Molly grabbed her bag and suit jacket in a flurry as she headed out the door. She was late, and she hated being late. As a budding matchmaker, her business had grown in leaps and bounds. She had already acquired a lawyer to help her in that end of the business, Now, she was off to see an accountant who had been referred to her so she could get the needed help in that area.
As she rushed out the door, she pulled on her jacket while her bag swung wildly around her. Okay, she stopped long enough to take a breath and calm herself. You’re a professional, act like one. She took a deep breath and placed her key in the deadbolt. She lifted her hands, palms outward and set in place, in front of her hoping the gesture might help her maintain the temporary calm she’d just gathered.
She smiled to herself and steadied her gait before moving toward the stairs. Since the pandemic happened, she’d realized how short life was. And that if she was ever to make her dream of becoming a matchmaker a reality, it had to be now. Being single herself, she had a lot of single friends of both genders. Social media filled in the gaps. And her business had taken off.
She stepped out into the sunlight and took in the fresh air into her lungs like a soothing balm. She would walk. By the time she caught the bus, she could get there faster walking. And the morning’s temperature was perfect. The sky, the birds singing, the crisp fall air. Everything was perfect.
Hopefully, that was a good sign. The meaning being that this guy was going to understand her business and help her manage the financial side so she could continue doing this thing she loved. Molly felt a rush of joy. This was a good sign. It could be nothing but. Signs were all around – all you had to do was look for them.
She moved at a brisk and confident pace down the sidewalk. Before she could acknowledge the sudden urge to glimpse the sky, she looked up. There above her was a balloon, red and heart-shaped, floating upward toward the heavens. She watched it as it floated gently along, its tail rippling in the breeze. It seemed to stop its upward flight long enough to move eastward toward a bank of cotton-white clouds against the brilliant blue sky. The clouds split apart as the balloon made its way once again upward. The rift slowly shifted into its own heart shape, allowing the balloon smooth passage through its middle.
Awe filled her senses. Was this another sign? It seemed too coincidental to be anything else.
Molly reached for the door at the same time as a handsome young man dressed in a business suit and carrying a briefcase. He seemed surprised by her presence and quickly apologized. He had a vibrancy and allure to him that immediately captivated Molly.
“No worries,” she said, “Are you Callen Tapping?”
“Why yes,” he beamed back at her, “Molly Lovingham?”
“Yes,” she said.
“Come into my office. I’ve been looking forward to meeting you. I’ve never met an honest-to-goodness matchmaker before.”
She moved through the door he opened for her. “And I’m hoping your skills will be a good match for my business.”
“Oh, before I forget it,” he said placing his brief case on his desk, and reaching into the pocket of his jacket. “This leaf fell right in front of me as I left home this morning. I think it’s a sign we will be a good match. Don’t you?”
She grasped the leaf with her thumb and forefinger. Taking it into her line of sight, she could see its vivid orange and yellow colors, and the leaf’s lifeblood, its veins starting at the stem and moving outward toward the edges. Directly in the center was a split, a hole, a rift that sent a chill down her back. The opening was a distinct heart shape.
Molly beamed. “It’s definitely a good sign. I get the feeling we are going to be the perfect match.”
Copyright 2023, Monica Nelson
