Kris

 Many think that Destiny is an event that was yet to occur. For him, it was a road he'd already been on in the past, a path that didn't quite lead to anywhere.

He thought nothing about the day, only that it meant the long commute and the emptiness he felt as he passed along a long, desolate stretch of highway on his way to meet a long lost friend in the city.

This was long before telecommunications was a thing and there was no way to cancel an appointment once it had been set. There were only two ways to call someone from a distance--the landline or from a payphone which was usually installed only at places of business or the malls or gas stations which he was a long way away from.

Staring out the window as he always did, he wondered what it would be like to relive the good old days with a buddy whom he hadn't seen in decades.

Waking up that morning, he had no idea what the day had in store for him.

Nursing a coffee and a smoke at the hallway leading to his friend's office, he hears his name called out by a female voice, familiar but not quite distinct. "Holy shit", he thought! She rushed toward him and in the time it took for their bodies to meet, he was trying to name the face he was staring at.

"It's me, Kris!"

--"Oh my fucking god", he exclaimed and he opened his arms to throw around her petite waist!

The time that passed was too long to count. She had been a young college kid when they first met at the store he used to manage at the nearby mall. She had aged but quite gracefully and she ditched the glasses she once wore for contacts which is why she looked all the more appealing.

"Damn, I never expected seeing you here", he half whispered as his lips were pressed against her hair!

--"Quite a pleasant surprise", she replied!

They had to unlock themselves from the embrace as she had to get back inside. He reluctantly let go of her and took out another cigarette from the pack.

"Let's grab some lunch when you're done", he said.

--"Sure, catch up is what we need to do", she shot back.

They hardly wasted a moment as soon as she got off. He bid his friend a quick goodbye and promised to see him first chance he gets. His buddy understood how important it was to be with her again after all those years.

Coincidentally, they were not far away from the place they frequented all those years back. Walking into the establishment was like going into a time machine and rewinding to a time when he had much more hair and could run a few miles without breaking a sweat.

She had changed, physically but not by much. She had ripened like a succulent fruit he'd like to sink his teeth in!

First they head over to a coffee place. He always needed to light up while enjoying a cup of joe and they reminisced and caught up with the years between them. She told him that after they parted ways, she went on to finish school and quit the job she held just to fund her studies. She set her sights on, and eventually became a lawyer and a prosecutor.

He on the other hand, bounced around like a rolling stone, never staying put and never taking the time to sit still and grow roots. He had been a still photographer but wanted to do television but instead of being a cameraman, his skill with the pen outweighed his talent from behind the lens. So, he became a writer then a director and a producer of short films and TV shows and anything to do with visual arts.

Drifting from project to project and living from one part of the city to just about anywhere in the country, he never stayed too long in one place to make enough friends or relationships that would last. Women came and mostly went. He would never admit he was the problem but his ex's believed he was. 

The glow of afternoon sunshine turned into gray and a slight drizzle started to dampen the city streets. He noticed she was drawing from his pack of smokes and he felt that familiar sensation of commonality. She enjoyed the same brand as he did and they had similar tastes in food, music and books. 

He felt like he was home again!

"Home", was a concept he never understood. He had been so far from it, bouncing around from place to place. All too often, he would stand still at the train station and wonder whether he should take the North or Southbound train. 

While walking, he would suddenly find himself lost, wondering which bus to take or whether he was on the right side of the street. 

He would wake up late at night crying without a valid reason to and he'd tell himself that he'd had a rough day or was just too tired or too pissed or too numb to care about anything. Those were times he'd break out this old music box where he kept a "carb-type" pipe and some hash and jack up.

It helped a lot and he would forget how tired he was of the world and he would get up in the morning like nothing ever happened and he was lucid enough to care again.

Taking another puff, she recalled the night they first went out on what wasn't really a date but something they just both agreed to do which was check out an art exhibit and when the night wore on, someone lit a whole bundle of incense. Amidst the thick sandalwood smoke, someone jacks up a "Bob Marley" and within minutes, everyone starts dancing and smiling and good vibes dominated the air.

He'd been weaned off the doobie for decades now but remembering how that felt was enough to give him a psychological buzz that at that moment, brought him back to the Penguin Cafe and the music and the madness of his Bohemian life.

She asked for permission to take off her cardigan and when he consented, she revealed her bare shoulders and he was stunned!

No, they had never been in bed. They were never lovers in the conventional sense and whatever they had back then would never be called a relationship but seeing her that way after she had matured from thick glasses and long skirts, he couldn't help but get sexually aroused.

Casually he looks away pretending that that sort of thing was no big deal. Deep down, he shifted in his seat, trying to hide the boner that was making his pants tight...