Epilogue

16.5K 842 559
                                    

I was never foreign to one night stands.

Hookups, dates, casual outings; I've done them all.  However, that's what they remained as: fun.

None of the people I was with stuck. I didn't want them to stick. It meant nothing to me, or to them. I could even swear that none of them had any sorts of feelings involved.

Just a college guy having a good time. Stress relief. Nothing more.

Until one time, it happened.

I got attached.

I wanted more.

Way more.

His face stuck. I could see him whenever I closed my eyes and relaxed. He had flushed cheeks and was so embarrassed he ran out of the room.
I followed him.

I was glad I did, and so was he.

It was just a Christmas vacation. We wanted to have fun and forget everything we had on our minds. Little did we know that we would forget everything but that night.

The night I felt something.

"You know what's it like to be in love Professor, right?" I asked casually. It was always nice to hear what she had to say. Professional words of a kind mother.

She blushed lightly as I helped her collect her stuff. The lecture she gave us every Tuesday morning was over. "My son asked me the same question, 6 years ago, and I still remember that moment like it happened yesterday." She slung her bag on her shoulder and readied herself to leave.

The class was now almost empty but a couple of people chatting silently. "Must've been really memorable." I remarked.

"Indeed it was."

"Mind if I ask what your answer was?"

She smiled. "Of course not."

We started walking outside as she spoke. "I told him that the moment you see your lover, you feel like your whole body is floating on pillows made of clouds, and your blood flows ten times faster, and your heartbeat races for the first few minutes. Your breath relaxes and your pupils dilate and the world around you feels nonexistent." Her face seemed glowing. She loved her son so much.

She looked at my puzzled face, noticing the million questions floating around in it.
"You don't seem satisfied with the answer." She said nonchalantly, not at all distraught by my discomfort.

"No, no it's not that I'm dissatisfied. It's just," I paused a bit, which gave her a few footsteps leverage on me. "Can that very thing happen when you see a text from them?" I felt really stupid asking that question, but I couldn't help it. That's how I felt. Every time I'd see a text from him it was like my insides were smiling and blushing.

We were out the college building and now heading towards each of our cars. Professor Linda's class was only twice a week, and I already had one other class with a different professor. Last semesters are the best.

She answered my question right before we split ways. "love is very adaptive. It's a son of the time and changes through age. So yeah, I don't see why it shouldn't."

That left me very satisfied.

Because I knew that even after all those yesrs, and despite my long hours at the gym to harden my body, one text of his made me melt like liquid.

Time passes quickly when your whole life is changing.

I achieved a lot in a short amount of time. I managed to (miraculously) finish my education, officially becoming an MD, consequently a psychiatrist. I never had considered doing psychiatry, but a few encounters across my studying career opened my mind to the possibility.

SoulmatesWhere stories live. Discover now