The Last Five Years

Drew

One of Poppy's hands locked in my hair, the other clenching the shirt on my chest. With that kiss, the last five years melted away; it was like they hadn't happened. We were 18 again, sneaking a kiss before our parents came into the room. I pulled her closer to me, and she shoved me back into the frame of the door. Her hand moved from my hair, around to my chest. We still hadn't pulled away from each other. Her fingers fumbled with the buttons of shirt, and she ran her hands over my bare chest.

I sighed, pulling away. I rested my head back against the frame. "Poppyseed." We were both breathing heavily. I looked down at her wide, stormy eyes--my favorite color in the world. "We can't do this. You're engaged to Peter."

She backed away, wrapping her arms around herself. "I..." She wouldn't look at me. "I can't believe that just happened. I'm sorry, Drew, I-"

I held a hand up, shaking my head. "It was me. It was my fault, and I apologize. I'll clean up the spilled coffee and go. I shouldn't stay here." I cleared my throat, buttoning my shirt back up.

"Don't worry about cleaning up, I can get it." Poppy moved past me, careful not to even so much as brush against me. She grabbed a towel from a drawer.

I walked into the kitchen, snagging it from her. "I got it," I said matter-of-factly. "Why don't you go to bed? Peter may wake and wonder where you are. Don't worry, this'll take two minutes tops, and I'll lock the door behind me when I go. Poppy stared me down for a few seconds, and I could see her struggling not to argue to let her clean the counter. But she resigned. She just nodded, turning to go down the hallway. All the while, I watched her go. Once she disappeared around the corner, my eyes fell to the spilled coffee.

 I sighed. "It was nice seeing you again, Poppyseed," I muttered. I finished cleaning the mess, then grabbed my things. Once again, I was regretting that I had tried so hard to catch my flight here as I walked to the car.