As Good As New

As I get out of my car and look up the block to go to work, I know this is the last thing I want to do today. I want to see my friends and go for coffee. Senior year, it should be the best one yet. Me, I must go help at the store.

The store. My mother opened a secondhand clothing store in town, As Good As New. The first one like it in our town. Since it’s new and since there’s overhead and not a lot of money yet, I get to “help”. People drop off clothing and toys they no longer want and receive a commission once the item sells.

There is one perk to this unpaid position. First dibs, and today was going to be my lucky day, I just didn’t know it yet. I arrive at the store, put on a smile, and head in.

“Samantha! Glad you’re here. You’ll never guess what came in today,” my mother said.

A big sigh to gather the energy for the rest of this day. “What?” I know there was tone but I couldn’t help it. I didn’t want to be there.

“Look!”

And there it was. A very cool, vintage, brown, aviator jacket. I perked up. It had the patches and everything. It was amazing! And old. But in good shape. Is she giving this to me? Oh, my goodness! I sure hope it fits!

“Is it for me?” I let out a shriek.

“Yes, as soon as I saw it, I thought of you. I know you love jackets,” she said. “Try it on!”

It was big, but I loved it, and I couldn’t wait to show it off. I worked the evening and looked forward to the next day. What to wear with my new jacket?

School was typical but a little more electric. I definitely stood out. I got compliments all day long. At lunch I asked, “Are we doing anything tonight?” So, my friends and I made plans for the evening. It was a usual Friday night. Go for coffee after school, home for supper, meet for a movie and then find the guys and see who’s at “the lot”. Like most small towns we drive up and down the main roads and then everyone meets up at the mall parking lot.

We didn’t know it yet, but we garnered some attention as we left the movie. A call was being made and our next move was officially being watched. Two men got into their vehicle and started to follow us but lost us at a light.

It was a warm evening and I decided to leave my new jacket in the car. Typically quiet and on the fringe of things, I didn’t like extra attention at The Lot. This night, there were about twenty carloads of people hanging out together. The men drove by but couldn’t see who, or what, they were looking for. They parked at a distance and kept watch.

Work and a house party the next day meant I wasn’t really out and about in public. I certainly had no idea about the excitement that was to come. People were actively looking for me and me, I was playing cards with friends.

When I got home, I just threw my jacket on the couch and went to bed. The next morning, I came upstairs to get ready for the day. I noticed my jacket looked odd. The lining was poking up towards the ceiling, instead of laying flat. Very strange.

I pick it up and there’s something hard inside the lining between the layers. How had I not noticed this before? Weird. Why would there be something inside my jacket? What could it be?

Upon closer investigation, I see the lining had been hand-stitched along one edge.

“Mom. Where’s your sewing kit? I need a seam ripper please.”

I take the seam ripper and jacket to my room like I’m preparing for surgery. Carefully, I cut threads to make a hole about four inches long. I maneuver the object to the opening and slide it out. It’s a little black book, about the size of my hand. It was well worn and surprisingly, the entries were not in English. Now what?

Little black book in hand and wearing my jacket, I head to the mall to meet my friends for coffee. This will require a group think. I prefer to park on the street where it’s free instead of the mall parking where you have to pay. Fortunately, there’s a spot across the street and right by the restaurant.

As I’m crossing the street, I hear, “There she is!” And I don’t know why I think this is me but I turn and look and yes. They mean me! Adrenalin rush makes me run into the mall. I spot my friends in a booth. I rush over and say, “Let me in!”

Everyone is confused and talking over each other.

“Sure Sam. Not even a hi?”

“Hey?”

“You’re late.”

“What’s going on?”

“I’m sitting here.”

“Watch it.”

I rip off my jacket as I realize that it makes me very recognizable, throw it across the table and tell them to hide it. I have my best friend get up so I can be in the middle of the booth, now three of us sitting on that side. I get her to sit back down.

Without moving my lips, I say, “Just wait. Act natural.” I am shaking. “I’ll explain. I just...” And then two, now, suspicious looking men walk in. I turn and grab Ethan. “Sorry” and I start to kiss him.

Everyone is in shock and can’t believe what they are seeing. This is completely out of character and no, we were not dating. Never even flirted with the thought. Just friends.

When the coast was clear, I took a deep breath and start to explain. At least as much as I knew so far.

Voices hushed, I explained that as I was coming in these two guys started to chase me. And! Earlier today, I found this cool little black notebook INSIDE the jacket. But look, what language do you think that is? The coffee talk then revolved around needing a plan.

We all agreed that we needed to find out what was written in the little black book. There are not many places here with translation services, so we’ll Google it. As it turns out, it is Italian. We don’t see anything that lets us know who it belongs to, but it appears to be a diary. Just in little black book form.

But what now? Is it a coincidence, with the jacket, the book and the two men? Can I ever wear the jacket again? I love the jacket.

We cannot be sure if the two men saw what I was driving or not, so I got a ride home with my best friend. I’ll have to ask my dad to pick my car up later and make up some kind of excuse. Monday, I’ll go to the store and see who consigned the jacket.

The answer actually came on Sunday night. My parents were watching the news and I was walking through the living room when I heard:

Locally, we bring you a story of love and money, with a reward. Meet Luca and Sophia. They would have been celebrating their 21st wedding anniversary this year. Luca passed away and while getting the estate in order something precious went missing.

Luca was in the military and while deployed in 1999 during the Kosovo Crisis, he wrote notes to his bride-to-be. Well, they have gone missing and a reward is being offered.

These were not just any love notes. He wrote them in a Moleskine little black book, AND in Italian. He didn’t want just anyone that found it to know what he had written. To further keep it safe, he kept it sewn into the lining of his G-1 flight jacket. Here is a picture of Luca in the jacket.

In December of 1999, he rotated out of Kosovo at 22 years old and he gave the notebook to his bride as a wedding gift. The notebook became a cherished family treasure and was kept on display in their home. However, when Luca became ill, Sophia put the notebook back in the jacket for safe keeping. After Luca passed, she does not know what became of the jacket. Was it bagged and put in the garbage, sold, given away?

There is a $20,000 reward for return of the brown aviator jacket and love notes in the little black book.

“What?!?!?!” I startled my parents with this outburst. “Oh, my goodness! I can’t believe it! This is it! This is mine. It’s the jacket,” I yelled.

I wasn’t making sense to them. They didn’t believe me at first but then I showed them the book. It was hard to sleep that night. $20,000!

We contacted the news station the next day, emailed proof and they gave my information to Sophia. She called and gave us her address.

She lived in the most expensive part of town, of course. Why else would there be a $20,000 reward for a little black book? I felt more and more nervous, and excited, as we drove up. My mom and dad came with me. We’re a family that sticks together.

As it turns out, Sophia had hired a couple of private investigators to retrace steps and try and find the jacket. They were just going to talk to me, not harm me. You know, the drama of a teenage girl... always getting carried away.

We had a lively discussion. Sophia shared more of their story and I came away $20,000 richer. Should I ask if she’d let me keep the jacket?