Two Letters That Change Everything

Epiphany

| A moment of sudden revelation |

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When Callum imagined what his wedding night would be like, he didn't expect it to involve getting drunk with his best friend and scolded by the neighbors. In their defense, it was three in the morning, and he had spent the last couple of hours screaming song lyrics as if his entire life depended on it.

However unexpected the night turned out to be, it certainly beats moping around and dwelling on the catastrophe of a wedding he had.

Following the colorful words received from the neighbors and the fear of getting kicked out by her landlord, Florence suggested they go to bed, and who was he to deny sleep's comforting embrace?

Callum watched the girl disappear into her bedroom while he stood in front of the guest room. He hadn't been expecting to sleep by himself that night.

After three years of sleeping next to Daphne, he became accustomed to her warmth, and he didn't anticipate letting it go anytime soon. Even before Daphne, it was rare to find the boy sleeping by himself. His bed tended to be occupied by Florence and vice versa.

Callum ran his fingers through his black hair, pulling at it. He could sleep next to Florence. Technically, he wasn't with his fiancée anymore. But, it had been three years since their last sleepover; things would bound to be awkward.

His feet seemed to have a mind of their own because he found himself facing her bedroom door. He blamed it on the alcohol.

After a gentle knock and an invitation to come in, he walked inside the room. It was as he remembered: quaint, warm, and welcoming. It was Florence.

Calm sky blue eyes bore into him. Even though Callum had been fiddling with his fingers, too afraid to say a word, Florence smiled in understanding. She removed the duvet, gesturing to the space next to her.

Callum gingerly crossed the distance between them and brought himself below the covers. When his head hit the pillow, he realized that Florence had been settled slightly off-center in the bed. As if she'd been waiting for him like she had done countless times in the past.

Some things never change.

Tapping his fingers against the mattress, he wasn't sure what to do. Again, the girl proved to know him better than he knew himself because she laid her head on his chest and his arms instinctively wrapped around her.

He supposed it would be awkward-- going back to her after all those years. But being with Florence could never be foreign. If anything, it felt like coming home. And he never realized how far away he was until that night.

He watched her breathing even out. Soft air came out of her parted pink lips, blowing the strands of warm brown hair that fell against her face.

He gently tucked the strands behind her ear and buried one of his hands in her hair. It amazed him how calm he felt in the intimacy of that moment between them.

He planted a chaste kiss on the crown of her head and tucked her head under his chin.

Surprisingly, sleep had easily overcome him, and he soon found himself in a peaceful slumber with Florence in his arms, anchoring him to an even more tranquil reality.

Unlike his ex-fiancée, Florence tended to escape his arms and roll to the other side of the bed. And he subconsciously picked up a habit of following her and pulling her flush against his chest, burying his face in her hair. That night was no exception.

But when he felt her absence this morning and reached his arm over to her side, he was met with nothing.

He groggily opened up his eyes and brought them around the room in hopes of finding the brunette, but instead of her figure, they had landed on a piece of paper that sat on her pillow.