I felt your power pull me closer and I took a step towards you, ” Hey Al” was all I could muster out.

Then you smiled that beaming smile of yours and I was weak, ” is that all your gonna say to me, everyone else got hugs and kisses” you said with that sarcasm you will never be able to hide.

I felt my face burn as I blushed, and I smiled as you tugged my shirt towards you, and there it was, that familiar warmth, and I melted. I brought my hands to the small of your back and pulled you closer to me, and I buried my face into your flowing hair and inhaled all your scents, they were all the same. And before I could control myself, my heart spoke, ” I have missed you so much Al”.

Then I felt it, a tear fell to my neck, and what I just said hit me harder than stones, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to take back what I said because I did not know how you took it.

But then you surprised me as I heard you whisper back into my ear, ” not as much as I’ve missed you Dane”.

I pulled away from her feeling that small piece of hope beating in my warmer heart, and looked deep into your eyes as you smiled at me. Tears were still streaming down my face, and I felt your hand let go of mine to wipe them away.

———————-

When I left you behind all those years ago Alice, it was the worst day of my life. Then every day after that that I haven’t seen you were worse and worse. I remember the day Shane called me to come home, every phone call involved a plea to come back home, but then this one was different. She asked me to come home for Christmas.

Flash back———

Dana sighed again, ” I can’t ShaneI’m sorryyou know I would love to see you and Carmen and everyone elseI justI can’t”.

Then Shane interrupted her with words she has longed to hear, ” they broke up Dana”.

Dana paused and sat closer to the phone so that she could hear Shane properly, ” What?”

Shane smiled knowing this was a good way to get to Dana, ” She broke up with him Danashe called me the other day and told me that it was not working outthat things were too hard”.

Even in the hundreds of phone calls between Dana and Shane, neither one of them mentioned Alice or her boyfriend knowing it was a sore topic, but this time Shane knew she had to, ” she misses you Dana”.

Dana curled up into a ball and cried, ” I miss her too Shane”.

——————-

Shane explained to me why Alice never called or wrote or anything. Alice wanted me to come home because of her not for her. I now know the difference between the two, she had to let me decide. So I did, and that decision brought me back here, looking deep into the eyes of the woman I loved. We’ll see how this Christmas goes I guess. It’s funny how well we know each other Alice, it makes me think, maybe we never really were strangers.