Dearest, Theodosia

Chapter I

Chapter I:

Five Years Later

"Hello, I'm back. Both Father and I agreed not to speak with you at the same time. We both have different, private things we want to share with you. I miss you dearly, as does father. He's different now, different ever since we last saw you. Don't fret, he's not cruel, he's just distant. I think that I remind him too much of you and it hurts him. It hurts me too. For the first couple months, he found it hard to even look at me, which I understand. I have to be strong for the both of us. I wish you were still with us, mother. I think of you everyday. Happy Birthday. I love you." Fifteen year old Theodosia Burr placed a kiss on her mother's tombstone. She quickly stood up, turning to see her father waiting several feet behind her.

"Are you ready to leave, dear?" Her father, Aaron Burr asked as his daughter took his arm. She nodded, not speaking a word. The pair headed back into town, through the marketplace. Theo enjoyed walking through the market. She used to go shopping with her mother in the marketplace. Walking through there brought back so many memories. Their walk was unusually silent. "I know, Theo, I miss your mother too."

Suddenly, Theo drowned out her father's words. Time stopped, right then and there. Her dark eyes locked with a pair of golden-green eyes, a familiar pair of golden-green eyes. Her heart skipping a beat as she froze. Where did she recognize those eyes? She couldn't answer that. The young man stopped dead in his tracks and met the young woman's gaze. She couldn't place it. "Theo, darling, is something wrong?" Aaron tapped his daughter's arm lightly, grabbing her attention back from the boy.

Theo turned back to face her father. "Yes, I'm alright. Let's go home, father." As they began to walk back to their home, Theo couldn't help but to look behind her, back at the familiar boy. It only took the pair five minutes to return back to their home. "Father, I forgot that I needed to get things from the marketplace. Do you mind if I head back?" The man nodded, heading into his study. Theodosia quickly snagged her coat and rushed out the door, not bothering to grab money. She wasn't going to need it anyway.

The boy. He was stuck in her head as she quickly made her way back to the market, hoping that the young man from earlier was there. Her dark eyes scanned the crowd until they locked with the golden-green eyes from before. "Excuse me." The brunette made her way through the small crowd of people over to the man. The confused young man started to intentionally walk away from the eager girl. "Wait!" Theo picked up her pace, matching his own.

   "Why are you following me?" He turned around sharply, staring into the girl's dark eyes. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you."

   "Don't worry. I just saw you in the market earlier and..." Her thoughts began to cloud her brain. This boy had her under some sort of trance that she couldn't snap out of. "... I just know you from somewhere, but I can't seem to place you, no matter how hard I try."

They stood for a moment in silence before the boy's face lit up and a smile spread across his freckled face. "Theo!" He exclaimed, catching the girl off guard. She stumbled back a bit before he spoke again. "Sorry, I just got excited." He said, helping to steady her. "It's me. Philip."

Everything clicked, right then and there. She never could have imagined that the small boy she was friends with in her childhood could have grown so much in five years. He towered over her, almost like a tree would. His long, skinny limbs matched his frame. His hair still had perfect curls that were now under control, and his eyes, oh his eyes. They made her heart skip beats. "Philip!" The young woman screeched as she flung her arms around her childhood friend, receiving a laugh from him. "Goodness, you've changed so much!" The two ended their embrace in order to speak face to face. "You have to tell me everything about school, I bet you're excelling. You always were very smart. Are you still keeping up with piano? I hate to admit it but you were a much better—"