“Oof!” Lionel chokes, getting the wind knock out of him from some nuts girl running in the hallway.
“Oh I’m so sorry!” This girl, Lucy yells in panic and as sincere as she can still racing down the hall, late to turn in her science project.
“No it’s cool!” He calls even though she’s turned around and too far away to hear, “Yeah just keep running! Whatever.”
“Chill man,” His friend chuckles, finding the scene to just be amusing.
“It’s just rude, you know? The least she could do is stop running, or even ask if I’m alright. I don’t even know her.”
He does actually, just without remembering. They have had the horrible and awkward pleasure of meeting each other once before in elementary school. Lionel was angry that his mother forgot to pack his snack, so in a childish rage he took Lucy’s animal cookies. Of course she wasn’t going to let him have them, so she punched him in the mouth. They ended up throwing the paints at each other, pulling each other’s hair, kicking and screaming before a teacher could pull them apart.
So today, this makes this the second time they’ve met.
But not the last.
On the day of gradation Lionel stands with his ex-girlfriend of five seconds, receiving a good hard slap in the face. This girl screeches, furious of his not only bad timing but horrible reason to break up with her (because she said she liked The Jersey Shore) “YOU ARE AN IDIOT LIONEL!”
Swiftly, steam bursting from her nostril’s in her furious rage, she spins around and yells for everyone to hear, “AND YOU’RE THE WORST KISSER!” before stomping away.
“Am not!” He yells back, horrified she just did that as he holds his stinging cheek.
But it didn’t stop all the stares from watching, including Lucy’s. And in complete pity for the poor stranger, Lucy walked up to him and grabbed his graduation gown’s collar, giving him a big kiss, tongue and all.
The two stood there, not knowing who the other is, kissing, and having their hands discover one another’s arms, faces and chests, with no questions from Lionel’s corner. It’s nice to find another person that makes their insides fizz and bubble like a shaken up bottle of soda.
Finally, receiving more stares, Lucy unlatches her lips from Lionel’s, smirking for a moment, staring in his eyes. And at that moment, Lionel imagines his whole life with this girl, how he’s going to ask her out and when he’s going to give her a proper first kiss… however, unknowingly, Lucy ruins it all by turning to the crowd, announcing “SHE’S LYING THIS DUDE IS A GREAT KISSER!”
And with one smile, Lucy pats his shoulder and tells him, “See yah.”
It won’t be another three years until they meet for the fourth time, but this time it’s not as extravagant. Lucy having her hair dyed a new color and Lionel with a clean cut hair style is handed a coffee by Lucy. The only thing they say to each other is “Good morning,” and “Good bye.”
They’ll even meet ten more times before they can finally get it right.
Now it’s been another four years, making the pair twenty-five.
That day had been a long, grueling day for Lucy. She just got her first gig as a voice actor for a major movie, first job, first day, and first migraine. Deciding it was needed, Lucy took it upon herself to take herself to a bar for fries, a juicy burger and a cold beer that could make a nun weep for mercy.
Of course Lionel didn’t know this, so a little tipsy, he thought it was a good idea to come up to the very pretty girl. “Hi,” He says, making an adorable smile.
Bitter over her day, she’s not really buying it. Thus in a blur of crazy and frustration, she just tells the guy, “Okay listen man, I don’t care about what you’re selling because I’m really not buying it today, maybe yesterday, maybe even seven years ago, but today? No. You are cute and I will give you that, so could you be a dear and go ahead and give me the lame pick up lines, then get on your way so I can make love with not you, but my beer.”
In the past seven years, Lionel has learned to be optimistic.
“Okay,” He nods, smirking from the side of his mouth. Casually he sits by her at the bar, which just makes her snort in disbelief this guy is really doing this. Trying to pretend he’s smooth, he rests his cheek on his palm as his elbow sits upon the bar, “Hey baby I lost my number can I have yours?”
Instantly, Lucy laughs, shaking her head and lets him go on, commenting “Nice.”
“So, do you come here often?”
“Eh,” She shrugs, “Heard that one.”
“If you were a Pokémon I’d choose you.”
“PFFT!” Loving that one, Lucy chokes on her beer, having it almost explode from her nose, just when she was trying to not find him interesting.
“Hey, hey, you should calm down. I mean you’ve been running in my mind since I first saw you.”
Still laughing, she shakes her head before she can take a breath, “Stop, stop!”
He puts his hand on her shoulder and tells her with fake urgency, “Excuse me, but I think I dropped something…” He gasps “MY JAW!!”
“Alright!” Lucy laughs, “alright. I’m impressed!”
Unconsciously, their eyes meet and a vague melancholy enters their hearts as the laughter slowly dies out. This isn’t what Lucy was planning for tonight. If she has learned anything in the past seven years is that love is dangerous.
Shaken up, Lucy looks away first and grabs her bag, “I’m sorry.” She mumbles. “I have to go.”
Quickly, she races out of the bar before Lionel could speak up… he wonders how she could leave him like that. The melancholy returns and he feels as if this girl has ran away from him before, somehow.
Not anymore, he thinks and shoots up. He runs out of the establishment just as he sees her hailing a taxi out on this cold city street. “Wait!” He calls, “Please hold on!”
Every fiber in her being tells Lucy to get into the cab, to run away. Instead her feet are planted into the sidewalk. “What?” she snaps, wanting to seem fine.
Nervous as can be he eases in, walking to her, “I have one more pick up line.”
Without thinking, she chuckles and rolls her eyes “Oh?”
“Yeah,” He exhales, coming right in front of her. “When you laugh its lovely and the second I saw your eyes, something about them told me hope. Told me that romance still exists in this world for a reason and it’s for you. I ask you to give me the slightest amount of compassion and just allow one thing.”
“Wh-what?” Is all she can say, burning inside and from her more than red cheeks.
“Can you tell me your name? I’m Lionel Bells.”
Again he’s able to make her laugh, “It’s… It’s Lucy. Lucy Wisener.”
“Hi Lucy.”
“Hey Lionel…”
Finally the two meet correctly for the first time. And in about fifty-one years, on their fiftieth anniversary, surrounded by friends, family and their children, one asks how they were able to introduce themselves. Lionel makes a joke, still making Lucy laugh, “I must have done something right.”