The
Mattress
By J.Price
Michael took his foam mattress to Lexie, his sister, and asked her to sell it for him. He described the person he wanted to buy it as well as a bargain price to entice her. He knew she needed it. Now he was filled with anticipation.
Jenny was thrilled to find a four-inch foam pad for her hard lumpy bed that was like new and affordable on her tight budget.
Twenty-three years old, single, and even with a degree in finance, she discovered the job search was difficult. She pounded the pavement handing out resumes daily, made numerous calls, and scoured the Internet, all the time hoping her master’s degree would open doors to an ideal position.
She squeezed pennies and would have to continue to being frugal until employed with benefits and money, oh, yeah, salary. Dollars, dough, income, bucks. Daydreams of that came easy. It definitely was time to enjoy advantages from years of late night studies and doing without.
How fortunate she found the bed foam early in the morning. She hurried back to the tiny apartment and immediately put the pad on the old bed then stood back and stared approvingly at the smooth surface. The cover Mom gave her suited it beautifully with gentle blue background and delicate flowers around the edges. The matching pillows completed a scene out of ‘Home Magazine’.
A quick shower and getting dressed prepared her for an interview with a company that was reliable and had a good reputation. She rushed out the door looking back for a last peek at the pretty bed. Smiling on the way down the stairs heading for the interview, she stopped to check the mail, and was disappointed to find the mailbox empty once again. Boohoo.
Home again at 6:00 P.M. she unlocked her door with one hand while juggling a grocery bag holding take out teriyaki with the other. Bone tired, grabbing a quick bite to eat, and sleep was the plan. There had been twenty-two interviews in the past three weeks. No responses yet. It was getting depressing.
After eating the chicken teriyaki and egg roll with a glass of wine she felt better. She slipped into cozy PJ’s, rubbed her sore feet and began to relax.
Looking forward to a decent night’s sleep, she stretched out on the bed, turned her meditation tape on and fell asleep within seconds.
The dream is wild. She is in a skyscraper forty-four stories up and suddenly hears the fire alarm. Although eager to get to the fire exit, she stops to help a pregnant woman down the long flight of seemingly endless stairs. The cacophony of cries screams, pounding feet and yelling echoes in the concrete stairwell. As they reached the twenty-second floor, smoke engulfs her. Many around them are coughing and choking. It is scary. Afraid for herself and the pregnant woman, they continue down the stairs. People are shoving to get past and panic erupts. The smoke diminishes as they descend. They make it to the main floor exhausted and sooty but alive. She guides the pregnant woman to the aid car to be checked out and looks up to study the building. The floors above have smoke billowing from broken windows. Two policemen are talking about arson and how long it will take to get the fire extinguished. Their voices drift away.
She woke up in a sweat, heart pounding. It all seemed real. Dreams were usually peaceful and restful and never like this one.
The next day a call came saying an unexpected cancellation made an earlier appointment available at the Moxine Corporation for an interview. Aha, she thought, ‘serendipity, at work’. Scribbling the address on a pad, she hurried to get ready. The taxicab dropped her off at the address given. Climbing out, Jenny took a look at the skyscraper and realized with a shock this was the same building that had been in her dream the night before. What if the fire was real? What was she to do? She would never go into this place let alone to the forty-fourth floor. To relive that experience was never going to happen. If people hear about her dream, they would probably take her to jail under investigation for god knows what, and consider her a nut case. She quickly called the office where the meeting was scheduled and canceled the appointment. Was that a dumb thing to do? No. She had to act. Standing there was not going to accomplish anything. Wishing for more information on what started the fire, she looked all around for something, anything that would solve the dilemma. Suddenly a popping sound caught her attention. Turning toward it, she saw glass falling from a floor some 20 or so stories up. She dialed the office that was her appointment locale and told the receptionist to get everyone out of there because the building was on fire, adding that there was a pregnant woman needing assistance. She hung up and called the fire department.
After watching from a safe distance she noticed a man helping a pregnant woman who looked exactly like the one in her dream. They made it out of the building. The fire was less than the one in her dream at this point, but growing and getting worse by the moment. She stayed watching until the fire was out. The firemen worked hard. She felt relief and hoped her reaction was early enough to save lives.
Later, as she slipped into bed, her tense body began to relax from the long difficult day. She fell asleep and found herself in a restaurant in an interview with a gentleman about a position that was ideal. He hired her. She was a ‘working woman’ at last.
As she was leaving, she bumped into a gentleman also on the way out the door who had deep blue eyes and an engaging smile. She felt important to him. Carefully studying his eyes, hands, and lips the feeling of love filled her. She woke up.
Oh, this dream was much better than last night’s dream. But she still didn’t have a real job. A hot shower and getting dressed for her 10:30 AM appointment had to be done post haste.
The interview was scheduled with Mr. Vaughn. The job opening for an assistant financial adviser position in the corporation that encompassed three large hotels in two cities looked promising.
She walked into the lobby of “The Doze Inn” and found it charming. Large maroon chairs faced each other inviting customer comfort. The size and feel of the entrance relaxed her as she entered. Stained glass panels on each side of the massive fireplace created an artistic warm ambiance. She went to the front desk, informing the concierge she was here to meet with Mr. Charles Vaughn. Directed toward the restaurant, she turned left and walked into the dining room. Intimate booths provided privacy. She had been here before. Last night’s dream came flooding back. She stopped dead in her tracks, stunned. She was anxious to see how this meeting played out.
She met Mr. Charles Vaughn, a gentleman in his late 50’s, wearing a gray striped suit, light pink shirt with a black, gray and pink striped tie. They introduced each other and shook hands. She sat down across from him at the table.
“We have studied your resume.” He told her. “ You would be a solid addition to our firm.
Have you had time to look around the hotel enough to form an impression?”
She answered, “I am impressed with the first walk through the lounge and entry.”
“Have you any thoughts on what you can bring to the table if you held the position you have applied for?”
“I know I am qualified, and have studied the background of the company. I feel comfortable with the Wall Street rating, the reputation as well as the goals of the company plans,” she answered, comfortable she had done her homework.
They settled into discussing salary, benefits, and options. The usual variety of information passed between them. They shook hands and he said he would call her with his decision within the week.
She was ecstatic and just knew she had the job. Her future was looking bright. As she walked toward the entrance she slammed into a man coming toward her. Her purse flew across the room, her briefcase careened in the opposite direction. She almost fell down from the impact. He grabbed her arm to steady her. They retrieved her handbag and briefcase then stood looking at each other.
“I am so sorry,” she muttered, flustered at having such a stupid thing happen. Her mind had been on the interview and not where she was going.
“It was my fault. I apologize for not watching where I was going. Let me make it up to you. May I buy you coffee in the little bistro next door? I am just dropping a letter off at the front desk here.”
Dumbfounded, She stood starring at this stranger. He was the man in her dream last night. Finally, shaking off those thoughts and coming back to earth, she said, “Yes.” She didn’t have a clue why she accepted the invitation except for the impact of her dream. She never went with strangers. Never. Now, for unknown reasons, she was making an exception.
She stood at the entry watching him go to the front desk. He turned to face her with a wide smile. He was drop dead handsome in her eyes. This time he came up to her, offering his hand to shake and said, “How rude of me. I didn’t introduce myself. I am Michael Wolf.”
“Hello, I am Jenny Butler.” They shook hands and she began to relax.
“Let’s grab that coffee, shall we? We can discuss how both of us were distracted and have a good laugh.” With that, he led her to their destiny.
Oh, yes, he had sold the mattress through his younger sister knowing Jenny would save his older pregnant sisters life, and fulfill her own career dreams. And become the love of his life.
After all, the mattress was MEMORY Foam.
J. Price, E-Mail Or send to judyaprice@gmail.com in your e-mail.
ŠUsed with Permission of the author. 2012
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