With Love

"She wondered what life would be like if she was born at a different time. A time before him, or a time after him. 'What a gift it is to be alive at the same time,' she thought. She would never say these words to him, for she knew they would only be received as a plea for affection, but she would say them to herself because she believed them to be true. He was no longer speaking to her, but he was surely still speaking about her. The two were no longer in love, but now just two strangers in a grocery store. Strangers in separate isles, completely unaware that their former lover was just three rows away. Two strangers with an abundance of beautiful memories. He would continue to search for love in other men and women. She would decide to be alone. But in this moment, as one looked through bruised vegetables, and the other looked for the right brand of buttermilk bread, they both had hope that their soulmate was out there. 'What a gift it is to be alive at the same time,' she thought, as she passed by an aisle and saw a familiar face. He would die four years before her, and she would live to see his wife remarry. She would be invited to the wedding, for she would be friends with the new husband. As the ceremony would begin, she would go outside and smoke a pack of cigarettes. 'What a gift it is to be alive at the same time,' she would think, as she looked at his soulmate, now ready to marry another. But for now, she was just grocery shopping because she needed to plan for her future without him. As she passed the aisle that he was in, she whispered to herself. 'Let me be your violent smile.' That's what I need."