Page 76 of Fast Forward

Ryan shrugged, his cheeks bulging. “It’s got protein, carbohydrates and a little… okay, a lot of fat, but it’s still a balanced meal, right?” He flashed a hopeful smile and Ben nodded.

“Definitely. And it’s sooo good!” Ben shoved another mouthful towards his parted lips.

“Yeah, Elaine outdid herself with this one, didn’t she?” I pressed my finger into the frosting on Ryan’s piece of cake and licked it from my finger.

“Hey!” He slapped my wrist. “But yeah, this is the best one she’s done so far. I thought the lotus cake she made for my twenty-first was something, but now she’s raised the bar.” He lifted his hand to show a level above head-height.

“And didn’t she and Peter look great last night?” Will asked, placing a plate of yolkless eggs and steamed spinach in front of me.

“They did indeed. A very cute, albeit, spooky couple.” I swallowed a piece of egg, remembering Elaine’s floaty ghost costume and her husband’s skeleton outfit. Apparently he had to wear some kind of support band underneath to hide his beer belly, Elaine revealed, and we had a quiet chuckle about it while he’d been busy chatting to Will in the Bliss Garden last night.

‘So, do you feel fifty, Mum? Now that the excitement from the party has worn off?” Ryan asked.

Not as much as the first time. It had been much easier to gradually climb the ladder of age, as opposed to having it rudely shoved in front of me like an overpowering perfumed cardboard strip from a department store sales person. “I don’t know, I just feel… like me.” I smiled and wolfed down the rest of my breakfast, before standing and taking it to the instant dishwasher chute. “Oh, I’ll have to call Dad. Tell him he’s a great grandfather,” I said, raising my finger like a light bulb in the air.

“No need. Already called him. He’s going to meet us there,” my always efficient, totally organised husband said, then his e-pad rang. “William McSnelly speaking,” he said. “Yes, hello Mr Turrow.”

Ooh! Mr Turrow! I hope he’s –

“You are? Well that’s fantastic, we’re very pleased to have you as one of our valued clients.” Will flashed a winning smile at me.

Yes! Good thing I’d had twenty-five years to perfect my presentation, he practically felt like an old friend by the time he turned up at head office yesterday.

Will told Mr Turrow what the next steps would be, scheduled a video meeting for Monday, then ended the call, his arms scooping me up in the air with excitement. “KC Interiors is going global, baby!”

“Woohoo!” I exclaimed, as Ryan and Ben clapped their congratulations.

“Now,” he said, placing my feet back on the floor. “Are you ready to meet your grandchild?”

“Am I ready?” I replied. “I’ve been waiting for this day my whole life.”

Fifteen minutes later we were driving through the city. “Oh, bugger! I forgot to get flowers for Diora. Will, honey, can you pull into the shopping centre so I can get a nice bunch from Franco the Florist?” I turned my head towards Will who was driving, with Ryan and Ben in the backseat, a large teddy bear in a tartan jacket wedged between them.

“The hospital has a flower shop, we can just get some there,” he replied, his eyes on the road.

“Will, our daughter has just had her first child and you want to express our love for her with a shoddy bunch of carnations?” I said, a hand on my hip. “Franco will make up a beautiful piece of art for our darling daughter. I’m not prepared to go second best on this.”

Will laughed in defeat and pulled into the shopping centre car park, which was packed full. “There are no spots left, I’ll have to hover over here while you duck in and get them, okay?”

“Yep,” I said, getting out of the car.

“But don’t take too long,” he called out after me.

I waved my understanding and scooted into the refreshing cool of the centre. I did want to get a quality bunch of flowers, that was no lie, but there was something else I wanted to do – and no, I wasn’t about to run off and have a Better Than Sex facial if that’s what you’re thinking. I made my way to the New Age shop and entered, spying Liliana and Rosie in the booths. The one person waiting in line was ushered towards one of the other psychics and I took her place, resurrecting the queue.

I alternated impatiently from one foot to the other, until Liliana glanced with curious eyes in my direction. She excused herself from her client and walked out from behind the booth towards me. “Do I know you, dear?”

“Um… maybe,” I replied. “But I wanted to give you some of these.” I handed her a pile of business cards for FastForwardExperiences.com and on reading them her eyes bulged up at me.

“I’ve seen this website before, it’s fascinating! Is this actually your site?” she asked, and I nodded. “Oh wow, thank you. What a wonderful thing it is that you’re doing, spreading the awareness of this phenomenon.” She held tightly onto the cards. “Wait, does this mean that you’ve experienced a… fast forward?” She leaned close to me in an attempt to keep our conversation private.

I chewed on my bottom lip.

“You have, haven’t you? I can tell!”

Yep, one should never attempt to hide something from a gifted psychic. I nodded.

“Is your experience listed on the site?” she asked.

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