The plane had circled JFK for three or four times. Passengers aboard the
flight were quiet, almost somber, resigned to the indignity of a delay
after traveling from Korea halfway across the planet in less than 12
hours riding a tailwind as they crossed over Canada.
Jerome was traveling light, but he was in no rush. For a while he
stared out the plane's window, trying to recognize Long Island
landmarks. He really had nothing to rush home to, if this really was
home. He wasn't prepared to be back in New York. But in just a short
while he would be at Washington Square, trying to make sense of the past
ten months.
Jerome was struck by his awareness of feeling so solitary. When they
finally landed, he gathered his bag, passing through customs quickly and
without incident... unless you counted the slight tug at his heart as
he passed through the exit where he had embraced Cassandra for the first
time when she arrived like a angel come to save him from himself.
There did not seem to be many people at the taxi dock. His suitcase was
quickly stowed and suddenly he was hearing the driver ask if he
preferred a route into the city. Jerome replied "Your choice," and they
were off on the beltway to Manhattan.
It was raining. Jerome had always liked New York in the rain. Before he
moved to New York, he would write short stories about the lights
glittering in the rain on New York streets. Once in Manhattan, he
realized his stories had failed to capture the magical quality of the
lights glistening on the streets... with the rain, the city was quieter
and more intimate. He thought about the first time he had walked down
Fifth Avenue with Cassandra shortly after she had arrived in August. It
began to rain, and she saw a street vendor and bought an umbrella. "It's
so romantic," she whispered, "walking with you on Fifth Avenue in the
rain..." She smiled as she pulled him under the umbrella, and he felt
her bonding with him.
Jerome was so lost in thought that he scarcely noticed as the taxi
crossed the Manhattan Bridge and turned onto Canal Street. His heart
began to beat faster as he recognized many places in Chinatown where
Cassandra and he had shopped and an array of restaurants they had
explored together. "What is this?" he thought, feeling a surge of
anxiety as the taxi slowed and made right turn turn up Mulberry Street.
"No! Not this way!" he thought to himself. This was certainly not the
expected route to Washington Square. His heart almost skipped a beat as
he suddenly found himself on Mulberry street where Cassandra and he had
lived from the first day she arrived. "Why did the cab take this route? I
wasn't prepared for this..." He felt agitation, a pang of anxiety as
they passed the Airbnb where they had begun their life together and then
crossed Grand Street where they had walked hand-in-hand so many times. The
first time she took his hand, she held it as though she would never let
go.
Jerome wondered why he was so distressed. The days spent on Mulberry
Street were the happiest of his life. He remembered before Cassandra arrived, walking on a summer day in late August along Houston and turning right at the Puck Building to wander south on Mulberry. He snapped photos and shot short videos as he walked along the street.
Gradually he could feel the pull of Little Italy as he neared Grand Street, Indeed, the decorations were up and there was a festive atmosphere for the upcoming celebrations for the Feast of San Gennaro in September. It seemed as though the festival was already beginning, but Jerome remembered how crowded Little Italy would be at the height of the celebration. There were performances, processions, contests, music concerts, and dancing in the streets...but the food was the real miracle of the Feast of San Gennaro, a festival held every September in Italy to honor Saint Januarius, the patron saint of Naples and Little Italy.
Finally, Jerome sat at an outside table of a small restaurant On Mulberry near Grand Street. The sun was blazing overhead, but he could detect the smell of September in the air. He could sense Cassandra's arrival with the coming of Autumn, the ripening orange trees on Mulberry street, and the miracle of a renaissance about to change his life.
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