What Could Have Been

(Lilac Pt. 1)

I glanced up to look at the kind voice, forgetting briefly that I had been holding back the floodgates. I stared up at the man. Our eyes met for the shortest of moments. Or at least I think they did, but I couldn't even see them through his thick lensed-glasses. He wore a thin jacket, and his hair was slightly messy, most likely because of the windy weather. He also towered over me. Not that I was short, I mean I was 5'8", but he had to be at least 6'2". His deep voice certainly matched his stature. While observing him, I had momentarily forgotten about holding back my tears, and one sneaky little one snuck past my lower lashes and slipped down my cheek.
I quickly ducked my head and scrubbed furiously at the floor, my face starting to burn with embarrassment.
"I-I'm so sorry, are you hurt?" He stuttered in a deep tone as he knelt down beside and reached towards the glass. I flinched, shocked, quickly pushing his reaching hands away from the pile of shards.
"Sir, please be careful! You shouldn't touch broken glass, you could be-" I looked back up at him, shocked to see that our eyes were once again met.
We stared at each other for a very long and almost painfully awkward moment. It was like those times when you end up staring at someone passing by, unable to break eye contact. The strangers face had suddenly turned into a bright shade of red and he looked away, sputtering nonsense,
"S-Sorry! I mean... I-It was stupid of me... I sh-should've been careful-"
I had to swallow my laughter. I knew it was rude, but hearing this giant speak in such a frantic way with such a low voice was... odd.
"I'm sorry as well." I said, wiping my wet cheek with the back of my sleeve. "I didn't mean to treat you like a child..." I went back to brushing the glass into a small pile with a spell so I wouldn't hurt myself.
"Anyways, don't worry about me. It's just been a long day is all. I'll be alright." I smiled politely at him again, and watched his face become the same shade of red as it did before. He once again turned his head away, revealing that his ears had also turned red. He certainly struggled with eye contact.
Now that I thought about it, he looked awfully familiar. Short, dark hair with a slight curl, tall, a pair of thick glasses-
"Oh, my. You're my next appointment, aren't you?"
He turned back to look at me, eyes wide behind his square frames.
"O-Oh, are you Ms. Arachne?"
I nodded, "Yes, that's me. I'm sorry if I'm running late. You can go and sit in my office for now." I pointed around the shelf to my office door.
"I'll be right with you." I continued before turning away to gather a dustpan and broom.
"A-Are you sure you don't need any help?" He asked again, his eyes concerned.
"I promise, I'll be alright. I'll be right there." I turned away again and left my client behind. This gave me a brief moment to put myself together again, too. Time to put on that saleswoman smile.