~12:00 p.m.
"Hey, Stranger!"
Elma opened her eyes without waking up. Alertness dripped into her slowly as if the cacophony of voices all about the rambunctious Cafe was not enough to make her wake. She was the only one seated at her booth so far. Even when Emily had tried to establish a connection, she eye-stopped her before the oval-faced doll could take another step. She enjoyed the aloneness — that would permit her mental space. Despite herself, she continued musing over her last conversation with Ted. It was very heartless of her to break the news to him like that. What would he say to Marilyn and what would she deduce from that? A side thought forced her to begin thinking of the present — that a certain pink-lipped man was reaching too close to her and would get there in just over two minutes.
