It’s close to 10am as Emily makes her way up Long Street to the bus stop and hops on The Red Line heading out to Table View. As she makes her way down the aisle to find a seat she is almost knocked down by a tall, dark haired man fumbling around with his kite surfing gear; he’s clearly struggling to squeeze into the standing area near the middle doors and as he tries to find his balance his back pack knocks Emily off balance. He swings around to apologise and in so doing bumps a fellow passenger on the head with his board. 

“Oh god, I’m so sorry”, the kite surfer exclaims.

“Dude” cries his fellow passenger, “watch my headspace will you”.

Emily immediately recognises the voice of the fumbling surfer and calls out to him, “Bruce”. 

“Ems” replies the embarrassed action man, “Ems, oh god, I’m so sorry” he says as he swings around to face her and again knocks the poor man sitting in the line of his board on his head.

“Dude…” but the passengers can’t retain their laughter, and everyone bursts out laughing. 

“Oh, Bruce,” says Emily, “Please, just stand still will you.”

She is pleasantly surprised to bump into her old friend, Bruce, who is heading out to Table View Beach to go kitesurfing. She has a good little giggle seeing him fumbling around trying not to knock any of the other passengers out with all his gear. But it is a common sight this time of year as the Cape Town wind has started to blow again after the much needed Winter rains.  

With a good 40-minute bus ride ahead of them they settle in and start catching up. Emily, in a rather hushed voice, begins telling Bruce about the seemingly odd evening she had the night before while at ‘The Hog & Rose 1’ in Woodstock with her sister, Miss Society, who was playing a gig. As Emily talks her eyes light up and her excitement is palpable. She tells Bruce that she noticed a rather fascinating woman in the bar and explains that she was so intrigued because the woman looked very much like someone she had seen in old photographs from her Aunt Erica that she has been archiving. The photos are from Erica’s time in Chile from the early 70’s, and she thought it odd as the woman looked to be about the same age as back then; she had on the same old fashioned coat, headscarf and sunglasses, even though it was evening and she was inside. Perhaps it was her daughter or a relative; but Emily tells Bruce that she had heard that this woman from Chile was an enigma of sorts and that no one really knew if she existed; yet there she was. Emily’s excitement grows as she tells Bruce that her Aunts photos aren’t the only ones she has of this woman; she has collected dozens of images from different countries, spanning over decades of time, all showing what seems to be the same woman. “I got so excited I left halfway through Miss Society’s set. I just had to get home and look through my archives” says Emily. “On my way out I managed to snap a few photos without her seeing.” “Oh really” says Bruce. “I’d be interested in seeing your photos.” “I’m heading home now to develop the film” says Emily. “I haven’t had time yet as I spent the morning in town photographing some street scenes for an exhibition I’m planning” she explains. “Has your Aunt ever mentioned the woman’s name?” asks Bruce. “No, not to me” replies Emily. “But over the years I have heard whispers of the name Betty D.”

Bruce leans back in his seat and gives Emily a half-hearted smile. He stares out the window as his mind starts swirling with memories from a recent encounter he’d had with a woman who perfectly matched the description of the woman Emily was rambling on about. He had been sitting alone at his local pub when, as if out of nowhere, a strikingly beautiful woman sat down next to him and struck up a conversation. She took off her sunglasses, placed them on the bar counter and ordered a Tanqueray Gin with just a splash of Rose’s Lime Juice from the bar man, and then another and another. In an instant Bruce had felt an intense connection with her, but, just when he thought things were about to progress she stood up, wrapped her hair in headscarf, put her sunglasses back on and threw her jacket over one shoulder. She had leaned in, kissed him on the cheek and headed out of the pub. He had called after her, “What is your name?” This enigma of a woman, without turning back to look at him, had simply said, “Oh, some call me Betty D.” It had taken Bruce a few minutes to regain his composure, only to realise that she had stuck him with the bill. His memories of this encounter made him blush ever so slightly as he thought to himself, “What a selfish woman. How could I have let her use me like that?” He was embarrassed for even thinking that he could have had something special with a complete stranger and chose not to tell Emily his story, so as to protect his dignity. He wonders to himself if this could be the same Betty D.

Emily notices his blushed cheeks and distant gaze. “Bruce, are you alright?” she asks. “Yes, of course”, he smiles, not wishing to give anything away. “It’s just fascinating, that’s all.” They sit in silence for a few moments and then, as the bus arrives at Woodbridge Island, Emily jumps up saying “this is my stop”. She gives Bruce a warm hug good-bye, hops off the bus and heads home to develop her film. She waves to Bruce who continues on to Table View Beach where he gets off and heads on to the beach to set up his gear. The wind is just right, and he is looking forward to his session in the sea. 

As Emily skates her way up Loxton Road her phone rings. “Sis”, she says as she swipes right to answer the call, “how you doing?”

On the other side of the call is Emily’s sister, Miss Society. “Em”, she says in a rather loud, excited voice, “I can’t believe you left so early last night. You won’t believe what happened”. 

“Calm down, Sis, you’re going to burst my ear drum” Emily teases.

“No, really. It’s crazy. Ems, this guy showed up just after you left, says he knows Aunty E and wants to see her. I think it has something to do with Chile, you know, and Jose….”