An Object of Great Desire
By Lori D'Angelo
Based on what she had read in The Geek's Guide to Time Travel in Real Life by Mary C Scott, in order to successfully time travel, Olivia had to focus on an object of great desire. Olivia had thought what she most wanted was to travel back in time to save Johnny, the dead father of her not yet born baby. But when she tried to do so, Oliva had been unsuccessful.
Now Olivia was certain that she had accidentally traveled back in time but not to save Johnny. Instead, she had traveled back to ten minutes ago, to before Benny had asked her over for dinner and she had turned him down.
"What did you just say?" Olivia asked Benny who was standing in front of her at the Farmer's Market stall where they had agreed to meet.
Ten minutes ago, he had asked her did she want to come over for dinner? And she had said no without hesitation.
Benny was her father's age and somewhat saggy around the middle. He was an okay guy to share dinner beans with, but she didn't want to actually have dinner with him, did she?
After Johnny died, Benny had come over like the rest of them to check on her, but Benny had done more. He had rushed over to jump start her car so she wouldn't miss a doctor's appointment. He had driven her to get bloodwork when that car had subsequently died. And then he had insisted on coming with her to look at other cars because he said he didn’t want her to get stuck with a vehicle that didn’t run, especially not after the baby came.
She had been grateful but nothing more. But when she had turned down his dinner invitation, he had looked so heartbroken. And she would have done anything to take his hurt away. But she couldn’t.
Now though, it appeared that she could. "What did you just say?" Olivia repeated.
"I haven't said anything yet," Ben told her. "But I was going to ask if you might want to come over and have dinner with me tonight?" Benny said, trying very hard not to sound like he cared.
Olivia studied him. The morning light was forgiving. Yes, he looked a little chubby. But he also looked eager, so eager to please her. "I mean, it wouldn't be anything fancy. I was going to grill some steaks and then boil up these beans."
Olivia moved closer to him. "Is it just dinner you wanted, or did you have something more in mind?" Olivia asked with a smile.
Benny sputtered and stuttered, literally turning red. “I thought just dinner, take it slow, but if you wanted, I didn’t think you’d want.”
“Benny, what is it that you most desire?” Oliva said, firmly planting a kiss on his lips. “Because apparently what I most desire is you.” And, as she kissed him, she watched his whole face light up with joy.
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Lori D'Angelo is a grant recipient from the Elizabeth George Foundation, a fellow at the Hambidge Center for Creative Arts, and an alumna of the Community of Writers. She holds an MA from Pittsburgh Theological Seminary and an MFA from West Virginia University. Her work has appeared in various literary journals including BULL, Gargoyle, Drunken Boat, Moon City Review, and Rejection Letters. Her first book, a collection called The Monsters Are Here, was recently published by ELJ Editions.
