Page 55 of Keep in Touch

“Good,” Lucie shouted before reaching the staircase.

Her heels clicked noisily as she took two stairs at a time. There was a train a couple of platforms away. That had to be platform five. Maybe she’d make it to wave or mouth goodbye and get his number again before it left. She ducked past a mum trying her best to juggle her toddler and their Peppa Pig backpack. Lucie smiled as she continued her mission. It didn’t matter what challenges were going to get in her way. She’d reach Chris. Lucie needed to believe that.

A man who looked like Lucie’s dad stood in her way, and she stopped for a moment doing a double-take before ducking past him too. Instead of the shame that normally catapulted through her when she saw someone who looked like him, she felt ambivalence. It was like she was running for her future and all these diversions were easy-to-win challenges.

A shrill whistle sounded.

“No, no, no,” she shouted.

Lucie ran across the bridge before sprinting down the next set of stairs as desperation gripped her heart. As she looked up, a greying old train eased from the platform. It increased its speed as it left the station. He was gone.

“No,” she shouted as she continued down the stairs. Sadness gripped her. She apologised to the eighteen-year-old girl who’dwept outside an empty lodge eight years ago. Luck was rarely her friend, but she thought this time she would have a chance. Maybe getting her dream job was all the luck she was allowed.

She fell to a bench and unfolded the piece of paper and stared at the drawing of Chris. Those dimples got her every time. The numbers were smudged more now. The first six were kind of straightforward, but then they blurred from the beer. Was that an eight or a three? The last two numbers were illegible.

Her heart beat rapidly, and she filled her lungs to get her breath back. They’d lost their moment again. Losing Chris again was like losing a part of herself. Her heart was like concrete in her chest, and she debated whether she’d made more of it than it was. Maybe the universe was telling them they weren’t meant to be more than ships that passed in the night.

Lucie paused and stared at the image she’d drawn of him in the holiday village, realisation dawning on her. Maybe meeting Chris was the reminder she’d needed to show her how far she’d come since they first met. Maybe they’d never meet again, but she hadn’t failed. Instead, she found herself. Stopping to duck around the man who looked like her dad and telling the stranger off had slowed her down, but those brief moments meant something. They reminded her who she was now and who she could be if she remembered to be the exception. She never wanted to lose that confidence again. Lucie gave the drawing a soft smile and a silent thank you as she folded it back up and gripped it tightly in her hand. The realisation didn’t stop her from wanting to tell Chris she’d always loved him or giving their future a chance though. But sometimes destiny wasn’t on your side.

“Lucie?”

She turned to find Chris smiling at her. His eyes twinkled, and his smile was broad enough to make her stomach flip.

“My train was delayed. That last one was holding it back, but it should be here in a couple of minutes. I would have stayed in the pub waiting for you if I’d known I had a bit more time. Did you run to see me?” he asked.

She thought back to that moment when she’d jumped off the wooden board and hung on to the handle of the zip wire. That was the most terrifying moment of her life, and yet as her fingers trembled and goose pimples covered her skin, she now felt the same combination of fear and thrill. She glanced briefly at the hearts dotting his tie and smiled.

“Yeah, it’s silly.” She swallowed noisily and took a quick breath. “But I had to tell you I never stopped loving you either.”

Chris quickly crossed the short gap between them. He cupped her cheek, and his lips brushed hers. “I didn’t want to leave the pub earlier. The thought of not getting your number caused me physical pain. Lucie Smith, you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

Her heart exploded in her chest as he kissed her again. His hand was hot against her face, and her body trembled as chills crisscrossed against the back of her neck. He was tender, and the softness of his lips made her skin tingle. His hand slid to the back of her neck, and the kiss deepened. She nearly giggled at the idea of easing her tongue between his lips. It was like their first kiss, but with something extra. The hope of the future? The roar of a train accompanied their kiss that now had the heat of adulthood and the sweetness of first love.

They broke apart, and she smiled as his tongue lingered on his lower lip. He grinned, and she knew a blush was covering her cheeks. He spoke carefully. “This is reckless, but do you want to come to a wedding? You could buy a ticket on the train, and you are dressed beautifully. I’d love for Dad to meet you properly, and I’m not ready to say goodbye now that we’ve found each other again.”

Lucie rubbed her thumb over her tattoo. She wouldn’t start her new job for a couple of weeks, and house hunting could wait. She didn’t want to say goodbye or “keep in touch.”

She nodded quickly. “Be the exception,” she replied with a smile and was rewarded with sparkling green eyes and the deepest dimples she’d ever seen.

“You’re the exception I can’t be without,” he replied. His lips brushed hers as she gripped the paper in one hand and whispered to her teenage self that there was hope.

He took her empty hand, and they walked towards the train as the butterflies that had lain dormant for eight years fluttered in her belly.