Page 98 of Save the Drama for your Mama
“It’s the thought that counts,” she said.
“Hopefully, she has a sense of humor,” I said, trying not to laugh while taking another picture.
But the show didn’t appear to be over just yet.
“Someone jumped out!” a man yelled, pointing up at the plane.
The crowd gasped again as a parachutist fell from the sky toward the stadium. It was actually two men jumping in tandem. My eyes fixed on them in disbelief as they drew nearer, and the second man unleashed the parachute. People cheered after they came in for a dramatic landing in the open area.
I rushed over, curious to see what was going to happen next, and who the lucky woman might be. Maybe it was just a publicity stunt, but it was impressive enough to get everyone’s attention.
“Lean left!” one man shouted at the other. “No! Your other left!”
They hit the ground at an awkward angle and chest-planted into the grass. Then a gust of wind caught the parachute, and it enveloped the unfortunate duo like an angry jellyfish.
“A little help here?” one of them grumbled from underneath, the voice muffled by the parachute. “If you had just leaned the correct way!”
I choked back a laugh, watching their flailing forms thrashing around under the billowing canopy, looking like two kids playing under a bedsheet fort.
“Get off me!” the muffled voice yelled.
“I’m trying! Stop elbowing me!” the other shouted back.
The entertainment was just what the doctor ordered for my moping mind. First the banner bungle with the letters, then the botched landing. What was next? After much clumsy grappling, the two emerged and untangled themselves from the parachute.
The first man removed his helmet and locked eyes with me.
My heart just about jumped out of my chest.
It was Cooper.
What was he doing jumping out of airplanes?
Before I could process what was happening, he was striding towards me, out of breath, a little pale and wobbly, but still confident, like a man on a mission. Like he knew exactly where to find me.
I threw my palms in the air. “What in the world are you doing? Are you crazy?”
His eyes locked on mine. “Crazy for you.”
I glanced around, still wondering how he could have found me since the Rose Bowl Flea Market was one of the biggest in the country. There were over two thousand vendors there, and on top of that, thousands of shoppers.
I shook my head, bewildered by what he had just done. “How did you even know I was here?”
“Abigail,” Cooper said. “She said you would be here in the orange area, where the antiques are.” He gestured around us. “But that’s not important right now. We need to talk.”
My chest clenched. “Cooper . . .”
Before I could say another word, he reached into his parachute vest and pulled out three envelopes, handing them to me one by one.
I opened each envelope hesitantly.
The first held a copy of the notice he had given terminating his apartment lease in San Francisco.
The second envelope was a contract showing he had bought out his brother Chad’s share of their home in Coronado.
And the third envelope . . .
I gasped when I unfolded the note written on familiar vintage typewriter paper.
