Prodigy

"Casey. Okay. Well, again, it was nice to meet you both."

As he walked away Candy called out, "You, too, JJ!" before quietly saying to her sister, "Yummy!"

"Oh, stop!" Casey told her, still feeling a little rattled.

"I know he's young, but...Oh...My...God! He is SO hot!"

"I guess," Casey replied, trying to sound nonchalant.

"You guess? Seriously? Are you blind or something?"

"No, I'm not...blind," her sister said a little defensively.

"Then why aren't you standing over there next to him where you can also see your son?"

"Because as cute as he is, he can't be more than what? Twenty-five?"

"Okay. Maybe. And your point is?" Candy asked as she fixated on JJ's gluteus maximus.

Casey heaved a sigh then said with some resignation, "The point? The point is I'm...38."

Candy looked her, her head tilted a bit, then said, "Yeah. I suppose you're right. But listen. You know I'm happily married, but I'm not blind, either. So in spite of his...relative youth...I often still think of myself as...his age. Well, until I look in a mirror."

Casey looked at her sister and told her it was her turn.

"And your point is?"

Candy let out a long sigh as she continued watching the very nice butt on the much-younger man she'd just met.

Candy finally stopped staring, sighed loudly then said, "Maybe he, you know, maybe he doesn't see us...you as being that much...not his age."

No longer feeling woozy, Casey told her sister she was out of her mind.

"Fantasizing is fine. Then there's reality. I mean, what would you even talk about with someone that young?"

"Talk? Honey, I wouldn't be talking. I'd be...."

Before she could finish her innuendo-laden comment a burst of applause came when Owen checkmated his latest opponent. Casey looked over just in time to see her son jump up and JJ reaching out to shake his hand. When her son ignored his mom's outstretched arms and JJ's hand to hug this man he barely even knew, she didn't have the slightest concern. The moment actually melted her heart.

"Tell me you wouldn't hit that," she heard Candy say, the comment bringing her sister back to reality.

"Honestly?" Casey said almost indignantly.

She sighed again then said, "I'd just like to meet someone who loved me, you know, the way...."

"Oh, Casey!" her sister said as she turned and gave her a hug, a hug that reminded her of Owen and JJ. For the briefest of moments she wondered what that would be like to do that--and only that--just as Owen ran over to tell her the good news.

"Mom! Guess what?"

"I saw! Good job, buddy!" she told him as JJ walked up behind him and put his hands on the boys shoulders.

"He's good, Casey. Really good."

The compliment was nice, but the smile on her son's face was far more important to her.

"I'm very proud of him," his mother said as she gently touched her son's face.

"If I win one more time I'm getting that big trophy over there!" Owen informed her as he pointed to a gold chess piece that looked to be nearly two feet high.

"Aunt Candy. Cmon and watch me!" her nephew said as he went to find out who he'd be playing next.

"Oh, sure! I'll be right there!"

When Owen walked away Candy leaned over and quietly told her sister, "Chess is worse than baseball, and baseball is the most boring gave ever made!"

Casey didn't care for either one herself, but she did care for Owen and said, "Come on. Let's go watch. If you fall asleep maybe Prince Charming will catch you before you hit the floor."

Candy gave her a mean look then laughed.

"No. Don't let him stop me. Let me hit the floor. Then he can wake me up with a kiss."

Candy leaned a little closer as she said, "Did you see those lips? They look so soft and scrumptious!"

"Okay. Down, girl!" her sister said just as JJ welcomed her.

"Hi there," he said Casey as Candy made sure her sister stood next to Prince Charming. She, of course, slid around behind him and stood as close as she dared on his other side.

"Hi," was all Casey could think of to say and felt a little silly.

"In all seriousness, Owen's not just good. I really believe he's a prodigy."

"Owen? A prodigy?"

"For the length of time he's been playing, this is nothing short of phenomenal," JJ told her as the match got ready to start.

"He says he sees the moves in his head. Does that make sense?"

JJ looked directly at her.

"Yes. I say the very same thing."

He smiled at her again and her knees felt weak before he leaned her way a bit then said, "Because it's true."

"So Owen isn't exaggerating?"

"Uh-uh. Not at all."

Casey found it hard to hold the stare and looked away to collect her thoughts.

"How does that work?" she asked, genuinely interested in finding out.

"I can't speak for Owen, but I have something that's...pretty rare."

She raised her eyebrows and waited for him to explain.

"It's called hyperthymesia."

Casey shrugged which made JJ smile.

"There are only 61 known cases in the world. I'm sure there are a few more, but those are the only verified instances. In America, it's just a handful."

"Is it...serious?" she asked, having no idea what it was.

JJ managed not to laugh then explained.

"No. Well, yes, it's serious, but it isn't threatening. It's a memory condition."

"A memory condition?"

"Yes. As in having a perfect memory."

"Oh, you mean a photographic memory, right?"

"Not exactly," JJ said before he continued. "It's more that I can remember everything."

"Everything?"

"Yes. Everything. When I think of something I saw, read, or did, my mind goes back to it the way a videotape does. In other words, I don't see a photograph. I see every detail again as though I'm watching a movie. Who, what, when where, and all the details like what someone was wearing as well as every word they said. Verbatim."

"I...I've never heard of such a thing."

"Do you know the actress, Marilu Renner?"

"Oh! Sure. She plays Aida on the 'Aurora Teagarden Mysteries' show."

"That's her!" JJ said with a smile. "There's a video of her on YouTube where she explains what it's like. It's possible Owen could be the newest case, so you might want to check that out."

His smile got bigger before saying, "Or you could talk to me about it anytime you like."

Casey's tummy flip flopped just as she heard Candy call for her.

"Sis? You better get over here!"

As she turned Casey saw Owen shaking hands with his latest...victim.

"Another win?" she said as Owen walked her way. "Already?"

He not only didn't answer her he walked right on by and went straight to JJ again.

"Did you see me?" the boy asked.

"Sorry, buddy. I was talking with your mom. How many moves?"

Owen told him and drew a high five from the older man who congratulated him.

"Just one more match to go!" the boy said as his mom walked up.

"Owen? I am so proud of you!" she told him.

"Thanks, Mom," he replied nonchalantly before asking JJ if he wanted to come with him.

"Yeah, sure," he said as he looked at Casey and kind of shrugged as he smiled at her and followed the young prodigy.

"Someone has a case of hero worship," Candy said very quietly to her younger sister.

"What? Oh. Right. Yes, I think maybe he does."

Candy leaned closer then asked her sister, "You uh, you sure you're not interested, too?"

Casey followed Candy who was following JJ who was right behind Owen.

"No, I am not interested. Okay?" came an even more defensive reply.

"Wow. That was convincing."

Candy stopped to let her sister catch up then said, "NOT!" and continued walking.

As Candy continued walking Casey quietly said, "Maybe a little," but only to herself as she looked for the handsome younger man her son had fallen for in a big way as he and her son turned a corner.

She caught sight of him and caught up a few seconds later with Candy's arm now looped through hers.

They saw JJ turn around and smile again.

"Hi, JJ. It's just us. Me and my beautiful sister. My...single sister," she said, causing Casey to elbow her a little to sharply which elicited a loud 'ouch!'

"Hey, you're just in time," he said as he pointed to the table where the final match was to be played.

The emcee announced the names of the two finalists, and five or six dozen people there to watch the tournament applauded.

The boy and older man with a scruffy beard shook hands. Owen was playing white and made his first move then hit the timer. His opponent made his opening and the race was on.

Just 12 moves later JJ whispered to Casey, "Owen has his opponent trapped. All it'll take is a series of lateral moves to checkmate the King, and...."

Before JJ could finish, the two players made four lighting-fast moves before Owen's opponent stuck out his hand in resignation.

"Nice game," the much older man said.

"Thank you!" Owen told him, accepting the handshake before noticing his aunt.

"Aunt Candy!" he called out before going over and getting a hug.

"Hey, dude! I hear you're doing really well here."

"I won! I won the tournament! And I just beat a guy with an Elo rating of 2,055!"

"Oh. Um...."

The tournament emcee called for Owen to come up, leaving the three adults standing together applauding along with everyone else who were even more amazed at what they'd just witnessed.

"So what exactly is an LOE rating?" Casey asked JJ as Owen shook the emcee's hand just as the major made his way to the podium.

"I'd love to explain it, but for the record, it's Elo," JJ said as he leaned her way.

He smiled at her again then said, "It's rather complicated."

He hesitated then suggested, "Maybe we could have dinner sometime and I'll bore you to death with it."

She nearly said, "No thank you," but before she could the mayor called for everyone's attention.

"Ladies and Gentlemen. This is my first-ever chess tournament, and I'm a little embarrassed to say I thought this would take the entire day."

He waited for the polite laughter to end before adding, "Thank goodness for timers, right?"

There were some more chuckles before he continued.

Before he did, JJ leaned toward Casey and whispered, "Owen is the real deal."

"Really? Is he really that good?" she asked, his face just inches from hers.

"No, he's better than just 'good'," JJ told her as Candy tried to gently nudge him right up against her until he literally bumped into Casey.

"Sorry," he said as he took hold of her wrist with one hand and put the other in the small of her back to keep his balance after regaining his.

Between the surprise of his having been pushed into her and the electric touch of his hands, Casey again felt weak in the knees.

"No, it's...it's fine. Really."

JJ was looking at her but not smiling. It was not only the first time he'd looked at her that way, but it was the first time any man had done that since her late husband was alive and it sent pleasant chills up and down her spine.

The mayor waited for Owen who was standing a foot so away to look up at him. When he did the older man said, "The reason for the short-lived nature of this tournament is a young man named Owen Lewis."

When his name was mentioned the room burst into applause as the mayor put a hand on the boy's shoulder. The young "man" was all smiles as he looked up then out at the audience until he saw JJ and smiled.

"Mrs. Lewis? How about you join us up here, too?" the mayor called out, surprising Casey.

She looked around as though she didn't understand before Candy gave her a furtive look as she pointed her head toward the stage.

"While Owen's mom is walking up, I'd like to invite our special guest of honor to also come up and present the trophy to our winner."

Casey was only halfway there when the mayor said, "Folks? Once I again I give you our very own chess grandmaster, Mr. JJ Owens!"

The applause exploded as a now very confused Casey Lewis looked back. When she did she saw JJ shyly raising a hand as he began walking her way. He caught up to Casey who asked, as they walked, "You're a grandmaster?"

She still barely knew what that meant, and in fact, she only knew it was a big deal.

"And your last name is Owens?"

JJ laughed then replied, "Yes, I am, and yes, it is. Awkward, right?"

He helped her up on stage as the three of them stood next to the mayor.

"Before we award our grand prize, allow me to tell you that JJ here, a local boy who graduated from high school in this very town just six years ago...."

Casey knew he was young, but when she heard he was still in high school when Owen was three years old, she experienced a sort of emotional let down she didn't have time to think about.

"And just this summer, JJ won the first place award in an event called The 50th Annual World Open. He competed in the open division, and walked away with not only the first place trophy but a check for $25,000."

Another round of applause ensued, and Casey watched Owen who again seemed to be spellbound by the grandmaster. The very young grandmaster. To her anyway.

"So without further adieu, I give you chess grandmaster, Mr. JJ Owens,!"

One more burst of applause came and went. When the room got quiet, JJ spoke.

"Thank you, Mr. Mayor. This is a real honor for me."

He moved over and in behind Owen and put his hands on the boy's shoulders.

"This young man is a very good chess player. Very good. Trust me on that."

There were a few chuckles as Owen continued beaming, his smile bigger than any his mom could remember since his father was alive.

"I gotta say that based on what I saw here today and the short amount of time this young man has been playing, he is probably going to be a better player than me, and I don't think it'll take him long to get there. Owen is indeed a prodigy, and I've never seen anyone like him before."

"You were pretty good yourself, JJ!" someone called out.

Casey blanched when she saw it was a much-younger, very pretty girl.

"Thank you, but I wasn't even close to Owen's level when I'd been playing for the same length of time he has."

JJ patted the boy's shoulders then looked for the trophy which the mayor was now holding. He handed it to JJ with a huge smile and waited for the local paper and TV crew to do their thing before letting go.

"Owen, on behalf of Mayor Williams and the entire town, I'd like to present you with our first-place trophy."

JJ did the same thing as a photographer asked him to so he could get some decent shots of the two chess players holding the trophy.

The mayor then horned his way back in and asked Owen if he had anything he'd like to say.

"Um...yes!" he replied as he looked up at the mayor then at JJ and finally his mom, the big trophy still in his hands.

"I really love playing chess and I hope JJ will be able to help me learn how to be even better so I can be a grandmaster one day, too!"

Owen didn't understand the polite laughter that came with the applause, nor did he see his mom's eyes when he said that. She wasn't actually embarrassed because he wasn't bragging. He was just a young boy being honest, and she couldn't have been more proud of her son.

"I'm sure that can be arranged, right, JJ?" the mayor bellowed over the noise.

When he looked at JJ, the younger man nodded then said, "It'd be a pleasure!"

Casey was looking at him as he spoke, but when he turned to look right at her, that amazing smile on his face, her tummy did another flip flop which, after learning his age, was even more confusing.

"If that's okay with his mom, of course."

Feeling slightly flushed, Casey's cheeks reddened a bit more, and she felt like everyone in the room knew why.

"Um...yes. Of course!" she said before a final round of applause and laughter came and went.

Most of the people in attendance came by to shake the young winner's hand and wish him well, and a few minutes later there were only a handful of people left besides the four who'd only recently gotten acquainted.

"Did you mean that?" Owen asked JJ the first time he had the chance.

"Sure. I'd love to," JJ told him.

"Can we start today?"

Casey was about to gently remind him that was rude when Candy chimed in.

"Hey! Why don't we all have dinner at my house tonight? The guys can do their thing afterwards, and we can all get better acquainted!"

Casey shot her a nasty look, but when her sister wriggled her eyebrows she couldn't even pretend to be mad.

"I'm sure JJ has other plans," Casey said, now hoping that he did.

"Nothing that can't be changed," he told them all while mostly looking at Casey.

He'd noticed her the first time he saw her, but now that he was able to really look at her he realized why he found her so attractive. He began describing her mentally to himself and didn't get past her soft, very dark, shoulder-length hair before Owen called his name.

"What's up?" JJ asked as he thought about the boy's mother with a special focus on her green eyes and beautiful smile.

"Do you have a rating?"

"I do."

"Is it good?"

Casey tried to stop her son from asking personal questions, but JJ only laughed and told her it was okay before telling Owen his Elo score was 'okay', too.

"What does 'okay' mean?" Owen insisted.

"Owen!" his mom said, feeling a little embarrassed.

"It's fine," JJ told her before he looked at Owen and said, "I'm at 2,550."

Owen's eyes opened wide as he said, "Woowww!"

"Is that good?" Candy asked, mostly just to get JJ to talk to her again.

"It's okay," he replied very modestly.

"Okay? Aunt Candy! That's a grandmaster!" Owen said, now in awe.

"Just barely," JJ replied using his thumb and forefinger to indicate a small amount.

"Mom! This is SO cool!" Owen said as he stared up at his newest idol.

"Yes. Yes, it is," she agreed, not knowing what a grandmaster was but feeling like it had to be something important or even...grand.

"Nah, it's not that great," JJ said, mostly to Owen but also looking at his mom.

"I became a grandmaster when I was 19, but I've been stuck at or around 2,500 ever since. I win a lot of tournaments, but I'm still not in the top tier and it looks like I never will be."

He sounded a bit wistful then perked up and said, "I'm no Magnus Carlson, but I still love the game, and I gotta say that if you keep playing, you might end up a GM yourself."

"Really?" a nearly worshipful nine-year old asked.

"Yes, really. You need to work on your middle game, and you need to know every single opening and some other important aspects of the game, but you're the best I've seen since...."

"No. I mean, do you really know Magnus Carlson?"

JJ laughed then told him he did.

"Not well, though. He's beaten me a time or two, but that's about...."

"Mom! JJ knows the best chess player EVER!" her son informed her, his case of hero worship growing by the moment.

"Oh. That's wonderful!" she told him, not sure what else to say.

"Who's this Magnum guy?" Casey finally asked, afraid she might be the only one who didn't know until Candy chimed in with, "yeah, is he some big shot or something?"

"He's only the best player in...forever!" Owen blurted out.

JJ chuckled then said, "Some folks might disagree."

"You think Boris Spassky was better?" a wide-eyed Owen asked.

"Well, he was the top-rated player for more years than Magnus has been alive."

Owen crossed his arms in front of his body then said, "Huh. I never thought of that!" just as an older man walked up to them. Owen recognized him immediately and called to his mother.

"Mom! It's Chad!" he said, pointing to an older man from the park.

"Yes it is!" she replied as she looked at JJ who had turned away to look himself.

Sensing a problem she told Owen to go on over and say 'hi' as she moved a little closer to JJ.

"You okay?"

"Yeah. My dad and I, we uh, we don't talk much anymore, and...."