Unexpected Surprise {#MA2K16}

The Beauty Of Surprise

I looked at the red car as it closed in my home, anticipation bubbling up inside me. It was the day. Sunday, March 20. Seven o'clock. Uncle Randolph is finally coming home from Spain after three years. He was offered a job there. Uncle Randolph is a traveler, a painter, my role model. It was hard for me to let him go, but it was a great opportunity for him, and I want nothing but happiness for my uncle.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
I sat up abruptly from my bed and ran out of my room, my dog, Dewey following me after I woke him with my loud footsteps.
"I got it, mom!" I shouted to my mother who was in the kitchen, making dinner for my parents, uncle Randolph, and I. My dad was still on his way home.
I couldn't wait any longer so I hurried to the door with a big smile on my face. I swung the door open. "I've waited three years for thi-" I said as a greeting, until the door was fully open and revealed a tall male wearing a blue shirt with white shorts. I raised my head until I could see his face.
"You're not uncle Randolph." I spoke the obvious fact.
"Hi, Fiona." Said the male. I gave out a gasp, realization dawning on me.
Without giving out a reply, I left the door open as I walked to the kitchen. "Mom, I'm.. I'm going out for a walk. My.. Friend came over. We're going for a walk." With a nod of my mother's head, I turned back and returned to the front door. I stepped out and closed the door behind me.
I raised a hand and wiggled my index finger, a signal for 'follow me'. He did. He followed me as we walked through my neighbourhood. He tried talking to me, but I just shushed him and said, "not now."
Once we reached the local park, I found us a bench and sat on it. He did the same. I focused my attention on the swaying tree in front of us. The birds chirping and flying about.
"Are you going to talk to me?" He finally asked after a long moment of awkward, dreadful silence.
My mind traveled back to 2014. He said he was going out for a walk, to clear his head after our argument. He never came back.
I snapped back to the present, and heard a family laughing together in a picnic nearby.
". . . You left me." I uttered the three words I have always repeated to myself.
"I came back."
"You came back. You should've came back hours after you left. After you went for that so called walk."
"I'm sorry, Fiona." He replied, and I turned to look at him.
"Shawn." I whispered.
He still had his warm brown eyes, always causing my heart to flutter. I could have never forgotten those eyes.
"I was never angry at you," I spoke. "I was angry at myself. For letting you leave. It wasn't your fault, Shawn. It never was. It was mine." I shut my eyes just as a tear slip out of my eye and came running down my cheek.
"I let you leave. I caused the fight. I was so stupid. So naive. I couldn't have made you stay. I should've tried." I sobbed, letting my head fall down to my hands.
"Fiona, stop. It's in the past. We have to move on. That's why I came here. I came here because we never properly said goodbye. We never properly moved on. That's why I'm here."
I slowly raised my head and stared at the blank space in front of me. Shawn was right. We never moved on. We never said goodbye. I didn't love him anymore, and he didn't love me. We just never moved on.
"I'm sorry." I said, after calming myself down.
There was a long pause, with me fiddling with my fingers and Shawn staring at his shoes.
"Me too." Said Shawn, with a shaky smile forming on his face.
And in that moment, we both knew that we would never be together again. We knew we were better off without being tied to each other in a romantic way. But we were sure we wanted to be friends. To still be in each other's lives. To have that sense of each other.
We forgave each other. We moved on from each other, the right way. But we didn't say goodbye. We never would.
"Thanks for coming, Shawn." I looked at him and smiled.
"It was the right thing." Shawn said, nodding his head as if assuring himself.
"It was." I agreed. Then, I laughed. In this crazy, unexpected encounter, I managed to laugh.
"I never thought I'd see you again. I'd never thought we'd talk to each other again. And now you're here. Unexpectedly. You're here."
And for the first time after what felt like forever, Shawn shot me that charming smile of his with that playful glint in his eyes. "I guess that's the beauty of surprise, isn't it?"

That was the beginning of our love. Not a romantic love. Not family love. Just love. An unexplainable love. It was ours, and we loved it.