The mysterious Emjay

Her thick glasses, her old-fashioned clothing, and her unidentifiable accent all gave off the impression she was from another place, another time. Perhaps she was—a time traveler. It was strange to see her walking the streets, her head whipping back and forth, taking in her surroundings. I sat mesmerized from the terrace of the small café, enjoying my cup of morning coffee. She was intriguing, to say the least, the skin tight, silver clothing she wore taking me back to my childhood television days when I loved watching Lost in Space. No one seemed to pay her any mind as she navigated her way through the streets, muttering to herself, no one that is, except for me. Was I the only one to see her? I wondered. I stood from my chair, grabbed my still steaming cup of coffee and headed outside in hot pursuit. I had to know more about this woman, what she was doing here, where she was from, and most importantly, her name.

Her jet black hair swayed seductively as she moved, one long, thick mane down her back just brushing the tops of her hips. I had never seen hair that rich, hair that shimmered when caught by the sunlight, making me want to reach out and run my fingers through it. I would bet anything that those thick tresses would feel like silk under my eager hands. Oh how they twitched with excitement at that thought, as I followed her down the street, keeping a good twenty feet between us. The last thing I wanted to do was scare her off, but the ever growing need to speak to her began to overwhelm me. I picked up my pace, closing the gap between us, my heart pounding wildly while I inched my way just two feet behind her.

Suddenly, she spun around, making me halt mid step, as if sensing my presence and stared at me, her chocolate brown eyes squinting together. I sensed the confusion in those widening eyes, her jaw dropping and then slamming shut in an instant. I knew she wanted to speak, to say something, perhaps ask me where she was, but not a sound escaped her full red lips. Her eyes roamed over my body, from my face down to my chest, taking in every inch all the way down to my feet before roving up my frame back to my face. I smiled, hoping that she would take an interest in me like I had taken in her. If nothing more, I would have a wild tale to tell my friends, and even knowing I probably wouldn’t get anyone to believe me, I didn’t care.

Taking a deep breath of courage, I stepped closer to the beauty with the pale skin, praying she would allow me to escort her to the safety of my apartment just a few short blocks away. She still had yet to move and I took that as a good sign, before reaching for her delicate hand.


“Come on, let’s get you someplace safe,” I said.

She snagged her hand out of mine, yet that brief contact sent heat racing up my arm. There was something extraordinary about her, and here I was, acting like a dope and more than likely chasing her away.

“I’m sorry, that was inconsiderate of me. Tell me how I can help you.” One word was all I was looking for at that moment, one word to acknowledge she understand all I was saying, and knew I didn’t pose a threat to her.

We both stood there in the middle of the street staring at one another. Now I was at a loss for words, my mind racing with something convincing to say, something that would trigger at the very least a reaction, but unable to come up with anything. I took a sip of my coffee, hoping to buy me a moment or two to get my thoughts together, come up with a plan, when I noticed her watching me intently. Was she thirsty? Hungry? How long had it been since she started roaming the city?

I extended my hand, offering her the steaming brew. Her eyes moved from me, to the coffee and back again. “Go on, it’s the best coffee in the city,” I coaxed, giving her a friendly smile.

A slight smile tugged the corner of her mouth and she took the cup, taking a big swig before immediately choking, spitting the brown liquid all over me, dropping the paper cup to the ground. Guess I should’ve warned her it was hot.

I moved forward and patted her back, trying to help her, but she took that as an attack and before I even realized what in the hell was happening, I was lying flat on my back, on top of the spilled coffee and looking up into her face. “Whoa, you didn’t have to do that!” I shouted, getting rather annoyed now.

Her silver booted foot raised up and landed right on my neck, keeping my head pressed into the ground, and my Adam’s apple constricted. As encounters went in my mundane life, this one was right up at the top of the hot list.

“I know who you are, Matthew O’Reilly of Earth. They warned me about you, told me it wouldn’t be easy,” she said, that soft voice and untraceable accent right out of a sci-fi flick.

That’s when it hit me. I started laughing, laughing so hard she had no choice but to move back, shocked by my sudden outburst. “Damn, you are incredible. I swear you had me going.” I got back on my feet, still laughing at the spectacle I must have made of myself, scanning all around waiting for the guys to jump out all excited because they managed to pull one over on me.

Her face scrunched up. “Going?” she asked, taking this little game to the next level.

Two choices appeared before me. I could either play along with her ruse and wait for the guys to make themselves known, or stop it all right now, and I had to admit that playing with this woman held a bit of excitement for me. Hmmm, what do to?

“Come on, now…what is your name?” I asked, almost chuckling to myself knowing she wouldn’t be able to come up with something out there to continue with this trick.

She shot her chin out in defiance, as if just asking her that question was somehow insulting. “Emjay.”

I couldn’t help but laugh at how clever this was, taking one of my favorite Marvel characters and using her name, as if I wouldn’t see right thought that. “Right. So, M.J.,” doing my best to get control of my laughter. “What an interesting name.”

She groaned, shaking her head clearly annoyed, those tresses I desired to touch swinging in front of her now and laying gracefully over one shoulder and down between what I imagined to be an ample bosom beneath that skintight silver attire.

I couldn’t help enjoying myself, being able to toy with the woman my friends paid to play me for a fool. I did deserve it, I admit, after my last little stunt had them believing they were going to meet with Playboy’s playmate of the month, Miss Brittny Ward herself. Brittney Ward, waitress from hell was real all right, and once I’d heard her name, even though the spelling was different, I couldn’t help myself, and set the guys up on a little get together last month. Half of them were still pissed at me over it, so sending this woman who resembled Penny from Outer Space was fitting payback, after all she was my childhood crush.

Emjay moved past me and began walking away again. I did feel bad laughing at her, but not enough to stop myself. I followed in hot pursuit, trying to come up with a plausible excuse for my behavior, really wanting to spend some time with the woman, even knowing I was being set up. She had an exotic vibe to her, which just intrigued me beyond belief, and if nothing else, getting to know her a little bit better would certainly turn the tables on the guys. That thought raced through my head, and I took long strides to catch up to her. She turned the corner into the alleyway, as if she knew exactly where she was going. I made it to the corner of the street and turned to look at her, wondering where she thought she was going, knowing there was no way out.

Among the debris, garbage, tossed aside furniture, and nasty smells of rotting garbage stood a bright, white light, that beamed straight up into the sky. I scratched my neck, rubbed my eyes, and looked back toward it, not comprehending what stood before me. Turning to look back to the street, I expected to see people running towards the alley, all of them rushing to see what that light was streaming up into the heavens like a laser, but no one noticed. I stepped into the alley just as Emjay moved into the illuminating beam.

“Wait! M.J.,” I called, now at a dead run to reach to her. It was too late. She winked at me and shot up into the sky as the beam of light disappeared into thin air. I stood there staring up at the heavens, my mouth agape, and realizing that the joke truly was on me.

“Damn!” I muttered. How stupid was it to think this was a setup? That the girl that looked so appealingly out of place in my world would turn out to be from somewhere far, far away? And what did I do? I blew it!

WC: 1636