Happenstance

twenty-five

"Ouch!" I scream after Archie's hand has smacked my head for the third time.

"Be thankful I don't use a magazine to do this, Reid. You had the whole night and you're telling me you didn't ask her for her number?" I look away because I'm embarrassed enough without having to face his disappointed look. "And then you say I was slow? You waited five months to meet this girl and when you finally do you don't even ask her hey, when can we meet again? You have no right to mock me, Reid."

"I didn't want to push her or make her uncomfortable," I try to defend myself but even I know that's a poor excuse.

"You weren't asking her to marry you, just to meet you again. What's bad about that? What's unnatural about that, Reid?" he shoots back and I heave a sigh because I know he's right.

"I don't know," I finally accept because I really don't know why I couldn't gather the courage to settle on our next meeting. We talked a lot about doing certain things together but we never said when. She never mentioned it or something so I never felt sure about her intentions. And now she's not here and I don't know if I'm just panicking or she really didn't want to meet me again and all those things she did and said were out of politeness.

"I'll guess you'll have to ask Alicia for her number. She must've written it in the volunteer sheet, right?"

"I don't wanna be a stalker!" I snap, refusing to fall that low as to ask someone else for her number.

"Then what? Are you gonna leave it to fate? You were exchanging post-its for five months and never saw each other until yesterday. You really think that you now randomly will run into her? You also have a life. You can't wait for her at the shelter every day for the next, oh I don't know, month! What if your time volunteering there and hers never match?"

I look down, feeling like there's a hole in my chest at the possibility, that is very likely if I say so myself, of never meeting her again. I do have a busy life because I don't just volunteer there, I also go everywhere and help other causes and besides I have rehearsals and-

I run my fingers through my hair, feeling short of breath out of the sudden.

"Archie, don't be so tough on him," someone says, joining us and when I look up I see Sarah next to my best mate. "You have no right because it took you long enough to finally ask Steph out. Not because you have a girlfriend now you can be like this to Reid."

Archie actually blushes and I chuckle a little.

"I just can't believe after all he did to meet with her, he didn't make sure to meet her again," he says and now I laugh because my best mate gets angry and annoyed on my behalf.

"He'll meet her again," Sarah says with confidence and I look at her with amazement. How can she say that?

"How do you know?" I ask her and Archie is also watching her with the same incredulity in his eyes.

"Because now it depends on her. She knows where to find him and if she wants to, she'll reach out for him," she explains but that doesn't leave me at ease.

"What if she doesn't want to reach out for me?" I ask her this time and she smiles and ruffles my hair like a mother to her little kid.

"She will." Once again, I don't know how she can sound so sure when I can't even have a little bit of faith that Maca will want or try to meet me again. "Now, stop worrying about this and go rehearse!" And now she's back to severe and commanding so we don't ask her anything else and go up stage.

I spend the rest of the day rehearsing but Maca is always in my thoughts. I think of our short time together every time I get a chance. I relive her smiles and play out our conversations over and over again. I also remember when I almost kissed her but burnt her instead. I haven't told Archie that and I never will or he will really grab a magazine and hit me with it.