Jeffrey Bauer had "loser" written all over him. From his wrinkly clothes, to his unkempt hair, to his inability to maintain eye contact with anyone for more than a few seconds, he exuded it. He didn't really think of himself that way. But, others did.
    He was only twenty-five years old, but he was fairly sure he'd be alone the rest of his life, without that special someone he had been dreaming about. His job, his home, his free time were all geared around his solitary way of life. Even the people he worked with didn't seem to care whether or not he showed up. At his work as a golf course groundskeeper, he kept busy, yet his mind was free to wander where it wished. The only things that mattered to it were books and his fantasies involving women. His fantasy life was very active, maybe too active.
    He was a voracious reader and his favorite place to be was the local Barnes & Noble bookstore. It was two stories, with two long escalators in the central, lobby portion. The way they meandered like a lazy brook up to the second floor was hypnotizing. They seemed to be miles long. In addition, there were all kinds of comfortable chairs, and nooks and crannies to get lost. There were books. Rows and rows of books. He was at home there. He could relax and drink coffee and spend a lifetime there over a single weekend, which for him meant every weekend.
    It was just one of those lazy afternoons when he saw THE fantasy girl. He'd never seen anyone like her. She was very pretty, but even more she was sexy. She had long black hair, almond eyes, tight jeans, and a revealing halter-top. She was perfect. He knew he would do nothing but watch her, unobtrusively, for as long as she stayed in the store. He never did anything more than that. He would have liked to, but the girls never cooperated. After a cursory glance they would be back to their reading or move on to a different part of the store. It was secure in this knowledge, that Jeffrey took his books and found a comfy hideout from which to enjoy the view.
    Jeffrey really liked this one. He could feel something more than usual, a warmth that spread through him as if he'd just drunk a strong glass of whiskey straight. He knew much of it was a sexual attraction. He knew his fantasy desire was very much a basic male urge, hormonal and primitive. He was lost in this daydream when the girl looked up at him, briefly, gave a little smile and went back to her reading.
    The smile was more like a Mona Lisa grin than a smile, but it was nice anyway. It would be something to think about while cutting the grass next week at the course. He was quite satisfied with this and so, when the girl started drifting toward him, casually looking over the book titles, he didn't really notice at first. As she got closer and closer, he noticed. He got nervous and had to settle himself down until logic told him he had nothing to fear.
    He tried to watch her secretively, as she grew nearer and nearer. She didn't seem to walk so much as to glide. So smooth was the motion. The hair swaying like the boughs of a willow, the gentle swing of the arms, the radiance of the face in the afternoon's ambient light; all these he saw in a dream-state of slow motion.
    Still, he had to be careful. Too much attention was not his style. Some women thought it was creepy. He was always careful. This time it didn't matter because suddenly she rounded a corner and came right next to him.
    "Hi, you come here often?"
    "Yes - yes I do." He managed to get out. He didn't know how, he was so surprised.
    "I was just making a joke!" she half-said, half-laughed, and he knew he was leaning off a building with his arms at his side falling face forward in a suspended slice of time. It felt to him like one of those camera shots where the camera shows a city race through a whole day in a few seconds.
    "Oh."
    "I saw you looking at me and I thought - what the hell, I'll go talk to him," she said with her ever-present smile. In fact he had yet to see her without it. Perhaps he would be disappointed when it went away. Yet, still she smiled. To say her face lit up would be a gross understatement, he thought.
    "I've never seen anyone like you before," he said, now not even aware of what he was saying. Surely, his subconscious had taken over.
    "Well now," she said with feigned surprise. "What are we gonna do about that?"
    "What do you mean?"
    "Hey, honey. You're a man. I'm a woman. And I'm free right now. Spending Saturday afternoon in a book store is not the kind of fun I really like."

-2-

    Jeffrey Bauer was having a crucial moment in his life. He knew that. He knew this kind of thing was literally once-in-a-lifetime material. He knew that like he knew the sun had come up that morning. He decided he would go as far as he could. He had nothing to lose and wasn't going to stop short and regret it years later.
    "I'm free for anything you feel like doing," he started, making a cautious move worthy of a chess master.
    As soon as he moved she placed him in check. She stepped closer and ran her fingers slowly, agonizingly up the lapel of his jacket, something he'd seen in a movie, but never in his life had It happened to him.
    "I feel pretty horny right now. I know that's pretty blunt, but I don't want to beat around the bush all day. I mean, we're still young, you know?"
    When he didn't answer, because he was fighting to control the uncomfortable feeling in his pants, things got even stranger. She started to rub one of her nipples through her shirt. She had a kind of t-shirt bra underneath her halter. It really didn't do much of a job of holding her in, he noticed.
    "Where can we go? Do you live around here?" she asked anxiously, as if she too, were fighting down a sea of hormonal waves about to crash on a rocky shore.
    "Well, I - " Jeffrey started to say something but never got the chance to finish. "There you are, you slut. What are you up to now?" rudely interrupting them was a fat, greasy slob of a man, somewhat reminiscent of a pimp from a bad "B" movie. First, speaking to the girl, he then turned toward Jeffrey, saying conspiratorially, as if they were old friends:
    "Do you believe this bitch? As soon as I turn my back, she's off humping a fence post or something. I'm afraid to leave me dog alone with her," his anger had turned to mockery of her.
    "Fuck you, Angel!"
    "Oh, that's choice." He leaned toward her threateningly and placed his arm on hers. "Move!" he commanded.
    Jeffrey was dumbfounded, partially in a state of shock, and painfully erect. He was not sure what had just transpired, was still transpiring. His mind raced options, but it appeared the man already possessed her in a way he would never experience.
    "Sorry to break up your little tryst, dick!" the boyfriend said. His voice mocked Jeffrey, as if an unnoticeable change had taken place.
    The girl and her boyfriend made their way down the escalator - his escalator, in his book store, and just as they neared the door to go out, they paused to look back at Jeffrey. Their attitude and body language was different. It was like the familiar touching of lovers, long comfortable with each other. Then, they did something incredibly cruel. They both smiled, the cruelest, most heartless smile ever, worthy of a demented demon.
    At that point, they proceeded out the door.
    Jeffrey Bauer had been had. He knew it then. Such a horribly cruel scene as that he had never imagined. He couldn't even begin to fathom the reasoning of such an act. Worse yet, he knew he would carry it around with him for a long time - a long, long time.

-3-

    No one in the store even bothered to look up from their reading as the two lightning bolts seared the ground out front. They didn't notice how clear the day was, without a cloud in the sky. They didn't notice the lightning didn't actually make contact with the ground, such things happens so fast anyway. They certainly didn't notice that two people had just been fried off the face of the earth. Fried literally, because the amount of electricity was enormous. It was enough to power a small town for several days. No one noticed just as no one noticed when old Mr. Sother disappeared after giving Jeffrey a "B", when he really deserved an "A" in history last semester. Or how the bully from down the street, Johnny Tayne, disappeared five years ago after humiliating Jeffrey at the school picnic. Or how Carl James disappeared?

-4-

    Jeffrey had settled in a few minutes after the lightning's ozone smell had faded outside. He settled in to the same comfy chair, with the same familiar books, and was content to read the rest of the day away - but then, he saw the most radiant redhead over by the biography section.

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