That One Time

Who is he? she wondered to herself as he stood across the way.  He wasn’t particularly good looking, but there was something about him that pulled to her.

He wasn’t smiling, and if truth be told, he was barely present.  She noticed him look up, and then, in a strange way, looked back at her and his eyes met hers – it was almost as if he knew she was looking at him.  Her heart jumped.  Even with the sadness weighing on his face and his inability to smile, she had to know, she had to meet him.  So she did.

“Hi,” she said, perhaps a bit too cheerfully.  To her surprise, he perked up a bit.

“Hi,” came the response, with a forced half-smile.  She noticed how his eyes lit up when he smiled, even if the smile was more willed than genuine.  He had amazing eyes, she noticed.  Phaedra got lost in those eyes, and it took every bit of strength she could muster to look away.

But she did notice that he never once averted her gaze while she held his.  If only she knew what was going through his head.  “I’m Phaedra,” she introduced herself.

“Dane,” he replied, but his sadness had washed over his face again.  She tried to keep the conversation light.

“I’ve come for a quick visit,” Phaedra explained, “But I should be back soon.”  She couldn’t read his face, and it was aggravating her just a bit.

“Good, it was nice meeting you,” there was that half-smile again, and he went off, stopped by some friends of his.  It seemed he gave the greeting of the day and little else.  Soon, he was out of sight.

She had to see him again.  From the moment she saw him, she knew…but knew what?  Phaedra had never felt like this before, and Dane was important to her, she just…felt it.  Her heart skipped when she was in his presence, her hands shaky, and her smile uncontrollable; she felt like a little girl again, meeting her first love.

But that’s foolishness.  There is no such thing as love at first sight.  Is there?  Over the next two weeks, she couldn’t erase him from her mind.  She was with someone, how could she possibly be thinking about Dane?  Yet, there he was, like a splinter in her mind, and even if she could remove it, she wasn’t entirely sure she wanted to.

It was time for her to go back.  Phaedra was nervous, almost scared.  What if he’s not there?  What if he is?  Her thoughts nearly scared her into not going at all, but in the end, her wonder and curiosity won out.  And there he was.  Maybe it was just wishful thinking, but she could have sworn that he was actually seeking her out this time.

They found each other.  Phaedra went for a hug, almost instinctively, unthinking, and when she touched Dane there was a wave of electricity that went through her body.  Dane had to have felt it too.  She looked up at him, and again, their eyes met.  Was it possible that he was as lost as she was?  He had to be.  But her reality, in this moment, was how the world seemed to fade away, the cacophony being drowned out by the intensity of the moment, the power of the emotions flooding through her and here, right now, she knew…she was, indeed, in love.