Leading You Home

Epilogue

First

They met on the warmest day in the month of April.

The sun was the brightest it had been in a while. College students, ignoring their school work, took sanctuary outdoors to enjoy it. After several weeks of rain, this was the first sunny day Ohio had seem in a while. Flowers sprang to life, birds chirped cheerfully. A light breeze cooled the suns heat and the easy blue sky created a relaxing tone to sweep over all it touched. The Earth was being born again.

A girl with several books stacked in her arms rushed out of the college building toward the parking lot. She had a lot of work to do, and her mind was bouncing off ideas as to how she could manage it all in one night. The spring semester was coming to a close and she couldn't imagine finishing all her homework by the time it was due.

Her car was just coming into view. She stopped and began searching her purse for her keys when suddenly she heard, "Go long!" from nearby and something hard slammed into her side, sending her and her books sprawled on the ground of the parking lot.

Someone cursed. The voice was deep and male. "I am so sorry. Are you okay?"

"I'd be better if me and my stuff wasn't scattered across the parking lot," the girl muttered sourly. She couldn't help but feel a little agitated, which probably had more to do with her stressful workload than anything else.

The male knelt down before the girl and surveyed her things. With the amount of books she was carrying, he wondered if she could bench press more than him. He noticed the girls' long blonde hair was tangled and windswept. Her grey eyes narrowed as she retrieved her things.

"Hey, it was better that I hit you rather than a car," the voice said. The girl looked up. A light brown-haired boy was kneeling in front of her to help collect her things. There was a basketball tucked under his arm. "Did you realize you're right in the middle of the road?"

There was a familiarity she recognized in the way he spoke, but couldn't put her finger on. Had they met before?

Glancing around, she noticed he was right. She had been stopped in the middle of the parking lot. Realizing her stupidity, she shook her head. Pushing her hair out of her face, she continued collecting her things from the pavement. "No. I've just got so much on my mind right now."

"Long day?" He asked.

"You could say that," she replied, quickly catching papers before they flew away in the breeze. She looked up and saw him staring down at her, looking puzzled. His milky-brown eyes bored into her grey ones as he tried to pinpoint how he knew her, because she was familiar to him. So familiar.

There were footsteps and someone arrived beside them. "You guys alright?"

The boy stood, his arms full of the girls' school books and folders. "Yeah, Marcus, we're fine. Take this to the gym for me, will you?" He asked Marcus, handing over the basketball. Marcus nodded and began sprinting toward the gym, the basketball in his hands.

She stood up then. "Thanks for helping," she said, relieved that she could feel her arms again.

"It's the least I could do after I basically made you road kill," the boy quipped. The girl couldn't help but study his voice as he spoke. She couldn't decipher if she had dreamed of it or had a very distinct memory of someone speaking just like him. His voice was like a song that she had heard a long time ago but has now forgotten the name.

"I'll carry these for you," he said when she reached for her books. "Where's your car?"

"Just over here." She led the way. They weaved and swerved through the cars in the crowded parking lot. "My name is Renee, by the way."

"I'm James. English major?" He asked, referring to the several English books and journals he held in his hands.

Renee nodded. "Creative Writing."

James grinned. "Are you going to write books someday?"

"That's the plan," she replied. When they reached Renee's car, she opened the back door and stacked her books there. James stacked his pile beside of hers.

"Maybe you shouldn't carry so many things at once," James suggested, shutting the car door. She chuckled lightly, and even that small sound jolted something inside him. A feeling, a memory, a desire. Whatever it was, it was there in his chest, alive and well. It was like he was waking from a long nap.

"I think I'll take your advice," Renee answered, finally retrieving her keys from her purse. James watched her. "So, what's your major?"

"Film," he replied. "I want to make movies. Hey, maybe I'll get to bring your stories to the big screen."

Renee smiled at him and James couldn't describe the joy it brought him. He had to of met this girl before. Why can't he remember when or where they crossed paths? How could he forget a smile like that?

"Have we...met before?" He asked, unable to contain his curiosity any longer.

Renee was shocked. Had they been wondering the same thing this whole time? "I'm not sure but I have a strange feeling we have..."

There was a silence between them. A gush of wind came suddenly, ruffling the trees and running through Renee's blond hair. Neither of them could quiet describe it, but it seemed less like they were getting to know one another and more like they were....remembering.

"What do you say we get a cup of coffee?" James asked bluntly. "I mean, if you're not busy..."

Without needing to give it much thought, she shook her head. "Nothing that can't wait."

They decided to meet up later that day at a small cafe called The Hideout. Over several mugs of coffee and raspberry pastries, two people who were strangers this morning talk until they are the only ones left in the cafe. Whenever Renee laughed, James had a quick sense of déjà vu. And whenever Renee would stare into James' milky brown eyes, a fuzzy memory of something she can't make out tickles the back of her mind.

Once the mugs had been emptied and the cafe was about to lock up, the two were forced to go their separate ways. They made lunch plans for the next day, and then some more coffee plans, and then some study dates, and then, eventually, a dinner date.

Every time they saw each other, their hearts swelled with an intimacy neither of them had ever felt before. And their souls pulled toward one another with such ease, it was like a traveler relieved to have finally made it home.

End