Premonitions | ✓

two

  "It's Been a Long, Long Time" -Harry James

      "...Anna..."

      The short woman looked up at him with a nervous smile, grabbing a small chunk of her long hair to play with, "Hi, Lars."

     To say Lars was shocked was an understatement. He didn't know how to express how he felt, astonished, confused, and... angry. The man was almost outraged at the sight of her, but his heart held a different tune. It was erratic. Lars thought to have a heart attack at any moment.

    "What..." He gulped, "What are you doing here?"

     "Are you not happy to see me, Cherry?" A sad smile graced her lips.

     Lars didn't find it as funny as she did when the old nickname escaped her lips. He couldn't help the roll of his eyes, "Again, what are you doing here, Anna? I have a store to run."

      His voice was gruff and cold. The painful reminder of her leaving him resurfaced, broke his heart all over again. Anna was his best friend whom he fell in love with. Granted, he never told her, but he didn't think she was just going to up and disappear out of the blue the year before.

     A year, it had been over a year since he last saw the woman that had his heart in her hands. Lars noticed how much weight she had lost, for the once plump woman was still curvy, she always will be due to genetics, but now she was almost sickly like.

      But he couldn't help it when the thought surfaced his mind, even in her state, Lars didn't know she could get any more beautiful. If he thought he was in love with her before, he didn't know what to call his infatuation with her now.

     Without realizing it, Lars slyly eyed her up and down. Noticing how her thick golden-brown hair had grown considerably to her waist, still worn in its natural state of waves and curls. Her cheeks remained pink and chubby, yet more defined by the weight loss. Her cheekbones were more prominent, showcasing her natural beauty.

     Those god damn cheekbones, he thought. Lars cleared his throat when remembering how he was staring at her, but she still hadn't looked up at him. It was as if they were back to square one, her, terrified of him, a man, as she averted her eyes from his.

     Those damn eyes, Lars almost groaned to himself when he thought about how they looked in the daylight. They were so light and gorgeous. He didn't understand how such a color existed. He used to stare at them all the time, so much in fact that she would call him a freak, and he'd let her.

     Anna's eyes were downcasted as she began to straighten a pile of pamphlets on the counter. He remembered her doing that, how her hands always had to be doing something, or else her anxieties would set in. For some reason, Anna felt awkward when she wasn't moving around, so he let her play with the pamphlets as she avoided eye contact.

     "You must hate me, Lars. I know this because if I were you, I'd despise me too," Lars rolled his eyes at her statement, but nevertheless, he silently agreed with her, he always did.

     Lars left out a huff of air and stood to his full height, "I don't have time for this."

     It hurt him to say it, but her showing up was a shock. He didn't know why she left, and he didn't care why she was back, so he told himself.

     "Please," she begged, her eyes now staring up at him with tears beginning to fill them, "If you're busy, I understand, but please talk to me. I need to explain why I left. It had nothing to do with you but everything to do with me."

     The thought of her being with another man crossed his mind, and he hated it for two reasons. Anna wasn't his, but god, he wished she was, "Anna..."