Author: _____On_____

It had been many weeks since the two friends had been able to spend any quality time together. No shared workouts, no shared meals, no quiet Sunday afternoons swinging on the porch. Work commitments, holidays, and various activities conspired to interrupt typical shared time. The time apart was difficult. The protracted absence caused an empty, aching feeling somewhere inside his chest. The connection was missed.

Idle time made the separation more difficult. Each day was a routine pattern of frequent thoughts during the interstitial spaces of the day… the drive to work, waiting for the computer login to run, lunchtime, afternoon stretch break, the drive home. Being occupied helped pass the time, but the longing never ceased. The feelings were especially concentrated during his evening swims. Forty minutes of forced meditation, his body enveloped in the water where he felt at home. No sound except the rhythmic bubbles. All thoughts consumed by memories of her. Her friendship, her touch, her efforts, her willingness to give. Read more »

He startled awake to the jingling sound of a key working the front door lock. His heart immediately jumped into high gear in a panic: nobody else was supposed to be home, nobody else was even supposed to be in town. There was a loud click as the deadbolt was thrown and a final jingle as the key was retracted. He was slightly more awake now, his brain processed the thought that whoever arrived had a key, and his heart settled down a bit. Footsteps. The clunk and clatter of keys echoed off the soundboard-like table in the lonely house. More footsteps, this time approaching. The bedroom door slowly swung open. He gave her a look of questioning confusion. She lustily growled one word in a half-whisper, half-command: “Silence.” Read more »