The two of them

The short story, at last.

It was in a drizzly afternoon when they met. Right after a hearty lunch, all things become blurry and tiring in our minds, even the subjects we love the most. But, that day was different somehow. Oh, that day was not supposed to be, by any means, a special occasion and, in their minds, it was just another fatiguing class in that interminable day of the week.

They were from the same college, the same faculty, the same building. They were friends of their friends. They probably saw each other before in the tatty, still snug corridors, but it was the first time that they noticed the presence of each other in that place – and what an unconscious impact this sudden glance of eyes made in their routines from that moment on. I name this impact this way, because to me the development of feelings is not instant. It comes from moments which we do not actually realize that they are important for this feeling to grow. That gloomy Wednesday was, in this case, one of these occasions.

They were introduced by acquaintances in that day and they remained simply as acquaintances for a short period of time. The linguistics classes were insufficient to cover the hundred matters they had in common to discuss. Hours went by through these afternoons and the lunch they had would still affect their mood, but it was not enough to stop them from talking as there were no professor or class around them. That four-hour encounter was transformed, as they got to know each other, into a pleasant aspect of the long Wednesdays that they would have to endure in that semester.

At college, they would always be happy with the other's arrival and they would greet each other with a passionate, but innocent, comfortable and long hug. The longest conversations belonged to them. They would unveil their most deep secrets to each other: relationship traumas, original poems, family issues, death of grandparents, actual relationship dilemmas – there was no problem in revealing these aspects. However, they would speak in Italian for no one else to understand, but them. They would, also, secretly notice, piece by piece, how beautiful the other was by any circumstance.

What was emerging between these two was not a simple friendship, as you might have noticed so far. On the other hand, it was not love, nor lust. This type of feeling is the one that makes you smile, that allows you to be happy about silly things, that gives you energy to go through a tedious class and makes you restless when the routine of the expected encounter does not happen. They would exhaustively exchange glances while they saw each other in the halls – and, this time, they were only able to notice each other.

However, even with all these events that I just portrayed to you, they never noticed this innocent passion in the other's melted heart and genuine smile. They would not, in any way, allow this feeling to simply appear in the surface of their long and deep conversations. It was a secret – or they wanted to believe it was. The doubt was there in the air filled with sighs and thoughts of admiration. They, actually, wanted the sentiment to be mutual, but there was no way of knowing, if they did not ask.

In another humid Wednesday, they both decided, as waking up, that this was the day which things would be enlighten. That was certainly the day that the Linguistic class would exist just as an excuse for them finally confess the silly feeling that was filling their soul with singing birds. They knew that this admittance would not change their lives at all. Their hearts were already taken by someone else and they were happy with it. However, how do we hide the unbearable feelings that come to sight instinctively?

It was the last day of encounter. The last Wednesday. The last class of the semester. It was the date that they decided to admit the screaming urge of looking a million years at each other's face just for the beauty of their eyes. The last moment that their minds would cry out for an answer.

It was the last day that things would remain as a secret.

In that same Wednesday, there was a crash. Oh, God forgive me, that dammed incident makes me furious! A stupid driver had crashed a truck which was carrying petrol. The officers had to restrict an entire avenue. This episode, thereupon, stopped one of the two arriving for lunch and for the Linguistic class. An enormous traffic made that day impossible for some students and professors to arrive at college. By this, the two would never get to see each other in that semester again. That was the end of the road. They never had the courage again to reveal what they have reasoned so far and they, as distant friends later on, remained only as colleagues.

I know you might be asking yourself how in heavens I did not interfere in this situation or at least tried to provide them any kind of support. However, how would I dare to tell them this ultimate secret? The only thing I can tell you, my dear reader, is that I learned two great lessons with their almost love story. Love takes courage. The absence of the latter, on the other hand, drives important matters in our lives away. And that was their choice.