(This story is unusual so if you find it doesn't fit your needs why not just wander off and find another that does. It could be called a painful romance. I welcome positive contributions.)
Jean had been walking along for some time before she realized she was lost. This wasn't an area of Valetta she knew very well; actually as much as she didn't want to really admit to herself, she didn't know it at all. She could see the clouds coming over the top of the magnificent old buildings which claimed the landscape, and she knew that she must have taken a wrong turn after getting off the rusty small ferry she had managed to rush onto. Strange she thought, as a regular visitor to this part of the world she normally could maintain her sense of direction in Valletta.
As a brunette with a lovely olive complexion Jean was always fighting off the old Maltese men who whistled and ogled her voluptuous body. In her gorgeous floral dress, which accentuated her sexy body, Jean was a radiant beauty who attracted the tourists' interest; as well as the local. And while she might not have had the largest breasts in Malta that day, with her delightful curves she certainly attracted a lot of attention. Many a man; after seeing her that day, went to bed at night imagining how they'd like to rip off her knickers and stick their cocks inside her.
Jean had considered that there were so many familiar and fabulous buildings in Valetta that it was a hard place to really get lost in; or so she had thought until today. University holidays were supposed to be relaxing, and after all the examination stress she'd been under just recently she was feeling a bit more frustrated than she usually did. Her swatting had been successful but the exams were harder than she expected.
Under normal circumstances she would have just approached someone for directions. She just didn't feel like doing that today! The last things she needed was a fat smelly local man suggesting they go and have a drink somewhere, while he tore off her clothes and ravished her delightfully sexy body with his leering eyes.
After another ten minutes of walking further on down the road Jean gave up. It was so hot. Typical of the magnificent beach weather she had been enjoying over the last few days, as she teased some of the hunky guys on the beach. However, just now, she was really completely lost, and to make things worse very tired and frustrated from the heat.
She saw a café just across the road and decided it was time to have a drink and relax. As a typical summer days in Malta it was unbelievably hot and she needed to replace the fluids she was losing. The lovely floral dress; which was almost see through but not quite, had kept her cool but it was moist from her perspiration in the most embarrassing spots.
If you are lost, what have you got to lose by stopping at a cafe for a refreshing drink on a hot day in Valletta? She walked across the road; careful to avoid the crazy middle aged male bus drivers who always seemed to consider the public roads their own racing tracks. Jean thought they were frustrated about their own sexual inadequacies and this made them such crazy drivers.
When she was standing at the door, outside the cafe, she noticed that the café was shut. It had a closed sign hanging on the inside of the door. That was the last straw, feeling like nothing was ever going to work out for her she just started to cry. It was just one of those days when life is against you and nothing works out, no matter what you do.
The young man inside the café, mopping the floor, saw the outline of woman who had come to the door and it seemed like she was crying. It was unbelievable, why would someone cry because they couldn't get in to the cafe? Carl knew the cafe wasn't that great!
He went outside to investigate. Jean had her face buried in her hands with her back to the door; as she continued to sob. Carl tapped her on the shoulder, and then got the surprise of his life when she turned around and looked at him. It was Jean, and he hadn't seen her for at least three years.
And it was a similar surprise when Jean turned around and saw Carl. It was the shock; she did immediately stop crying. Truthfully it was like the sun had suddenly come out from behind the clouds, and her sorrow turned to delight. Just when you think life is against you, it throws you an unexpected gift that you have been longing for but have forgotten in your despair of the moment. For here was someone so dear to her, that had been lost to her through a freak accident; it could be called nothing more than cruel act of fate.
She felt a great joy fill her heart and her face flush. She couldn't help herself, Jean just smiled at him and the glow of delight filled her body with contentment.
She blurted out, "what are you doing here?"
Carl explained that when he'd seen her crying, he thought he should come outside and see what the matter was. He didn't realise who it was, and that he'd been cleaning the inside of the café before he seen her crying.
There was an awkward silence between the two of them; neither quite knowing how to start the conversation flowing about what had happened between them. To avoid creating tension seemed a good starting point for Carl. And so Carl asked Jean why she had been crying.
Jean explained the type of horrible and frustrating day she had; until she'd seen him again, and how she'd been looking for a place to have a drink. It had been too much for her when the café had been shut, as it had just capped off a particularly challenging day for her.
Smiling at her, Carl said they should try to change all that, and he invited her into the café for a drink. He explained that the owner was away for the day. With a grin on his face he said that no-one else would be at the cafe until they opened it again that night at about 7pm.
Once they were inside Carl fetched Jean the drink she wanted and he made himself a kinnie too. While he poured himself a kinnie on the rocks, without looking at her, he asked Jean the burning question that had sat at the back of his tormented mind for those three long years.