The Summer When I met You

CHAPTER FOUR

He expected something like a high class fine dining restaurant with Julius’ expensive tastes but sometimes expectations take a back seat with reality.  They drove over to a quaint but bustling pub called the Bon Vivant.  There are small plates of haggis bon bons, venison pastries with a homemade brown sauce and hot-smoked salmon pâté with oatcakes and salsa verde, followed by mains of slow-roasted pork belly and rump steak with roasted vegetables and a red-wine truffle sauce.  The ambience was soothing, locals were talking in soft voices and the music was eclectic. 

            “Not bad.”  Adam murmured, impressed by the environment.  He had half expected to be put in a very high domed restaurant where the clinking of the utensils would be muffled.  “Seems like Scotland is not as back ended as some travelers would say.”

            Julius chuckled.  “Oh, you may be surprised.  By the end of the vacation, you might come to see the place grows on you.”  His eyes suddenly turned wistful as he gazed outside.  “I know I did.”

            Adam looked up and caught his friend’s wistful expression before he called over one of the servers.

            What was that all about? – he thought to himself.

            When their orders were given, Julius sat back and regarded the young man before him with a smile.  He remembered the first time he had met the boy.  He had just attended a meeting with a few of his investors and the private investigator he had hired when he happened to see a scruffy looking boy standing near the vending machine, looking longingly at the chocolate bars situated there.

            He had given the boy the quarter that he needed to get the snacks from the machine.  From then on, he had been like a constant shadow lurking behind Julius, following his every movement.  Richard Verne was a very astute businessman, his son a craftier version of him.  The young boy learned from his constant nipping at Julius’ heels and now managed a chain of hotels in America. 

            Looking at him now, Adam was a very far version of his weak younger self.  He became a very handsome young man who has confidence stamped firmly onto his stature.  He did not look like he has anything to worry about and has no care in the world.

            Oh to be young again! – Julius chuckled.

            “Something wrong?”  Adam queried just as the dishes that they ordered came.

            Julius shook his head and gestured for Adam to dig in.  Both started the meal talking about inconsequential things.  Things like catching up on what they’ve been doing for the past five years.  Soon enough, they were through the meal and eyed each other a bit warily.  They may have known each other for most of their lives but what they are now may be something else entirely.

            “So,” Julius drawled out, eyeing the man that he had thought was once a boy.  “What brings you here in these neck of the woods?  I would have thought that Scotland would be the last country you would have visited.”

            Adam looked outside and breathed a deep sigh.  Why Scotland?

            He kept asking this question ever since he arrived in Edinburgh airport.  He had a plan.  He wanted to visit the countries that his mother had wanted to go to.  He could still remember with painful clarity the pictures she would painstakingly attach onto a cork board in her room, each picture showing a beautiful scenery from Paris, Abu Dhabi and France.  She would excitedly tell him that today would be the day that his father would take her someplace in her dreams.  Only to see her eyes darken and fall dead when his father would tell her that he was too busy with work to take her anywhere else.  When his mother became sick, she lost all her vibrancy.  Even when his father lost interest in her, Adam vowed to take care of her.  If she gets better, then he would demand from his father all the promises that he made.

            Except it never happened and all he was stuck with was guilt.

            Guilt that he was not strong enough to care for his own mother.  Guilt that he had not been able to force his father’s hand.  To make him look after his own wife and child.  But he was a man who didn’t need his family to survive.  See how fast he was able to move on with his life by marrying Cecilia.

            But why Scotland.

            Ever since Adam stepped foot at the airport, this place seemed the right place to find what he was looking for.  The restlessness in him seemed to have cooled once he stepped foot in Scotland.  He had not felt this before when he had visited France and Paris.  It was as if his destiny was here.

            He simply shrugged his massive shoulders before grimacing at Julius.

            “Beats me, really.  I was twirling my thumbs at the Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport, thinking of my next destination when my eyes fell on a flight for Scotland.  Something told me that I should board that one so here I am.  I hope you don’t mind me coming here without a by your leave.”

            Julius waved his hand as he gulped down his Scotch.

            “No, no, that’s not why I was asking.  I was a bit surprised to see you here.  I mean, it has been a long time.”

            “I know.  I hope that I can find what I’m looking for here.”

            Julius seemed a little taken aback but he then sat back properly.

            “You are looking for something?  Tell me what it is and I’ll help you.  It must be very important for you to come prancing here.”

            Adam huffed a laugh.

            “If I know what it was, you’ll be the first to know.”

            Julius chuckled as understanding dawned.

            “Oh.  It’s that kind of stuff.  Well, Scotland is known for its mystery and uniqueness.  You might be able to find what you are looking for here.  I know I did.”  He laughed at his own comment before calling another server and asking for another drink.

            Adam waited for the server to replenish his host’s drink before leaning forward, his elbows leaning onto his hips and his hands clasped.

            “You were looking for something?”  He asked, eager to know Julius’ response.

            “Well ever since we parted and I wanted to set up a company in a different country, I wanted to see what Scotland has to offer.  But the heck of it is, I lost three months of my time here before I could set up my company to what it is today.”

            Adam’s eyebrow raised.

            “You lost three months?  What do you mean?”

            “I mean it like I said it.  I lost three months.  Heck if I was in a comatose state for that matter but I can’t seem to remember the whole lot of time I stayed here and nobody I knew could tell me what had happened.  I just lost three months.”

            “That’s weird.” 

            “You tell me.  And the weird thing is it all happened today.”