Caleb couldn't remember the last time he had been in Maggie's Diner, in fact he tried to avoid it when he was on his own. A man alone with his thoughts wasn't productive in Caleb's opinion, he didn't like to dwell on the past very often. Today was an exception to both. Without being entirely sure how he got there, he found he'd wound up at the coffee bar in Maggie's lost in his thoughts. It was difficult to avoid thinking about her in this place, as if a part of her lingered in the air and he could see her standing there in the corner of his eye until he turned around and no-one was there. She wasn't there. He was alone, completely and utterly alone.
Life hadn't always been kind to Caleb, he had his fair share of hardships in his young life and now was no different. It was easy for him to fake a smile and drift through the days in his seemingly happy-go-lucky style. No one bothered to look any deeper to see just how broken he had become or the guilt that was swallowing him piece by piece.
Things had got out of control the last time he was in Hudson. He had vowed he would never return here. He planned to settle somewhere on the rodeo circuit, anywhere that wasn't here. He tried to outrun the memories but they chased him down wherever he went, when he closed his eyes, when he breathed. He was exhausted, yet somehow he continued to find his way back here unable to stop himself from being drawn towards the pain. His usual bravery had abandoned him as he was overwhelmed with a feeling of dread. He knew that a day of reckoning was looming and that day was closing in as fast as the storm brewing outside.
It was getting increasingly dark and he could see the rain streaming down the windows. He never imagined that he would be sitting in the Diner again wishing he could see her one more time, pouring him a mug of coffee and talking mindlessly about her day. He wanted to see her smile again, the one that would creep over her face when he lifted his eyes from his drink to take her in once more. She had tried to hide it from him, shyly turning away. She had reminded him of a skittish deer, his own beloved Bambi unable to stand still or at peace. Always moving, always distracted. Caleb was captivated by her from the moment he looked into her sparkling blue eyes. He was hers from that moment on, that much he knew.