love that heals

chapter one: unforgettable

Anyone who has been around Keon Chappelle knows he'll never forget that chilly Friday evening in July, when he sat down for dinner with his best friend, Cash Hampton. His evening, however, won't be remembered that way; it will be remembered for the moment he met someone who would change his life forever.

"So, this is gonna be your last year of college," Keon looked at Cash closely as he grabbed a mozzarella stick from the appetizer plate.

"Yeah," Cash sighed, dipping a stick in the marinara sauce while looking at the ceiling decorations above them. "In a year or so, I'll be a forensic investigator."

"That's right."

Keon and Cash had been best friends ever since they were in diapers. They became neighbors when Keon was one year old and Cash was two, since both their mothers were co-workers at a credit union in their hometown of Doral, Florida. From then on, they became inseparable companions during most of their lives; it was quite rare for Keon to be seen without Cash, and Cash without Keon.

As the two began to gossip, Keon noticed a blonde girl eating alone at the other side of the restaurant. From a distance, he could see how beautiful she was, and he had a hard time turning his gaze away from her.

"So after I fed Bandit, I- wait a second, Keon, are you even listening to me?" Cash inquired after seeing that Keon's eyes had glazed over.

Keon looked at him in surprise. Shit, did I really stare at her for that long? he thought.

As Cash turned his head to see what Keon was staring at, he noticed the girl. Not bad, Keon, not bad at all, he chuckled silently.

"What?" Keon asked.

"You have great taste," Cash winked. "Why don't you talk to her?"

"Excuse me?" Keon widened his eyes. "Are you seriously expecting me to stand up and talk to a girl I literally just saw for the first time?"

"Duh. How are you gonna get a girlfriend if you don't have the balls to talk to women?"

"It's not that I don't have the balls to talk to women. It's just that I don't know how to talk to her without looking like a creep."

"Then listen to me. You're going to pretend you're on your way to the bathroom. You're gonna walk to that table, and you'll tell her 'bon appetit'. Then, pretend to drop your phone; trust me, she'll pick it up for you if she's nice enough. After you've done all that, make small talk with her, and maybe even ask for her number."

"Oh come on, Cash!" Keon complained. "She'll probably notice that I pretended to drop my phone just to get her attention."

"Yeah, well, do you wanna talk to her or not?" Cash crossed his arms.

"Of course I do."

"Yeah, well, stop making fun of me and start chasing that girl, for the love of gawd!" he playfully slapped Keon's arm and chuckled as he watched him walk away.

As he walked to the bathroom, Keon felt petrified as he thought about the possible outcomes of his attempt to talk to the girl; however, he decided to suck it up and carry on with the plan.

"Bon appetit," Keon nodded at the girl as he walked past her table.

"Thank you," she smiled. That's when Keon reached for his pocket and pretended to drop his phone. After it landed on the floor, the girl immediately picked it up.

"Excuse me," she called, making Keon turn in her direction. "You dropped your phone."

"Hey, thanks," Keon grinned, grabbing his phone from her hand.