"So where are you now?" Alec asks over the video call she made to him when she arrived at her hotel for the night day or two.
"Salzburg, I figured why not? And it breaks up long train rides?" Una tells him. It was the first time since Paris she had seen his face. He doesn't ask about the obvious, at least yet anyway, which was a nice change of pace.
"Salzburg, don't tell me you are a fan of the Sound of Music?" Alec jokes lightly.
"Rosemary watches it from time to time but usually when we are out of the house," Una tells him without any explanation.
"Rosemary?" He asks tilting his head trying to remember a short breakdown her had of her family. "A sister right?"
"Step-mother, a dear stepmother at that," she tells me. "Dad remarried when I was about nine?" She says thinking back to the flower girl dress she wore and Rosemary's happy laughter.
"Your parents are divorced then," Alec sobers slightly. "I thought your Father with a minister?"
"Mama died when I was six, it was a car accident," Una says softly. "Carl and I were…." She can't finish the sentence but it gave enough away that it wasn't a pretty memory.
"Oh Una," Alec breathes out, his face full of sympathy.
"I don't necessarily remember much, someone ran a red light I've been told," Una tells him quietly. "But I remember the song playing in the car, it was Mama's favourite movie and she was singing it to us until she wasn't anymore."
"All right, so no talk about that movie," Alec says whistling lightly.
"It's fine, it was fourteen years ago at this point, I'm just not used to people not knowing the story," Una tells him. "Walter—," she starts off cursing under her breath.
"You can talk about him, or mention him," Alec tells her honestly.
"Walter would—, Walter he would play Edelweiss on the guitar for me sometimes when I was missing her. He wasn't always a person who tortured my soul, he could be very empathetic when he wanted to be."
"I'm sure that he could be," Alec says solemnly. "Except not last week?"
"He asked for a book back, and my sister Faith is engaged to his older brother. Jem thinks Walter is a fool, and while I am sad that I was not there for the party, it still hurts."
"He randomly messaged asking for a book back?" Alec says rather shocked and Una sheepishly shakes her head.
"There were photos and he was with someone, I guess it hit a bit harder than it should have all things considering?" I say quietly. "She picked up his phone, and I just hung up."
"You don't regret it?" Alec asks her quietly.
"I don't regret you, it's just complicated," Una tries to explain to him. "I suppose when it all fell apart there was no closure? I haven't seen or spoken to him since I left school and went to live with my Aunt for a while, then I decided on this trip with the inheritance I had from my mother."
"And your sister is engaged to his brother so you really have nowhere to run," Alec responds shaking his head.
Una nods her head sighing. "Sure you still want to get to know me better?"
"Well, I have to work on getting you into some sort of poetry that is not depressing or Keats. I can handle him if you promise that whatever was between you both is done and over with for good. I can make you forget him if you let me?" Alec says carefully. His own stipulations of what he is comfortable with it seems.
Una goes out the next day, her mother's cross hanging from her neck, wearing her black pinafore dress and white canvas shoes and a cardigan stashed in her bag.
She pulls out an old photo, looking at it with sad eyes. Her parents, a year ago on their honeymoon. She spent way too much money on her two-night stay in this hotel but her father gave her some extra money for this very reason.
She walks down to the grounds, using the photo to find the exact spot, it reminds her of a quest in one of the Zelda games that Carl likes playing.
She finds it, closing her eyes as if she is remembering things she can't possibly remember. But in her mind, she can see her father young with darker hair, her mother's laugh and smile dressed up for dinner clothing by the gate that led into the river.
"I made it Mama," Una whispers. "I wish you were here with me, in person I know you're always with me."
The hotel is grand, far grander than anything she's ever been in and it feels odd that she is here alone. Newlyweds, anniversaries, in general, wealthy people.
She's seated with another singleton that even for dinner, another young woman who smiled at her kindly. They both have long dark hair, but her dinner mate is clearly of Asian heritage.
"English menus," the waiter flourishing to the menus in front of them. If you need anything please do hesitate to ask."
"Thank you," they both said politely, blushing as they glanced down.
"My name is Una," She finds herself saying, taking a drink of the water they had.
"Robin," her table mate sighs with relief. "You speak English thank god, I was so worried that this would be a long dinner with no conversation"
"Where are you from?" Una asks curiously.
"I grew up in Hong Kong, though I went to an international school," She explains. "You?"
"Canada," Una tells her glancing at the menu. "What brings you to Salzburg?"
"My aunt likes to travel, she is upstairs not feeling well though," Robin explains. "You?"
"Just soul searching," Una says with a half smile. "I'm just here for two days, then on my way to Vienna."
"We have just come from that way," Robin tells her. "What do you plan on doing?"
"I like to visit churches mostly or places of religious nature?" Una says casually as the waiter comes back and they both order.
"If you're not up to anything tomorrow, I was going to go to the Abbey," Robin invites her along.
The abbey is what she expects peaceful and quiet and allows her some solitude. Robin chatters random facts about the history of the abbey, and only briefly mentions the famous movie.
"Who is the cutie on the phone this morning?" She asks after an hour or two. "He sounded English?"
"Just a guy I know, his name is Alec, we met on a train to Paris," Una explains blushing.
"A special friend?" Robin says with a grin. "Then again you are pretty enough to find someone on a vacation."
"I am sure you could as well," Una teases her. "You may have to pull a Mrs. De Winter, and find a man with a late wife who haunts this house, to escape your aunt though." Una teases her and receives a blank look.
"Have you never read Rebecca?" Una exclaims and her companion shakes her head. "Oh, it's a chilling gothic novel, absolutely lovely you should find a copy to read at some point for yourself."
"I will look for it, we are heading out early in the morning. My aunt wishes to go to Spain now," She explains. "Have you gone there?"
Una shakes her head. "I made a strategic plan of England, to France, to Germany, to Austria, down to Italy and then my last stop will be Greece," She explains.
"Greece is lovely," Robin tells her, "We have just come from there, you will enjoy it I am sure."
They part ways, as Robin has an early flight, and Una is tired from a day of walking and her train while early, it's not crazy early.
Vienna is breathing-taking, striking and more beautiful than she has ever imagined. She walks out of the train station and its blue skies with fluffy clouds. Her bag rolling with her as she looks around. It's old and quaint in a way as she walks to her hotel. She checks her bag, as her room won't be ready until at least 1 pm and uses their washroom to freshen up before going out to explore and find some brunch.
It felt like there were cafes and bistros on every corner as she made her way through the streets. She found one that seemed less busy, off the main street.
She asks for a table and is led to one and given a menu before being left alone, she looks over at the case of pastries.
She doesn't hear at first someone speaking to her before she hears English.
"I'm sorry!" She says blushing.
"Anything to drink?" The accent was thick, but she could understand it.
"Americano?" Una asks looking down at the menu.
"Milk?"
"Please, Danke," She says nodding her head. "With a pain de Chocolate," she adds on and the girl nods her head. She was lying in bed when her phone rang and she saw that Alec was calling her. She shakes her head smiling answering her phone.
"I have a call with my Dad soon," she warns him.
"I won't keep you long then," Alec tells her and they go through pleasantries and there day before he asks what had been clearly bothering him.
"Why aren't you going to Rome?"
"Because I've been there before?" Una says quietly. "Back in high school, it was a school trip sort of thing?"
"So you didn't do anything actually fun?" He says knowingly. "You have to go to Rome, you have to buy wine and eat all the pasta and experience it at night."
"I can't Alec, I can't go there. There are too many memories," Una finds herself saying quietly.
She sees his face sober upon the realization of why she couldn't.
"He was there," He says under his breath, and she nods her head. She had spent all of Rome caught up in his web. While yes she enjoyed the trip, the last thing she wanted right now was to be alone in her memories.
"Do you trust me?" Alec asks her breaking her thoughts.
"Pardon?"
"Do you trust me?"
"I trusted enough to sleep with an entire stranger," Una says raising an eyebrow.
"Go to Rome, I mean still go to Venice as you plan to see the sights there, but take the train to Rome and spend a few days there next week. See it for yourself, and marvel in all those witchy catholic things you like seeing."
"That is completely oxymoronic, witchy catholic things," Una tells him.
"You know what I mean either way," Alec tells her with a tilt of his head.
"I suppose I can sneak a few days in Rome. I can catch the train on Wednesday and be there by noon?" Una says using her tablet to look things up. "If I find a cheap but clean place to crash," she says reminding herself of her budget.
"I'll send you a link to a place we stayed at cheaply when I was there last with friends," Alec tells her. "Just promise me one thing, when you're there go and find the Triton Fountain the next day, it shouldn't be far," Alec tells her. "It's my favourite, and I want a photo of it."
"I think I can manage that," Una tells him. Looking at her Calendar once more her face blanching.
Somehow it was in her calendar.
Projective Due Date and something in her collapsed.
"What's wrong?" Alec asks seeing her face fall on the screen.
"Nothing," she says shaking her head.
"That was not a nothing look," He says arguing back.
"I thought, I thought a day had already passed but apparently it hasn't," Una says quietly. "I don't even know why it's in here, but it is. I'll be okay though, it was just a shock to see it, blame it on the PMS," she tells him.
"The—," he doesn't finish the word. Letting Una have her privacy. "So everything is good?"
"I just finished the last of my pills the other night," She tells him. "We're fine, we can talk about it another day or time." She tells him forcing herself to smile, maybe she'll explain it to him another day, but today was not that day.
She heads to the church that has the most doom and gloom vibes as Alec calls it the next morning. At least this time when she makes her way to St. Stephen's, she's in a much different mood than the last Cathedral she had visited. Dressed in her black dress, only with a white shirt under it for a change. She doesn't need to look completely in mourning this time around. To say it is the focal point of Vienna would be an understatement, it was the centre of the city.
She gets enough change for tours that she had read about, and to the catacombs. She wanders around first by herself exploring the places that were allowed to be explored, she stops by St Katharine Chapel, with a heavy heart as she turns around not wanting to go there today. Not that anyone in her father's church was baptized as babies, dedicated maybe? But not baptized, but still it stung the hole in her heart.
She climbs the towers, listening intensively to the guides who spoke English to the tourists. She stares out the window at one point, clutching the cross that hung from her neck with a small smile on her face as she looks out over the city from the old window. When she gets to the top she wants to shriek, but of course, she doesn't, but the view is breathtaking and the warm summer air hits her face as she wanders about the viewing deck of the church.
She messages Alec before going down into the catacombs, the crypt that lies beneath the church knowing he would most likely shake his head at her fascination with death.
They follow the tunnels that are cool and musky smelling, crypts, coffins made of stone and wood, and rooms that have nothing but dirt and bones.
Death— is the only thing you can depend on in life to happen one day.
Her mind goes to her mother, the flash of memories that still haunt her from that fateful day. The blood and the tiring voice that finally went quiet.
Take care of my children, take care of my Una if I cannot' she says to who could only be the angel that was about to take her to heaven.
She doesn't know who takes the photo but her phone buzzes with an airdrop message when they are above ground once more. She finds photos of her thoughtful look sunlight hitting her fair skin, and her dark hair shining in the sunlight. Another is in the gloom of the catacombs, where photos are discouraged but there in the firelight of the lantern she's light and shadows. She looks around, trying to decide who took the photos, but could not place them. Still, she smiles and saves them for herself. They would do well for her Instagram account, maybe make her father and sibling not worry so much?
She leaves the church, feeling oddly refreshed as she scans the area around the church. A shop piques her interest, something she hasn't generally done on her trip at all but decides to go for it all because of the garment in the window.
She finds the dress easily, she grabs two sizes that feel like they would be her size. She makes a small groan at the price but decides to go with it and tries to find a fitting room.
A tiered, full skirt sundress that was white with a splattering of light blue flowers on it, long sheer sleeves attached to thin straps, an open neckline that went into a gathered bust line. She spins around I
n it and smiles, as the sales lady watches from the counter.
"It suits you," she says in careful English.
Una nods looking in the mirror, wondering what he would think of her in it, and for a moment her brain can't decide who she means but it settles on Alec, who's only seen her in dark sombre colours. Walter always preferred darker colours on her and over time her closest became black, white, and navy with very little colour.
She buys the dress, even if it meant sorting out her suitcase later, or finding a pair of shoes that wouldn't clash with it which again meant finding more room in her suitcase that she carried around everywhere. But hopefully, a pair of ballet flats would work if she could find some?
She stops by a market, wanting to find something healthy like a salad that doesn't cost a restaurant price.
She stares at the dress hanging on the hanger on the coat rack to take a photo of it for her sister. Bright in its glory, the pair of white sandals that she found in another store underneath.
She looks through the photos that someone had airdropped to her phone that she posted to Instagram, that people had commented on.
She posted a photo of the dress, wondering what her family and friends might say about the out-of-the-ordinary purchase for her.
Maybe this was another turning point for her?
Her phone buzzed alerting her to a comment from Faith Meredith.
I need a photo, if not I'll fly over and take one myself for proof that you bought something that isn't black.
Maybe she was ready to take another step away from the past and into her new future self?
Hope everyone is still enjoying this as much as I enjoy writing it.
Next Stop Italy!
Tina.