Dear Maria (on hold)

Part 20

 Life with Maria continued much the same as before. We spent almost every day and most nights together, and ever minute I was with her, I learned more and more about her. We had our first real fight. The fight itself wasn't about anything terribly important (I had forgotten to tell her that I was working on Wednesday night, and she had come over to my house as usual and had found the house empty; it turns out she had planned something really special for us that night), but the way I'd felt afterward... It made me shudder just to think about. I'd called her a hundred times, but she hadn't answered, and her car wasn't parked in front of her house. I waited up all night to see when she would return home, and she didn't, not until four in the morning. I was worried sick and felt guilty as sin for some of the things I had said to her, I hated not knowing where she'd been or if she was okay. I was about to go over to her house the next morning, when I heard a knock on my door.

I nearly killed myself trying to get to the front door as soon as possible, chanting: please let it be Maria, please let it be Maria, please let I be Maria, over and over again in my head. I yanked open the door, breathless, and saw Maria standing there. Not even on that first morning when I had seen Maria standing in the entry way of my living room holding two coffees had I ever been so overjoyed and relieved to see Maria... my angel.

“Maria!” I cried, my relief and happiness very evident in my voice. She smiled tentatively, but I saw the same relief in her eyes.

“Oh Holly, I'm so sorry-”

“Maria honey I'm so, so sorry-”

“I overreacted, I won't-”

“It's all my fault, you were right-”

“I shouldn't have just expected-”

“I can't believe I forgot to call-”

“I'm sorry, you know I didn't mean it-”

“I should never had said those things-”

“I love you darling, and I'm so sorry.”

“I love you Maria, I'm so sorry.” As we finished speaking over each other, we smiled at each other sheepishly as we realized that we'd both apologized. We just stood there for a moment, looking at each other a bit awkwardly, then I opened my arms invitingly, and Maria rushed into them. I held her tightly, never wanting to let go. I pressed my face into her shoulder, her soft cinnamon curls tickling my cheek. Maria pressed her hands firmly against my back, her chin resting on my shoulder. Eventually, we shut my front door behind us, and continued to make up.

~ ~ ~

Gripping the rather dirty handles of the large garbage bin, I kicked the base of it to shift it back onto the two small wheels. I slowly rolled it down my driveway, struggling to keep it from tipping, and carefully set it on the edge of the sidewalk. Straightening up, I saw Maria making her way over to me from her lawn, and I smiled, waiting for her. She raised her hand slightly to wave, and I waved back as she smiled.

“Hey, beautiful. How are you?” I greeted as she neared.

“I'm great, thanks! You?” she replied, and we both leaned in for a quick kiss.

“Good, I'm good,” I answered. “So what's up?” I questioned easily, the warm breeze gently lifting my hair and coyly playing with Maria's curls.

“Eh, not much, I guess. Saw you wrestling with your garbage bin, thought I'd come over,” she teased.

“I was not wrestling with it!” I exclaimed indignantly, a laugh in my voice.