He had not seen her for going on nine years, which was not to way that he hadn't thought of her from time to time. Not so often anymore, but every once in a while, he would find himself thinking back. Thinking back to the way that her dark hair somehow absorbed the sunlight but still flashed and sparkled. Or the way that her velvet soft blue eyes would glow when she smiled that indescribable smile. They had been nothing more than friends, but he had always looked upon her with a deeper affection than just friendship. He kept those emotions at bay though, so that she wouldn't see the fire that smoldered in his heart. Some nights he had lain awake in bed staring at the ceiling, wondering what it would be like to tell her how he felt.
To be able to take her in his arms, to protect her from the rest of world when she was feeling vulnerable. He never did. Their friendship meant too much to him for him to take the risk of losing it. That didn't stop him from dreaming though. Then came the day that he could never quite forgive himself for. The day he had said something to hurt her and the pain it caused in her beautiful eyes. She hadn't spoken to him since that night, whether by her choice or him just staying away he never really decided. The damage was done however. Now, nine years down the road, very few of his friends and co-workers knew about that part of his past. He still believed in miracles, just not the kind that happened on a hot august afternoon...
The coolness of the mall felt good to him after the sweltering heat of the day outside. He laughed to himself. He had lived in the south for almost five years now. God knows he should be used to the heat by now. He had come here to pick up a few things for his daughter's birthday. As he traveled past the stores his mind casually picked out items of interest, things he thought he might want to get later when he stopped in his tracks. He stared through a window at a woman standing inside at the counter. The long dark hair, the dazzling smile. It couldn't be her, not after all these years. He drifted closer to the door of the shop, all the while keeping her in sight. His disbelief evaporated when he heard her voice. Clear and shimmering like the sound of a bell, it cut straight through his heart. It was her.
He watched her for a few moments as she talked to the cashier. Just as he was about to turn away though, when she turned and looked directly at him. His heart skipped a beat and he quickly moved away from the window, heading on through the mall. He kept his head down, hoping she wouldn't see him. He hadn't moved very far when he heard her right behind him and she spoke his name. Knowing that he couldn't walk away, he turned slowly around and looked at her. When he saw the glow of her blue eyes, his heart broke a little more. He managed to mutter a soft hello though his heart was still beating so loudly that he thought surely she could hear it. There was a puzzlement in her eyes when she spoke.
"Why did you walk away just now?"
"I...I don't know," he said cautiously, trying to find the right words, "I guess maybe I thought that you wouldn't want to see me after all that happened..." He let the sentence trail off and it was his turn to be puzzled when she let loose a silvery peal of laughter.
"That was what, nine years ago? I forgave you a long time ago. Are you still feeling bad about that?" Her smile shone brightly as she continued, "I knew you didn't mean what you had said. It did hurt me for a while, but I was never really mad at you."
"Then why did you avoid me after that?" As soon as he got the question out, he realized it wasn't her that avoided him. It was him that avoided her. She watched his face carefully as he thought about it and she knew she didn't have to answer. After a few moments, she asked, "what are you doing tonight? We have a lot to catch up on."
He mulled it over for a few moments and decided he didn't have anything that couldn't be put off for a day or so. His daughter's birthday wasn't till next week. "Nothing really. You want to go grab some dinner?"
"Sure," her smile lit up her face again as they headed for the exit.
* * * * *
At dinner, they talked over old times and what they had done in the intervening years. She had expressed amazement when she learned he had been married at one point and had a daughter. When she saw the pictures of his child, she told him that his daughter was very beautiful. When the conversation rolled around to her, he was somewhat surprised to learn that she still wasn't married.
"I guess I just never found the right guy. All the ones that I ever met were just after one thing. They didn't care about me, they just cared about my body."
"All of them?" he joked.