Abyss

Look into it too closely and it looks back at you

"If you jump, it's gonna be sometime before you hit bottom."

"That a fact?"

I shrugged. "More or less."

She stole a glance at me. I fought to keep my gaze steady and stern. She wavered, put a foot down. "This is so fucked up. I'm supposed to be on vacation."

"I'm supposed to be someplace too." Easy now.

She nervously chewed her lip. "You don't sound French. I mean, the way you talk --"

"Moved here from California a while back." I extended my hand. "Los Angeles here."

She put another foot down. She didn't take my hand. "Orange county."

One hand remained on the railing. "Tell me,"she sniffed,"did L.A. fuck you up so much that you had to move away?"

I felt a slow smile spread across my face. If she's sarcastic, she must be recovering. "How about we take a walk? I'll get you back where you need to be."

"You sure? My...my mom's waiting for me at the hotel."

"No problem. I got time."

She stepped off the bridge entirely. She drew closer, and I noticed her face was bloodless, and her lips had turned blue. "I'm sorry you had to see that," she lamented. "It was a stupid thing to do."

"I'm just glad you didn't jump because I would've gone in after you."

She kept her head down, and I couldn't see her eyes. "You'd do that, huh," she murmured."A complete stranger like me -- you'd give a damn?"

I shoved my hands into the pockets of my coat to keep them from trembling. "Well, as I said, it's a long way down."

************

Today I saw her on television, promoting a movie. She had on a bright dress, and her lips were no longer blue.

She said something, and the camera panned closer until her face filled the screen. I found myself turning away. I had seen her eyes.