Oh, it's you

(*Name has been changed to protect real identity)

It was her.

I hadn’t seen Wendy Black* since my high school crush days and there she was on the Trax train traveling downtown. She still had curly, light brown hair, perfect lips, a slightly almond shaped face, and blue laughing eyes that drew me in like a moth to a hundred-watt incandescent bulb. Her hair went down almost to her elbows, thick and flowing.

She was wearing a white and dark brown striped blouse, with cherry red lipstick, while she talked on the phone. New blue jeans covered her brown, once inch heel boots.

I had developed a stupid mad crush on her during my senior year in high school. It started in math class when we sat next to each other and both raised our hands to ask questions. I always thought I was an idiot for asking so many questions in algebra class. Math and I were mortal enemies, and it was a fight to the death every night. Sometimes I won. Sometimes algebra won. Wendy got top grades while I was happy with solid C’s and the occasional surprise B.

She was also in my English class but sat at the back while I sat at the front because English and writing was my jam. We were assigned partners to write one page thinking exercises every week. I got assigned to her and we hit it off. She had a way of describing things that made you feel the words, not just hear them.

Her laugh snapped me out of the memories.

“No, John, no. You can’t do that! We told Rebecca we’d get her back home around ten tonight. You can’t kidnap your wife for a mini honeymoon. What would your babysitter think?”

Her laugh was the first thing to catch you, followed by her smile. Uniform, full lips and soft, perfectly shaped cheeks that accented her sky blue eyes. I noticed she had crow's feet from smiling so much. I don’t know why, but it made her that much more beautiful, causing me to smile to see she hadn’t become bitter like so many people.

I averted my eyes, so she didn’t think I was staring.

Okay, wow, just wow. She’s still just as attractive as I remember. Lithe legs—the muscles shaping them like a NBA star. She had been on the dance team in high school.

It’s silly, to think of her. She wouldn’t recognize me. We’re both thirty-eight now. I can see she doesn’t have a ring on her finger, so I better stop staring. She’s going to think I’m stalking.

“I thought we were going to dinner first and then the game? What? Oh, dinner at the game. I didn’t know you could do that,” she said twirling her hair as she cracked another smile.

On the last day of High School, you could go to the auditorium and watch a movie, or go to your classes and play games, as everyone passed around yearbooks to get people to sign them. Somehow Wendy and I ended up in math class, with the math nerds, playing math games as we got our math teacher to sign our yearbooks. That’s when I told her that I loved her sweater and how she always dressed so modestly. That opened the door to us talking more and I found out that she had a crush on me since English class.

But I was leaving two weeks after school, and she had also been accepted to college in California. For some reason we didn’t do anything about our feelings.

And here she was, looking gorgeous, and laughing like I remembered.

Should I talk to her? How would I approach her? Call her by name? Touch her arm gently? Cough?

Geez, why is it seem so easy in a movie? Those guys have courage and are willing to start a conversation. Maybe that’s why we never did anything about our feelings. I was shy. I guess I still am.

“Okay, I’ll be there in about twenty minutes. And you don’t get to hog my sister-in-law all night. Okay, bye John,” Wendy said and tapped her phone to end the call.

Sitting across from her was a little girl who was staring at her long hair.

“Hello,” Wendy waved. “I like your pink shoes. Did your mother get them for you?”

The little girl blushed and buried her face into her mom’s arm.

“Go ahead, tell her you got them for your birthday,” the mom stated.

“I like pink,” Wendy began. “It reminds me of blossoms and strawberries. Do you like strawberries?”

I started watching again, in awe of Wendy’s charm, as she talked with the little girl about her shoes and growing her hair long. How did I let this vision of a woman slip between my fingers. How silly of me to think she’d even want to talk to me. I didn’t have much success in life. I had finished college but then proceeded to lose two businesses in a row, got divorced, and now had to ride the Trax home from work.

Turning away I started looking for something else to lock my interest. But Wendy laughed, that same alluring, addicting sound of smooth alto mirth with just the right amount of breath. It was like she had spent years in front of the mirror laughing and honing it until it was like the sirens of the sea; once you hear it, you want more and more.

What am I doing? It’s been twenty years! I should get up and move to another seat, on another train.

I found a digital marque and watched its messages until it started repeating and I memorized it. She glanced my way and I noticed her study my face for a moment. Oh great...at least I have a beard and glasses now. But that also makes me fit the perfect stalker look. But that’s what everyone on the server admin team wore.

“Next stop, central exchange. Connections to downtown, ninth avenue trolley, and all bus routes,” the automated voice stated.

Good. She has to get off to catch the 211 Trax to get to the game. The train slowed and lurched to a stop and everyone rose, blocking my view. I stayed put, nurturing a smug little smile that I had just avoided a horrible social exposure moment. I quickly made plans once I got home I would order some Chinese food and watch a movie tonight.

A person slid into the seat near me. I looked up into sky-blue eyes and am proud to say I didn’t gasp...that loud.

“Excuse me, are you stalking me?” Wendy asked playfully.

It had been twenty years since I gazed into those perfectly eyes with a blue luster. My mind blanked as I flew into a mini panic trying to come up with an apology.

“If I am, I hope to be able to continue. If not, I hope to find the grace to become your stalker one day,” I said, my flippant high school attitude suddenly clicking back on.

“That was a unique take on Joan of Arc,” she laughed. “But no, in all seriousness, you look familiar to me and I’ve been trying to place your name.”’

“Well Wendy, I didn’t want to startle you,” I began.

“Benjamin!” she nearly shouted and grabbed me by my jacket. “I can’t believe I ran into you! What are you doing on the train?”

I could smell her and all my plans for running for the hills evaporated. She had me and I wanted her to pull close so that I could—

“Just heading home from work,” I smiled and let myself get lost in her eyes for a moment. “You look amazing, like you always do.”

She gave a warm smile and didn’t let go of my jacket.

“I can’t believe I ran into you,” she began. “I was thinking of you just the other day when I was packing up stuff and came across my old sweaters.”

“The brown one?” I said, remembering.

“The one with green and white, yes.”

“What have you been up to?” I queried quickly so she wouldn’t ask me about my disastrous life.

“Oh, you know. Husband cheated on me with his secretary, so I’ve been divorced twelve years. Working full time to pay for childcare as I try to raise two kids. And living off ramen and ketchup packets.”

“Oh, dang. I’m sorry. He’s a fool.”

“Eh, she had fake breasts, so if he wants that, I can’t stop him.”

“Are you going to miss your connection?”

“Huh, oh, no, I’m meeting my brother and his wife for dinner at a restaurant. Hey! You should come with us. My treat. We can catch up on old times, and I promise I won’t try to steal a kiss on the first date.”

She hit me with her amazing smile again. I wanted drink in that kiss and do what I should have done twenty years ago.

But I exercised all my self-control and got ready to tell her no.

“That sounds better than my plan of cheap Chinese food and an old movie,” I said.

Wait, what did I say? Abort! Abort!

“Haha! This is so perfect, Ben. I can’t believe we ran into each other,” her laughter rang in my head like a perfect tone that soothed my soul. “

I can’t...I can’t believe I just said—

“I’m very glad I ran into you, Wendy,” I chuckled and reached up and grabbed her hands, not willing to let go.