If You Knew Me

Forever

She glanced at the clock again. Three more hours until shift was over. The day was blurring together, the faces that went through the line, melding into one.

The same old thing, person after person. To the them, she was new every time. But another person in her line meant another tired smile, another "Did you find everything OK?", another "Have a great night!" or "Have a great weekend!"

She stood there, smile after smile, cart after cart of groceries, person after person going through. She was tired. It was a school night, and she had homework to finish.

Apples. Avocados. Canned beans. Bread. Dish soap. Napkins. Chocolate. Flour. Beep. Beep. Beep.

When was the shift over? Every five minutes she glanced at the clock again, hanging half in shadows on the wall as the hour grew later and later.

And when she finally had a moment of peace, she looked down at the ring on her hand, out of habit more than anything. She remembered everything about that day, from the weather to the color of his shirt to the way he laughed. She remembered picking out the ring, then sighing in disappointment as she came up ten dollars short. He bought it, even though she protested.

Now, ironically enough, she'd been committed to the ring for longer than he had been to her. He'd stayed just long enough to allow her to fall in love, then-- he was gone. "It wouldn't have worked between us." His last text. And even though his words didn't live on her phone anymore, they lived in her heart.

Lost in quiet contemplation, she didn't even notice that there was someone in front of her.

"Hey. You OK?"

She snapped out of it, and blushed as she saw the person in front of her. He was tall, with tousled dark hair, and eyes that sparkled.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!" She was flustered, and blushed before she could help it when he just laughed. "I don't know what I was--"

He winked. "Don't worry about it."

His charisma disarmed her, and she looked away from his green eyes and began to scan his stuff through.

"You were pretty lost in thought there, huh? What were you thinking about?" He asked as he handed her his Visa.

"I was.... Umm..." She didn't know how to start.

"Sorry," he suddenly said. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

But she wanted to. There was something in his eyes that spoke to her soul, and lowered down barriers in a heartbeat that had taken months to build.

"It's OK." She said, twisting the ring around her finger. "My boyfriend bought it for me... Shortly before he dumped me." She ended with a smile and a shrug, trying to make it seem like the thing that had been on her mind for four months was really no big deal.

He paused. "I'm sorry. I'm sure you deserve better than that."

Their eyes locked, and for the first time in forever, she felt a thrill run through her body, and she could feel her heart start to pound.

Then she heard someone clear their throat. She snapped out of it and realized there was someone else in line behind them. She glanced around the store; she was the only cashier open, and the supervisor was in the back getting ready to close.

He cleared his throat. "Nice to meet you, Sarah," he said, flashing that irresistible smile as he grabbed his bags and walked out of her line.

Still flustered, she pushed her hair out of her eyes, quickly tucking it into her braid as she apologized to the customer in front of her. But she didn't even hear their reply, because he was standing just outside the door, and he smiled at her again before turning and disappearing into the night.

She was distracted all the way through closing. Only when she exited the store and sat in her car as it warmed up did her mind begin to calm. She reached into her bag for some Chap stick, but her name tag stuck to the finger of her gloves. SARAH it read, in bold, dead letters. That's how he knew my name, she thought.

And she couldn't stop thinking about the way he said her name, with the smile on his lips, and the twinkle in his eyes. She hadn't felt so alive in... well, forever.