Monica jumped onto the packed London bus at the very last second, elbowing her way valiantly towards the back. Out of habit, she flopped into the seat by the rear doors, and began to pick at her surroundings. Thats when her eyes caught a shock of ginger hair. She squinted, her heart clambering right up into her throat. By the middle doors stood Adam.
Theyd been thick as thieves since secondary school, and after their A-levels, started dating. The thing was, they were at different universities, so opportunities for a proper dinner or a lazy Saturday together were few and far between. Adam did his absolute best to keep up, but between half a dozen chores and his rather tragic part-time job, life was hardly a walk in Hyde Park. Hed hoped Monica would reciprocate, but when he suggested a break during one of those infamous squabbles, she agreed with a tad too much enthusiasm.
When Monica realised what shed actually agreed to, the damage was done. Adam had switched his mobile number, abandoned his socials, and found himself a new job in some other borough. With rising horror, Monica realised she had no clue where to go or how to track him down. For a whole year, he haunted her thoughts; she rehearsed little speeches, imagined the big moment if their paths ever crossed again. And here was her chance: Adam was just metres away.
She took a deep breath, mentally crafted a snazzy hello, and began her heroic battle through coat-clad commuters. But Adam hopped off at the very first stop. Monica scrambled to exit, but the wall of humanity refused to budge. The crowd had spoken her redemption would have to wait.
Fate, it seems, had other plans. No broken hearts to mend whats done is done, water under the bridge. Monica, once again, missed her moment.
