Page 73 of The Night We Met

As soon as the song ends, my mystery dance partner says, “You wanna go get a drink?” I nod my head and grab his hand as he leads us off the dance floor. I turn to my girls and make a drink motion to let them know where I’m going. I get a thumbs up and an inappropriate hand gesture from Sarah that has me barking out a short laugh and shaking my head at her antics.

As we make our way to the bar all I can think is that this man is tall. Like just about 6’5” to my 5' 5". His body looks like that of a professional athlete with his hair shaved in a nice fade and the curls that are just slowly growing out on top. His brown skin complements what I’ve seen of him so far…if only I could see his face. It seems he doesn’t drip money obnoxiously like other guys I’ve come across, but he most definitely isn’t a cheapskate. It’s one of my many talents as a designer. Singling the fakes from the real ones. And he most definitely is a real one.

When we get up to the bar he pulls me to standin front of him so that he’s caging me in. The bartender sees us and asks us what to drink. “I’ll take a whiskey sour, please.”

I note his watch. Which is a top of the line Rolex with his wrists and forearms adorned with tattoos. I can’t make them out fully in the dim club lighting, but I see the streaks of black that’s inked his skin.

“And I’ll take a Jameson and ginger ale,” Is what I think I hear but the music drowns out his response.

Not a bad choice in a drink either. The bartender nods to our orders and we thank him.

“So…” I start and turn around to look at the mystery guy. My eyes bulge out of my face. I’m almost convinced I’m seeing things. “Mason?!!!” I screech.

Time ceases to stop. And not in a way that a first kiss seems to always do. But in a face-the-reality stop. In the seeing of the person that broke you for the first time in years, time stops.

Over the sound of the club music, I distinctly hear the bartender put our drinks down behind me. In a haste I break free from the cage his arms created and I walk away from the bar without grabbing my drink.

Mason and I...well we know how that story unfolded. It was, he was, all-consuming in a way that I never knew could be.

He knew what he had to do. But he waited for months to do it. His cowardice broke us. And then no apology. Not even a glance back. Not even a phone call later on to make sure that I was okay.

To say that I was devastated and that I guarded my heart behind a ten-foot brick and steel wall would be an understatement. Am I over it? Am I over the hurt that he caused? I thought I was. I moved on. But seeing him brings that pain right back to the surface.

“Kamryn, wait!” Mason yells.

Realization that we’re in a crowded club rushes back to me. I stop to compose myself, when I should just keep walking. I turn around and look at him with annoyance all over my face. He holds my drink out to me and I reluctantly take it.

“May we go somewhere and talk? Please? I have some things that I need to say to you.” Mason says in a rush.

This is what I’ve been waiting for. A chance for me to get years worth of hurt off of my chest. A chance for him to say what he needs to say. What he should’ve said years ago.

I raise a perfectly plucked eyebrow and hold my arm out as a gesture for him to lead the way. Mason leads us outside to an isolated area of the rooftop area of the club and motions for me to sit on a bench as he sits next to me. I take a sip of my whiskey sour and wait for him to explain.

“First I want to say how sorry I am about Liam.”

Not how I thought he would start this. My armor slips a little before I lock it down. But of course he heard about Liam. You couldn’t escape the news of his passing. Our university's Facebook page did a memorial post to him and ESPN reported on him for days. Looking at Mason from the corner of my eye, I nod. “Thank you.”

He roughly runs a hand down his face before getting back to explaining himself to me. “This is hard. I imagined the day I would see you, I just never assumed it would be this soon.” He blows out a breath while I wait for what he’s about to drop at my feet. “Okay. Here it goes. I never should’ve let my coach dictate my personal life. I never should have walked away from you.”

It’s like the sudden stopping of a record. The unmistakable and horrendous scratch before nothing but silence is allthat greets me. Of everything I thought he would say, I didn’t think he would say this.

“That year, my main focus was finishing up my final year of football and being with you. While football is still my focus, having to choose between a sport I love and the then love of my life was never a choice I should have had to make. I was terrified because the threat of having a career ripped from my grasp was a high probability. On top of finding love in college, it was the last thing that I expected to do. But as soon as I saw you I was hooked. At the time and all I could think about was you. It didn’t matter if I didn’t know your name. It didn’t matter if we had absolutely nothing in common. All that mattered to me was how I saw you take control of the room you were in. That was the moment that I just wanted to know you. I wanted to experience the warmth that you radiated to other students.”

I remember the day that he’s talking about perfectly. How I hadn’t noticed him before that baffles me. If he had come up and talked to me that day, I don’t think Liam and I would’ve continued to explore our friendship on an intimate level. But the hurt when Mason left would’ve stung even deeper because I would have been able to love him for longer.

“Do you remember that week after the party?”

I nod. How could I forget? We talked for hours.

“It was that Monday. I remember it clearly. Do you?”

“Of course I do.” My throat is tight with emotion so my response comes out whispered.

“Us running into each other was not an accident. When I saw you walk past the athletics building, I ran to the other end just to make sure I didn't miss you. As you know, that’s when we collided. Kamryn I was enamored by you. Your determination and beauty kept drawing me more and moreinto you. School had barely been in for a month and I was already so gone for you. When I wanted something, I went after it. Just like you did. And I wanted you so bad Kam. Football was becoming second place and my coaches and parents weren’t happy with me. I told myself I was just having an off week. But when it lasted longer than a week as you and I started getting more serious, that’s when they knew it was time for me to walk away. They gave me a warning. But that’s when you pushed me to get back to focusing.”

That time he’s talking with the love we shared is hazy at best. I’ve lived what felt like a thousand lives since he and I were together. The time he’s talking about with the kisses we snuck and the moments we just existed together. I briefly remember that time telling him to hangout with his team. To be the leader that his team needed to be successful. Early on I knew that in order for our relationship to work, we needed to try and not let other people slip away. As much as I loved having him to myself I also knew he needed to be present for his team.

“When I was forced to walk away from you the year of the draft it wasn’t because I didn’t love you. I was so in love with you that I couldn’t breathe without you around. After my first three years in the league I had everything that I wanted. I was getting to play a sport that I love, my friends and family were unbelievably proud of me. Yet the one thing that was missing was you. I didn’t have the one person that supported me behind closed doors to share it with. It’s been seven years since and nothing has been the same. This game means absolutely nothing to me if I don’t get to share it with the one person that makes my world complete. That person has been you since I was twenty-one years old.”

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