The LOVE that NEVER FADES

2. HOPE

After that incident, I never visited the flower shop again. I can't get Lucia out of my mind.

"She is more than a good woman and a good person. She is a beautiful soul, caring light in her smile, and love in her bones."

It's been weeks since I've left my house, so I thought, why not visit the nearest supermarket for groceries? I walked up to the market at the end of the street. As I was about to pick up a basket, I saw Lucia entering the supermarket.

I was very happy to see her, and so was my heart. As she noticed me, she waved her hand and shouted, "Hi!"

Then she came close to me.

I answered, "Hi, it's been a while since we met."

"Been a while. How are you doing?" she asked.

"I'm doing great. How about you? How have you been this past week?" I replied.

"Nothing much, just left my job yesterday. My boss was an asshole; that son of a bitch doesn't know how to respect a woman."

"Oh, he was that bad?" I replied.

She asked, "A quick question."

I replied, "Yes, go ahead."

She hesitated while asking the question.

After a minute of silence, she asked me, "Are you free for next weekend?"

I replied, "Yes, why?"

She whispered, "Can we both go visit the new amusement park that has opened recently?"

My heart fluttered after hearing her.

I was stunned for a minute. I replied with a smile on my face, "Yes, why not?"

She started to jump in joy.

Then she asked me for my contact number. I shared that with her.

Then we both left after buying groceries, and after meeting, I received a call from an unknown number. I picked up the call and waited to hear a voice. After a second, I heard a voice.

"Hi, Lucia here."

As soon as I heard her voice, I replied, "Hey Lucia, Oran speaking."

She asked, "Are you at your house?"

"Yes, I am," I answered.

Then there was a moment of silence for a minute.

She asked, "Oran, why don't we visit the amusement park tomorrow? I left my job, you know about that, so I am free. What about you?"

I replied immediately, "Yes, yes, why not? I am free tomorrow."

My heartbeats were going crazy.

She replied, "Okay then, it's done. Meet me at the end of the street at 12:00 P.M."

I said, "Okay, see you tomorrow then."

"Okay then, see you tomorrow. Bye, take care," she answered.

She hung up.

I was so excited about tomorrow. I was going through my wardrobe, looking for what to wear. I didn't want to mess up; it should be perfect.

I couldn't sleep the whole night. I was overthinking all night—what if I messed up? What if she didn't come?

I was lost in my thoughts; it was 10 in the morning. I was running here and there, getting ready by 10:30, and I left my house at 11:15. I knew we were about to meet at 12, but I didn't want to be late. I kept repeating to myself, "I don't want to mess up."