Deer in the headlights (Zak Bagans story)

Nine months after

With one hand shielding my eyes from the sun, I looked up at the other person. Were my eyes playing tricks on me? Did I really hit my head that much? Surely I was seeing things. The guy was looking directly at me as he slowly removed his shades…

Zak -

We arrived at our new location a day earlier. This gave us time to do some touring and souvenir buying. Nick, Aaron and I had all agreed on touring alone so this meant that we'd split up and regroup the same evening. I had a place in mind. I'd always wanted to see this place at its liveliest. So I set out in my lease car to check the area out. Everywhere around me was just nothing but fields and countryside like something out of Robin Hood. It was an adrenaline rush to be out there on my own. Cruising through the country.

At last, I'd reached my destination. Turned out to be way busier than I thought. Families with bags of gifts and kids with toys hanging out their pockets. The place was crammed. I tried getting near the reception but I had to squeeze through the groups of strangers. "Excuse me. Sorry. Can I just-" no matter how loud I was, there was no getting passed them so I went a different direction. Yes! Finally, a gap to shift myself through. I had to use a lot of speed and force to break out and just as I did… SMACK! Someone had just ran into my chest with such force that it'd left me winded. I had to apologise to whoever it was as soon as I had caught my breath.

I peered down at the creature who'd lost their footing. It was a young woman. She was wearing beige shorts, gladiator sandals and a brown vest top. She was blocking the sun with her hand which made seeing her face difficult. So I took off my shades to make things easier. The only thing I could see was her jaw drop open and I could hear her gasp. 'Come on, move your hand' I thought to myself. Just as the words ran through my mind, her hand dropped down. "Listen I'm sorr-" something had made me stop completely. My words were jammed.

The young female had frozen like a deer in the headlights and I recognised those doe eyes. The crowds of people went dead silent and all I could hear was the pulse in my chest getting faster. I knew this woman, of course I did. And she knew me. I'd been frozen from having seen a spirit walk passed me before but this was a different frozen. Some may even say an 'Oh my god' frozen. I was in shock to say the least. But it was an experience I'd pay to have happen again. "I… I…" she stuttered. She smiled to make up for her words. "You kept your promise?" She sounded surprised. I was shocked that she even remembered "yeah, I guess I did" I winked. She then said the words that answered all my questions "I've missed you. I haven't stopped thinking about you" she was still standing in the same position.

"I'm glad I'm not the only one who's been going through the same thing" she looked me in the eye and I swear her eyes were even sexier than the last time I saw them.

We stood there, staring in utter amazement and then she said, with a twinkle in her eye "Hey Zak, fancy a private tour?" She held her hand out and smiled. How could I refuse? "Oh fuck yeah!"

I took her hand. The feel of her velvet skin was such an emotional trigger. I felt a sense of déjà vu. As we weaved through the groups of people, she kept looking back at me with an immense pleasure on her face. It was relieving just knowing that I wasn't the only one feeling like that. We were just getting to the porch when "Georgia! What do you think you're doing?" I heard a male voice say. "Mike you don't question my actions. I'm your boss" her face grew stern and serious. She started to hold my hand tighter as the two started arguing. "I know and I'm saying this with all due respect. We have staff in need of medical attention and your there gallivanting with some guy. Who are you anyway? Who's this?" He poked and pointed towards me and started raising his voice. "That is not respect! You're shouting in my face in front of customers. I have every right to-" she'd dropped my hand at this point. I could see her getting pissed off. "Who is he, Georgia? Why are you two holding hands? Is there something I should know?" The guy started to get up closer into Georgia's face. He looked crazy. "Mike, what is your problem? And this is none of your business! I don't ask about your private life so I'd appreciate it if you didn't, either " she went to turn away just as he grabbed her on the arm. "So it's private, huh? I guess that means there is something…" I'd had enough by this point so I barged between them, knocking his arm off her as I did so. "You know what man, just back off! Don't speak to her that way" I was being polite until he had to push it.

"Oh an American? How exotic! What so you like Americans now, Georgia? Is that right?" Again, he edged his face up into her's.

"Okay, now you need to piss off" I started nudging him away, making sure he didn't get any closer to her. "Get your hands off of me you yank!" He started swiping my hands out of his way whilst shouting abuse. I grabbed him by the wrists and squeezed "I said… Piss… off!" I pushed him away from us and walked Georgia away. What a fucking jerk.

"Georgia, who was that?" I tried catching up with her but she kept storming off through the crowds. I knew that she could hear me, it was obvious but she wouldn't look at me. I finally caught up with her as we got around to the house. "He's just some jumped up-" she was so frustrated "…he's just some employee who has had this problem with the way I run this place. Sarah claims he's obsessed with me… I dunno. I guess he's pissed cause I turned him down the once" she had her hand against her forehead with her head lowered. It had clearly bothered her many times before. "Hey, don't stress it sweetie. I'm sure someone will deal with him" I took a hold of her hand and lowered it from her face. Her eyes were watery and bloodshot. It really got to her. I wasn't going to put up with this ass hole any longer. So I decided to take matters into my own hands…