The dinner

They ate dinner at the roadside diner that had been their usual haunt during their schooldays. Being back there brought back memories of the birthday treats, spilled coffee, and the laughter and gossip they had always shared. As they ate, she felt herself slipping into the easy rapport she always shared with him and found herself relaxing for a while.

"....and that tall, pretty girl who's dad owned a sugar factory, what was her name?" he was saying.

"Anita", she replied.

"Oh yeah" he smiled at the memory, " I was crazy about her once."

"As I recall, you were crazy about a different girl every single week."

"Yeah well, a guy's got his interests," he said stretching back and ordering dessert. Vanilla ice cream with chocolate sauce and nuts. That hadn't changed either.

"You've grown up," she said. He smiled. "Coming from you, I'll take that as a compliment. You always said that i was an immature-what were the exact words?"

"-self centered, girl-crazy moron" she finished.

"Yeah, that" he grinned sheepishly.

"So long since all that happened, yet seems just like yesterday when we were walking together down the road to school," she said, her eyes locking with his.

For a long time they stared at each other in silence, till she turned away, her heart thumping in her chest. No, she told herself, not now. He seemed to continue to stare at her so she pretended to be interested in what the couple at the nearby table was up to, while a storm of emotions raged inside her. She had loved him, ever since the first day he had pushed her in the puddle when they'd been seven years old, had loved him every day since then. But she, of all people, knew what it was like to throw her heart at him and expect him to love her back. He had always been good looking but who had expected his looks to grow with age? His maturity only seemed to accentuate the charm that always had girls falling at his feet.

"Do you remember the day we first met?" his voice brought her back to her senses.

She turned to look at him and saw that his face had grown serious.

She laughed, trying to ease the tension. "Oh yes, how can i forget? You pushed me in the puddle because I'd taken your favorite cricket bat."

He drew a deep breath and looked straight into her eyes.

"That was when I first fell in love with you....."

"I-what?" she blurted.

"I remember how cute you looked, all wet and angry. I-I fell for you right there," he said, his voice shaking a little.

"You can't-seriously-I mean," she blabbered, wondering if it was all a dream.

He just stared back at her, his heart beating wildly, and wished she wouldn't stare at him as if he'd just struck her.

"But-but what about all those girls, all that nonsense about you never falling in love?" she said, while inside she was jumping with joy.

"There's never been anyone like you," he said, making her already high spirits reach astronomical levels.......