𝙿𝚛𝚘𝚝𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚘𝚛

𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒𝑟

𝑂𝑛𝑖𝑘𝑎

"Need a hand with that, sweet pea?"

Her voice echoed in my head at least five times before I even realized she was speaking to me. I gazed up into her eyes and frowned, tears brewing in mine.

Four years. She changed and yet she hadn't. Appearance wise, she was different. Her hair, different. Her body, different. She seemed taller, if that were even possible. Stronger as if she could push a cow over without breaking much of a sweat.

But, she still had that smile. That courteous demeanor, those kaleidoscope eyes of brown, green, and a hint of honeyed gold that melted me on multiple occasions.

I hated how unreal it felt now.

How the way she stared made my skin crawl. It felt like I was looking into to the eyes of a my love's corpse, I felt like it was all too good to be true.

My chest tightened. Everything about this place was bringing me nothing but unnecessary pain and stress and discomfort. Every second I begin to regret coming back, and this... I don't even know want to think anymore...

This shit isn't real.

"Um... ma'am?" She waved a hand in front of my face, her brows furrowed and smile faded. "You alright? You look like you've seen a ghost." She chuckled and that alone made me tense up and back away.

She grabbed the basket and the items that just so happened to avoid being covered in milk, placing them back inside. Holding it out towards me, I watched, still unsure.

She didn't recognize me, and that hurt. Even as we stared into each other's eyes, she didn't see me. I was just another stranger to her.

"I–" my voice cracked, my hands covered my mouth quickly as I began to cry. Her brow rose as she studied me, confused. I shook my head, "I'm sorry.."

Running past her and out of the store, I rushed to my truck and climbed in. I sat there for a moment to collect myself, to breathe.

She was alive, and well. And she didn't remember anything.

Just thinking about it tore me apart. She doesn't remember me.

Four years of my life I spent grieving for her, wanting and waiting for a sign while also accepting that she was gone. But she was here. Right in her hometown, living, breathing.

All of those years we spent together, our love that we built, our bond, our memories. Gone. Everything is gone.

"Why did I come back?" I asked myself, wiping my face and starting the truck. I pulled out of the spot and drove home.