Page 49 of March

“It’ll all work out.”

“Sorry?” Sophie said.

“What you’re worried about; it’ll all work out.”

“Oh, I’m a local. You don’t have to…” She motioned with her hand toward the cards and the woman’s setup. “You know.”

“I’m not,” the fortune teller replied with a smile. “I’ve not asked you for money, have I?”

“No. I just meant that I know how this works,” she said.

“Do you now?” The woman laughed a little. “Because I certainly don’t.”

“You don’t know how the cards work?” Sophie asked as she took a step closer to avoid the walkway and the gathering crowd.

“I know how the cards work. I don’t truly understand how my gift works, though.”

“Oh,” Sophie said, feeling silly for participating in this conversation.

“You don’t believe me.”

“Not really.” Sophie chuckled. “Sorry.”

“Very well. I don’t want to try to convince you, but I can tell you’re here for a reason, so let me say something specific.”

“Specific?”

“There was a bar. There was a woman. There was a kiss.”

Sophie’s eyes went wide. Her jaw dropped. How did this woman know that? Then, she remembered that the whole story had been posted online.

“Did you read that somewhere?” she asked.

“No,” the fortune teller said with a head shake.

“There wasn’t a picture,” Sophie said to herself, thinking about how the blog was all words with no photo of herorBryceon it, so this woman couldn’t have known even if she’d read the blogs that it was Sophie.

“She’s coming back soon. You’re here walking around because you’re scared.”

“How do you–”

“I told you that I don’t truly understand my gift. I just trust it,” the fortune teller replied. “You’re scared, which is normal, but it will work out.”

“Work out how?” Sophie took another step closer to her.

“Well, you’ll never know that if you don’t talk to her, will you?”

“I’m calling her when I get home,” she replied, finding herself actually conversing with this woman about her plans with Bryce.

“But you’re here instead.”

“I’m talking to you. I was about to leave.”

“You were about to make another lap,” the woman said with a smile. “If you want my advice, I’d say skip it and make that call.”

“Yeah?”

The fortune teller nodded.

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