He checks the weather in his cellphone. The day is nice and sunny but there is a 50% chance of heavy rain in the upcoming hours. Whatever, he thinks, but just in case I will bring an umbrella. He leaves his apartment quite early, according to Google Maps even if he takes the local train line instead of the express one he will arrive way before the time of the meeting. He walks as if he were the king of the world, the smile he carries in his face is as good as it gets. Life, he thinks, is amazing. Work is going fine, family is ok, friends are always there for him. But the key difference is her. He’s been dating her for three weeks and everything has been perfect; she is gorgeous, funny, smart, and they have an insane number of things in common. They both love theater plays, dogs, Italian food, hiking, and the list goes and goes.
As expected, he arrives almost 30 minutes before, so he just chooses to walk in the surroundings. He enters into a park and sits on a bench, he looks at the sky and thinks of one song she shared with him some days ago. I remember when she took me to open my mind, he sings, who wants time when there’s nothing she said to the sky. He remembers that they sang it together and then she gazed at him with that smile that basically overcomes everything and he kissed her and felt that she was the sun. He looks up and says to the sky that he does want time, as there is too much to experience, too much to live for.
Some clouds begin to appear. The upcoming rain, he thinks. A cloudburst arrives, he opens the umbrella but quickly realizes that he will still get wet, so he runs to the restaurant where they will meet. Luckily, there are some scaffolds in the place, hence he decides to wait for her outside. He looks at his watch, 5 minutes more to wait. He is tempted to text her and talk about this insane weather, but she may already be one or two blocks away. He watches the street, the people walking fast—especially if they don’t have umbrellas—, the small ponds that are starting to arise in the sidewalk, and the relative peace under the scaffolds.
20 minutes past the time. The rain gets even heavier. Hey, he writes, I’m here waiting, but no problem take your time; nonetheless instead of sending the message he erases it. He is trying to find the best possible words, he doesn’t want to be misinterpreted. In any case he doesn’t get to send anything as she texts him saying hey, sorry, I’m running late, will be there asap. He answers her that there is no problem at all. Externally, he is getting a bit wet, even under the scaffolds. Internally, nothing has changed in him. His cheerfulness hasn’t decreased a single bit; people run late, he thinks, it happens, and that’s that.
She arrives in an Uber and he receives her with a smile and a hug. You are kind of wet, she says, why did you decide to wait here. He answers that he wanted to enter the restaurant together. She smiles, but there is something peculiar in this one, it’s more of a mocking smile than a true one. He chooses to not see that, and she says ok let’s get in then.
The place is quite fancy and he makes a lot of commentaries; she just nods or says yes and then dives into the restaurant menu. How is the job going, he asks; how is what, she answers, still looking at the restaurant menu. The job, he repeats. She glances at him and then looking at anywhere she tells him that it’s ok, that there are a lot of things to do, and that she is adapting to the new environment. He feels that maybe it was a mistake to ask about work, and thus smiling he says ok let’s talk about something that is worth it. She looks at him and answers that ok but maybe they should order the food first. He agrees. He asks her if she wants a glass of wine and she answers that not this time.
The food arrives. He starts telling a story about a coworker of his that arrived quite late the other day, and that someone made him believe that his boss was furious and that he had to immediately report to her and explain why the delay. She says that that’s a pity, and that she understand what it is to arrive late. It was just a joke, he tells her. Maybe it wasn’t a good joke to make, she answers. He says that maybe she was right, but in any case nothing happened, because the boss didn’t even notice that he arrived late. She nods.
Food is gone. He asks her if she wants dessert. She shakes her head. No problem, he says, do you want to walk with me? There are several places to see in the surroundings. She shakes her head again, she has to go. Sorry for being late, she says, and sorry for leaving quite early, it’s just that there are several things I have to do, work has been quite a madness, and I cannot lose track. They pay the bill. While leaving he takes her by the hand and she looks at him sympathetically. Once outside she calls an Uber and he thinks for a second to propose to walk her home, but then he feels that maybe today he should not push it, maybe today he should just let things be.
The Uber arrives. She waves goodbye and he approaches her. I’ll miss you, he says, and she tells him to take care and be safe. Before she leaves he kisses her. Once she’s gone he realizes that it was the only one during all the meeting. He looks at his watch, it’s still quite early. He gazes at the sky, it’s still raining. Without opening his umbrella, he starts moving.
Some hours later, he receives a message.
—Hey, it was nice to see you today. Are you free tomorrow?
He smiles, maybe she had a bad day, and tomorrow things will return to normal.
—Of course, for you I have time!
—Great.
He starts to think what they can do tomorrow, but another message from her comes.
—I think we need to talk.