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‘Gin and tonic with a slice of lemon – one cube of ice.’ He put the glass on the table in front of her.
She looked up, beaming. ‘You remembered.’
Her pleasure soaked through him, sparking a heat he thought he’d never feel again. ‘Of course,’ he said. ‘I remember everything.’
They swapped stories: marriages and children, grandchildren and widowhood, illness and divorce. As she rose to leave, he took her hand, arthritic fingers knitting together.
‘I never stopped hoping,’ he said.
She reached up, stroking his face with her shaking palm. ‘Neither should you.’
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Written for Nortina’s Moral Mondays. See the moral (this week it’s “Better Late Than Never”) and write a story in 100 words or less.
Super fun! For full Ts and Cs, see here.
Word Shamble 
Beautiful. Full of hope and tenderness .
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Thanks, sweet. They may not have decades together, but what they do have will be worth the wait. Thanks for reading 🙂 X
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Awww, I hope they make the most of their golden years.
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I have a feeling they will. Thanks for reading, Jenn 🙂
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If you are meant to be together with someone, you will be, no matter how many years it will take and how late in life it will be. Beautiful story, Lynn.
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Thank you, Annie. For all the lovelorn out there, let’s hope we’re right to be so romantic. Thank you for reading 🙂
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Awww, lovely 🙂
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Thanks, Sonya 🙂
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I love this. It makes me want to break into song –
Some day my prince will come
Some day we’ll meet again
And away to his castle we’ll go
To be happy forever I know
🙂
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I think in this case, the ‘castle’ is more likely to be a retirement village – but as long as they can be there together, that’s the main thing 🙂
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It’s lovely – wonder how many of us would relate to this story, casting our minds back to ‘the one who got away.’
I’ve been known to fantasise about something like this – but the man in my past has a serious drinking habit, so it wouldn’t work 😦 🙂
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I know a couple of people who feel like that about someone in their past – someone in particular who loved and lost. But who’s to say that relationship would have been any better really? We can only make the best decision at the time and hope for the best 🙂
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I’m glad I didn’t spend my life with that man – even if he hadn’t had a drink problem, the reality could not compare with my fantasy, and I’m happy with that. I summon his phantom when I feel down. I put my head on his shoulder and we have long conversations, just like we used to. He’s never bad tempered and I don’t have to wash his socks, because his feet are are twelve miles from me, probably planted on the floor of a pub, except when he’s working or sleeping. 🙂
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Yes, the fantasy of living with anyone is better than reality. Did you ever watch Truly, Madly, Deeply? The late, lovely Alan Rickman was a ghost so missed by his love she couldn’t get on with her life without him. Then he comes back to haunt her and show her he wasn’t as easy man a man to love as she remembered.
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I loved that film, and I loved Alan Rickman – although I wouldn’t have been too pleased if his ghost turned up with a lot of drunks when I was hoping for a cosy evening with him 🙂
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He was great, wasn’t he? And neither would I – ghost or not, he’d get a good rollicking for that 🙂
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Awww! I’m gonna try to keep it together while I type this comment, but it’s hard not to cry after reading this story! So beautiful. There’s nothing like true love!
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Thank you, Nortina! I’m glad I popped these two together after so long. They had other loves along the way, but they were each others first and true. Thanks for the prompt 🙂
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