, "A better question IS, how the hell are you having boat parties but you can't pay child support or spend time with your child?" He put both his hands on her shoulders, "Please, calm down" he said, shushing her along past the crowd. It seemed to be working as they made their way around the deck and down the stairs into the lower levels. I was starting to think I had ruined the party. I walked to the buffet table, and made myself a hefty sized plate of the various treats. Internally I was patting myself on the back, I could be the source of a reconciliation. I found a perfect spot on the second deck by the pool and hot tub area that was well-lit and sat myself down with a fresh drink. Just then Joleen approached me, "Ayah!! Hello!! I haven't seen you since graduation. You look amazing!" I gave her a half hug. She sat next to me and we caught up on all we had missed happen in each other's lives. Mostly her. She'd had three children and two divorces since we'd talked last. As I listened and provided appropriate empathetic responses, I was also scanning the crowd to see if Julia and Xavier had made a reappearance yet. They were nowhere to be seen. Joleen continued her empty rhetoric. After giving her a few automatic responses to her mundane stories, I explained to her that I had become this cupid sent to reunite these beautiful people by obviously celestial forces. I smiled at her with pride in my eyes, "You have to be open to allowing the Universe to use you!" To my dismay, she had look of bewilderment on her face.

"What?" I exclaimed.

"Julia is crazy. She actually tried to burn X's house down last year. She is still on probation and he has a restraining order against her. Their child lives with him and his mom. Where are they?" She seemed to be extremely and immediately concerned. We stood and she followed me through the crowd and around the deck to the stairs. Just as we got our sights on the stair case, Xavier came running up. "Dock the BOAT!! Dock the BOAT" Only two or three seconds behind him was Julia with a tennis racket swinging wildly.

"I'm going to KILL YOU!!! GIMME MY BABY!". Just then I saw Yoshito heading to steer the boat*** . The other guest were starting to spread out to the edges of the boat as the chase continued.

Xavier was still screaming "STOP THE BOAT! GET HER OFF!" Julia caught up with him in the pool area as he slipped trying to get around it and she began hitting him with the racket screaming,"I LOVED YOU!" I moved a seat closer to the back side of the buffet and began making myself another to go contained of food. As I did, I could see we were approaching what looked like a shore.

Xavier had gotten himself up off the ground and was running the circumference of the boat's entirety once again. Just when we all probably thought she would catch up to him again, he stopped dead in his tracks, " Julia. Stop. I will talk to you if you can calm down." We could also see the rage in Julia's face. She charged towards him, arms flailing all directions and he bent down, grabbing her ankles and then stood up, heaving her body through the air and into the water causing a huge slash. The entire party cheered. I slinked away from the table into a corner. Hoping not too many people saw me bring in the chaos. As we cruised back to the docks, I could hear chatter about the night's events. People weren't talking about business or family anymore. The entire hour was spent debating which of them was wrong and if she deserved what had ultimately happened to her. Was she on drugs? Was she drunk? Although I knew the answers to all their questions, I didn't offer any information, for fear of being associated with the drama. We anchored and began exiting. I couldn't decide if I should mix into the heavier traffic or just wait until the end and scraggle behind. I opted to wait. Everyone was apologizing on their way out. It made me feel even worse. I approached Xavier "Thank you for such an almost lovely evening," and as I shook his hand he grabbed my hand with his other hand firmly and said, "Guest should never bring guests. I reviewed the security footage and it seems the only one who owes me an apology is the person not bothering to offer me one." My mouth fell open. I began to offer my frazzled apology and explanation. He stood there with his arms now crossed looking at me as though he hater me. Under my breate one more time I uttered "I am truly sorry. I had no idea." I left the ship that day knowing I would be the main topic of the next college buddy rendezvous and I was probably going to be back to eating lunch as a solo act. Julia would likely have some bones to pick with me as well.