Reunion

"Tony!" she cried out in surprise. She had a certain way of smiling that mesmerized a man. "Tony! Imagine seeing you after all this time!" Anthony blushed, if only a bit, but at the same time he had to fight back a throb in his throat. In the six years that she had been away he had tried to tell himself that she didn't matter anymore, he wasn't in love, and that there would be someone else. as if by a flash flood, a moment was all that it took and the debris of self indoctrination was flushed from his soul. He felt happy, sick, and all messed up inside, but beneath it all was a faint glimmer, a hope he'd long since ignored. What was it about that smile anyway? it was almost as if....

she had never left.
She was still the same beautiful,charming woman that he remembered years ago. the one that stole his heart unexpectedly and then left just as unexpectedly to jjoin the armed forces.
He had kept track of her through mutual friends. He had known where she was stationed and for how long.
She had never dated a man for more than a month.
But then again,she could have any one that she wanted because of her beauty.
This reunion was going to kill him, he thought. Why could she have stayed away instead of coming back now?

Nicole couldn't have stayed away, she had a family crisis to deal with and this trip to the mall was her opportunity this week to catch a relief from the battles at home. She never imagined that her night out would turn into a reunion with the man she loved so much in the past. Their history together came back in waves into her memory and she couldn't hold back that smile she wore. She hoped Tony didn't see that tear in her eye, that tear of....

...joy, which was only a minute expression of the excitement welling up inside. I hope I'm not blushing, she thought. "So, how are you doing?" said Anthony. As he opened his arms for a hug, Nicole nervously embraced him, trying her best not to tremor. "Great, just great. How about yourself?" she said. "Never been better," Anthony answered. After getting a whiff of the strawberry shampoo she always used, he let go of her slowly and looked at her to see if she changed much. Hmm, she lost some weight, he thought.

"How long will you be in town?" Anthony asked. "Oh, I got an honorable discharge. I'm back for good," Nicole responded. "Cool!" said Anthony. "I have a little free time this afternoon. "Would you like to get a cup of coffee with me? Better yet, how about lunch?"

"Sounds good! I could use a break. Ever since they diagnosed Dad things have gone crazy at home." He looked into her blue eyes more beautiful than he remembered. "I heard about your Dad's Illness, I'm sorry. How is he feeling these days?" "We can talk more later, I've got to get Dad his meds." "Ok," Anthony said, a little deflated, "how about meeting me at Sammy's cafe in an hour?" "That sounds wonderful! see you then." As she strode through the department store doors anthony felt as if his heart would burst, but then, with sudden clarity he burst into action. No more! this was the last time! it was now or never and he would do it right. As he put his quickly crafted plan into action he wondered just what the outcome would be. later that afternoon he asked sammy for his usual corner booth and settings for two. "now," he thought to himself, "we will see how this works out." Just as he settled himself into the booth, Nicole came through the glass revolving door. even though her set pace showed a hint of military training, her usual grace and elegance were not at all subdued. As he looked at her fiery red hair he could hardly catch his breath. He couldn't even remember what he had planned to say. "You are beautiful" he thought to himself. quietly she approached his booth...

After being seated and offered a beverage, Nicole looked quietly at Tony with her arms on the table and her hands lightly clasped together. As she sat there playing through the memories and trying to decide from where to start playing catch-up, Tony opened his mouth to speak. Nicole realized that she was so overcome with anticipation that her mind had all but gone completely blank. Waiting for Tony to utter just a few words had become more intense than even waiting for bad news about Dad. In a moment so brief it could have happened one billion times in the last six years, Nicole realized that she never wanted to go another day without being able to look into Tony's captivating, masculine eyes. All of these thoughts occurred to her from the time he opened his mouth before he even started speaking.

"I should have asked you to marry me six years ago. When you left, my soul dried up. Just seeing you sitting there makes me think that I could live forever without ever moving from this seat. I dont think I can ever go through that again, so please, help me to be a complete person again. I missed my opportunity once and Ill never let that happen again. Will you marry me?"

Nicole's world shook. Memories of being a child and playing dress up and house raced through her head. All of the boys she had a childhood crush on sped past her minds eye, except in each one, those forgettable kids all of a sudden became Tony. It was as if her entire life, all of the preparations for a "future" had led up to this very moment. Before she could even respond...

...a familiar figure walked across the room. He was tall, dark and wore a coat. He walked with his shoulders slightly bent, and looked casually at the table where Nicole sat. Nicole saw him and her hands began to tremble. She put down the glass she held with shivering hands and her mouth dried up.

Uhm.. Oh? Anthony, I would like for you to meet Mark. We have been dating for a couple of months now. I figure that we would have time to catch up on old times.
"Mark is everything okay with day?" says Nicole. It was nice meeting Anthony but Nicole we really need to get to the hospital. I tried calling you on your cell but it kept going straight to the voice mail. Come on Anthony says Nicole. Marks says well I think only those close should come, well Anthony is close Mark. Before Mark could respond Nicole runs out of the restaurant.

There are two kinds of silence between people, regardless of how well they know each other; comfortable and uncomfortable. The silence between Mark and Anthony in the midst of the noise and clutter of Sammy's was definitely uncomfortable. Anthony looked Mark over and started thinking the first thoughts that occur to all men when they meet the new guy in a former lover's life, which are usually ones about sex. Men can't help it, they are competitive, and sex is the biggest competition of them all. Anthony wanted to know right then and there that he and Nicole were better lovers, better friends and a better couple than her and Mark would ever be. He wanted to know that Nicole missed being with him, that she dreads every moment she spends with Mark and if she and Mark end up spending the rest of their lives together, every time they had sex, she would close her eyes and imagine it was Anthony.

"I guess we should go to the hospital" Mark says as he turns to follow Nicole.
"I guess so." Anthony tosses to Mark's back as he reaches for his still full drink and downs it.

They arrived at the hospital to find Nicole pacing nervously back and forth in front of the main entrance, gesturing frantically with one hand while holding a cell phone with the other.

"What do you mean there's no record of admittance? Is she there or not? Yes, I'll hold, I don't really have much of a choice, do I?"

She ignored Anthony's arrival and snapped at Mark, "The lady at the desk said that they transported her this morning. I was given the number of the facility that they supposedly sent her to, but they don't seem to know if they have her or not. You better tell me exactly what's going on RIGHT NOW."

After a brief stunned silence she smiled widely and ..............said "You talkin to Me?" "Are you effin talkin to me?" She pulled a sawed off Browning Automatic Rifle, Caliber .30, M1918 out from under her skirt and pressed it against Anthony's temple. "I should blow your freakin head off right here, you stinkin maggot." She bit tightly on the cigar clenched in her teeth. Anthony could feel the hot spray of her saliva, as she rattled off a list of arcane profanity that he would later have to look up on Google. After she left, Anthony made a mental post-it note to himself..."Do not hit on Robert DeNiro's mother ever again."

Anthony felt sweat forming on his forehead! He could not believe it! he had waited for her to come back and now? A loud ringing noise startled him, and suddenly he realized it was his alarm clock! It had all been a dream, both beautiful, and ugly at the same time. Now he could find out what really happened to his "forever love" when she found out about her father's longterm illness. As long as he was still alive, she would spend her time helping her dad feel better. She was quite the daddy's girl! they had the same eyes. Even her mother had been jealous of her relationship with her dad.

screamed with delight as she ran toward him. "Daddy, Oh Daddy...I have dreamed of this moment." He simply could not believe that he had found his long lost daughter after all these years and in the mall no less. They hugged for what seemed like an eternity, he couldn't let go for fear he would loose her again. She seemed so grown up, not the child he remembered. Not the beautiful child that her mother had stolen from him.

Then the thought suddenly hit him, how was he going to tell her that he had recently had to face the truth that he was gay! When he had first met her mother he had never even given another man anything more than an admiring glance regarding the cut of his suit or the perfectly coordinated shirt and tie he was wearing. That was until that fateful night when he had attended that reunion of all his old college buddies, and Stefan B. Kruis had re-entered his life! Stefan was typical of his kind, a descendent of the original Dutch settlers who had come to the new world to seek a better, more prosperous life. His blond, blue-eyed northern european good looks made him stand out in any crowd, and had ensured that he never had to look very hard for a date, either for a night at the movies, or the prom. Even though they had never been anything more than drinking buddies, he found himself thinking fondly of the times they had to help each other home after a night of youthfull carousing. When the reunion had come to an end, Stefan had suggested they continue the night at a bar that he frequented regularly. They had just started on their second round of drinks when the niggling feeling he had had since entering the bar suddenly dawned on him, there was not one woman in the place!, add to that the barman seemed to be paying him an unusual amount of attention, hovering around the section of the bar that they were seated at, constantly mopping around and under his glass of bourbon on the rocks, even though there was no spillage to be cleaned up!