Broken Strings

C H A P T E R S E V E N T E E N

He never really met up with Anisha again. Nor did they keep in contact. Because that was how life worked. People simply grew apart.

They just didn't work out. It was that simple.

She had been his best friend. But not everyone marries their best friend. And he had lost both- his girlfriend and his best friend.

But the way they had loved, he could never forget that. And he still wanted that.

But she already had someone else. She was in love with someone else, in love with someone who wasn't him.

And then he left the state to attend Medical School in Michigan. And he never thought he'd run into Anisha again.

But it wasn't until he accepted a job at UCLA Medical Center that he found himself calling her, notifying her that he was back in town.

And they met up once again. As friends going lunch together.

And she brought her one-year old son along. She was married, she was married and she had a kid.

She had moved on.

But he realized he still loved her. That he hadn't ever stopped loving her. He still did, so fucking much, but he couldn't tell her. He couldn't tell her because she was happy, she was happy with someone who wasn't him. And he couldn't take that away from her.

But he started seeing more and more of her. They worked at the same hospital. And he would always ask her to have lunch with him, as friends, even though he wished there could be more.

Then she confessed what a mess her marriage was. But she also confessed how much she loved him. That she couldn't give up on Andrew because he was the one she loved.

And that was when he realized that there was no space for him in her heart.

She had moved on. She was happy, without him.

But he still had feeling for her.

The feelings had faded over the years but they were still somewhat still there.

And he watched as she slowly dulled and her marriage faded. And he didn't do anything. What was he supposed to do?

And all of a sudden, one Friday night, seven years ago, he saw her sitting all alone outside an Italian Restaurant where he was meeting some girl he'd met on Tinder.

And instead of walking in to the restaurant where his date was waiting for him, he made his way over to girl he loved.

And she cried on his shoulder, drenching his white shirt with mascara-stained tears.

And she cried about everything, about the marriage that was almost over, about the husband who had stopped loving her, about the son who hated her.

And he watched her heart break right in front of him. But then he had held her and told her how perfect she was, about how beautiful and enchanting she still was and how she shouldn't let him ruin her happiness.

And he told her to let go of everything that was making her miserable. And then all of a sudden she was looking directly at him. And her eyes were filled with softness. He missed the days where she used to look at him like that, the way she was looking at him right now, with so much love and care.

He missed the days when she used to be his.

And he was still so very in love with her. And slowly, very slowly, he titled her face upwards and slowly inched his lips closer to hers, waiting for her to pull away. But she didn't. Instead, she stood on her tippy-toes and kissed him back instead, pulling him closer to her.