Ten years passed.
At twenty-eight, I had established my own business. And though I certainly wasn’t a millionaire, I was financially comfortable and proud of my achievements. I had certainly dated, lost my virginity to a woman who I had cared about. Karen had certainly been right about that. It had meant something special, and always would. But I still felt like it could have been the same with her too. I remained unmarried as I searched for the perfect woman to share my life with. But though there were many I cared about, I found none that I loved nor any that loved me for anything more than my financial stability.
Arriving home after a particularly busy day, I’d collected the mail, smiling inwardly as I saw a letter from my old high school. It was a notice that our ten year reunion was coming up, asking for an R.S.V.P., if I was planning on attending. I thought about it, nearly discarding the notion until I thought how it might be interesting to actually show up, and see how those who had thought me dumb or stupid might actually see me now.
As I lived a fair distance away, I made reservations with the hotel who’d been specifically assigned for returning alumni, now finding myself anxiously awaiting for the date of our ten year reunion.
When the night finally arrived, I found myself standing in a surprisingly crowded ballroom where many of my old friends along with their partners, greeted me in a welcome warm embrace. For those who had thought less of me, it was a minor delight to see the shocked expressions on their faces as they eventually learned of my successful business accomplishments.
“Chad?”
I turned at the sound of my name. Curious as to who might have recognized me as I had already seen most everyone that I had really known or cared much about. When I did, I felt my heart skip a beat, my breath suddenly swallowed as I fought to find it again.
“Ms. Jenkins?” I responded in shocked wonder.
“I think you can call me Karen,” she responded delightedly.
Her hair was much shorter now, but she looked every bit as good as she had ten years ago. If anything, she looked even better at forty-eight than most women my age did.
“What are you doing here?” I asked, suddenly feeling like that same shy student I had been all those years ago.
Now it was her turn to blush. “I was curious,” she began.
“Curious? About what?” I asked interrupting her.
She laughed. That same wonderful laugh I had heard so many times before as we sat around the kitchen table studying together.
“About you mainly. Wondering if you’d even be here. Wondering how things turned out for you,” she finally finished saying.
I looked about expectantly. “Are you here with anyone?” I asked cautiously.
“No. You?”
I shook my head, “Never found the right woman.”
She smiled, the grin on her face as bright and alive as I remembered it. The touch of her hand as it sought mine just as electrifying as the first time we’d ever kissed.
“You have a room?” she asked seductively.
As before, I nodded my head, words failing me.
“Come on then, there’s a few things I think I can still teach you,” she said. “And probably, a few things you can teach me,” she added giggling.
As I followed her down the hallway hand in hand towards the elevators, I found myself relishing in the fact that for a while at least, I would be ‘teachers pet’ once again.
Leave a Reply