Waiting

Lillis busily cleared dirty dishes and arranged chairs that had been left crooked as customers had gotten up to leave. She wiped the dark wood surface of the tables and then pushed a broom around the stone tiles. Customers had filled tables as soon as they were vacated all afternoon, but the patio was finally empty. Except for the woman with the perfectly-styled dark blonde hair, shot through with white, who sat facing the steps down to the sidewalk, a glass of wine on the table at her elbow. Lillis knew how lonely it could be to go out for a meal alone. She’d been doing the same on occasion since Omar had left two years ago.

The woman noticed Lillis’s glance. “I’ve taken your table for some time, young lady. My apologies. I’m meeting an old friend.”

Lillis smiled. “You’re no bother, even if your friend is running late.” 

“He’s not late, not yet. If he becomes late I’ll be worried that he isn’t going to show up.” She laughed. “I’m just very nervous about this meeting so I decided to come early and have a little liquid courage.” She held a manicured hand to her cheek, which appeared slightly flushed. “I fear I’m acting the fool.”

“Why would you say that?” Lillis asked. 

The corner of the woman’s mouth lifted in a nostalgic smile as she leaned against the wooden slats that formed the back of the chair and sipped more wine. “He was a boy I knew from church more than an actual friend; we spent many years in youth group together. We both participated in many summer activities and vacation bible schools. So many church programs and Christmas caroling outings. Bible studies every week once we got a bit older. I went to all of it just to see him, to spend time with him. I loved him fiercely, you see. I was young, but I loved him. We held hands a few times, at youth group functions and such, but I never so much as kissed him, to my great disappointment. One summer, we had a campout and we stole away to a little cranny in the hills and held each other while everyone else looked for us. But still, there was no kiss.” 

“And then what?” Lillis was interested now.

“And then nothing. My family moved to a neighboring state when I was fifteen. It was horrible. I cried myself to sleep for many nights after we moved, I missed him so much.”

“And you never saw him again?”

“I went back and saw him once. It was my best friend’s high school graduation. He had also graduated and I gave him a sappy greeting card, which I regretted as soon as he took it from my hand. I got a hug... another hug. But that was that.”

It was peaceful out on the patio in the warm sunshine, with a cool breeze rustling the broad leaves on the potted plants. The sound of the leaves was soothing. The steps of passersby echoed off the stone and all of the quiet noises provided an accompaniment to the woman’s entrancing little story. The longing in the woman’s eyes hooked Lillis’s already piqued interest and reeled her in. She stepped closer to the woman’s table.

“But you got back in touch with him, right?”

“I had dreams about him for twenty-five years. Then I found him on social media in my early forties. He was about to marry for the second time. I was ridiculously heartbroken. It’s not like he would uproot his life for me, or anything. I don’t know what I expected.”

“Did you talk to him when you found him?”

“I sent a very carefully worded note; a quick hello saying I hoped he was well, and that we should catch up some time.”

Curious, Lillis leaned forward, resting on the broom. “How’d that go?”

“He never responded.” She sighed. “Perhaps my desperation came through my careful wording and I frightened him away.”

“I’m so sorry,” Lillis said. They were both silent for a moment and then Lillis asked, “Did you ever marry?”

“No. I was engaged twice, it just... never worked out. No, I’ve loved a few times and I’ve lost a few times. But through it all, I’ve spent forty years regretting never kissing that boy.”

Lillis continued leaning on the broom as she watched the woman take another sip of wine. She was dying to ask how the woman had gotten in touch with the man to arrange this meeting, but she was afraid of prying. What the hell? she thought. She’s told me this much.

“How did you arrange today’s meeting?”

The woman smiled. “I was wondering if you would ask.” She sighed. “I was feeling down after losing a good friend and I reached out again, not in desperation but rather with a feeling of finality. I told myself that if he didn’t respond then I would let it go. After all these years, I would finally let it go.”

“But he responded,” Lillis said. 

“He did. We chatted for a couple of months and that morphed into weekly phone calls, then nearly daily phone calls. I wanted so badly to ask him about visiting but I was shy. Can you imagine it? A woman of my age... shy?” She laughed. It was a cheerful sound and it lifted Lillis’s spirits to hear it.

“Whose idea was the visit?” Lillis asked. 

“His, if you can believe it. I almost cried when he asked about flying out to see me.” She shook her head. “I felt like I was seventeen again and handing him that graduation card. So nervous. I agreed to the visit, of course, and he bought a plane ticket that evening.”

“That’s truly a lovely story,” Lillis said. 

“I suppose it is, at that.”

There was a companionable silence for several moments and then the woman sat up straighter, her eyes on the street below. She smoothed her hair as a tall man approached, remarkable with his shock of red hair, showing hardly any gray. The waiting woman stood just in time for him to catch her in an embrace. Lillis heard her make a surprised sound but she returned the hug. 

“I was worried that—,” the woman began, but the man shook his head.

“A moment, dear... I’ve been waiting forty years to do this.” 

He lowered his head and kissed her.

Lillis wiped sudden tears from her cheeks and turned to fetch a second wine glass. Before stepping between the louvered shutters into the cool darkness of the restaurant, she looked back to find them still locked in their long-awaited kiss.