The air was full of the impending Thanksgiving feast. The Berkeley campus had already started its mass exodus and as Ryan walked along the campus green, he found the silence of the campus remarkable. He paused for a moment to tie his shoes and as he did Ryan let his mind settle on Sadie, his girlfriend. They had been seeing each other since September; things had moved slowly, just as he had wanted, but as the weeks progressed and he spent more time with the girl, the more he found himself liking her and wanting to be with her.

Taylor was of course not forgotten; she still lingered in his mind and he did not pass a single day without thinking about her. He often wondered if she thought about him as well; she had certainly taken the break-up in stride. She had been sad, Taylor had told Summer, about how things had worked out, but she didn't want to put her life on hold. Taylor hadn't waited to take up dating Carlos; Ryan spied them around campus from time to time; at first the sight of them had driven him mad with anger, jealousy and remorse, now however, he could see them together and not really feel pain. From Summer Ryan learnt that Taylor was seeing other people besides Carlos; at least she was living the life she wanted, Ryan told himself as he continued to walk through the campus.

He stopped again when he heard his cell phone buzz with the notification of a new text message. Sadie was just texting to say hello; she missed him and he smiled at the memory of their morning together. He quickly wrote her back and thought about her. That he was not in love with her was certain; she was however a very sweet and interesting and attractive young woman who made him happy. She was easy to get along with and fairly without drama; Ryan liked that. It was easy spending time with her and already, after only two months, Ryan felt very comfortable and secure in his relationship with her.

Sadie wrote back to tell him that she was making him a special dinner for that evening and would also let him help her make dessert for Thanksgiving. Ryan smiled at that; she usually didn't let Ryan help out in the kitchen, she liked to cook for him and that was that. He wondered what the surprise would be and wrote her back about what she was making for Thanksgiving dessert; the answer came back quickly, "blueberry pie." Thanksgiving was going to be a big to-do at the Cohen household. Frank and Julie and Kaitlin were coming up from LA and Ryan was going to have to prepare himself for potential disaster because Dawn and Trey and Lisa were coming over for dinner as well. Of course both parents had promised to be on their best behavior, but it still worried Ryan because this was the first time in many years that his mother and father would be in the same room together.

Ryan picked up his pace; he was done for the day now and was going to go back to his apartment so he could put the finishing touches on a small project he had to turn in the next day, the last day of school before Thanksgiving break. As he was walking, Ryan passed by a small green space and stopped. A good thirty or forty yards away from him was Taylor, Carlos and another young man Ryan had never seen before. They were all sitting, eating lunch and laughing. Even from the distance Ryan could tell Taylor was enjoying herself; she laughed uncontrollably at something the other young man said and as she stopped laughing, Taylor's face was lit up in fiery amusement.

For whatever reason, Ryan felt himself transposed to that spot. He stood there, watching Taylor hold court with the two men. He had seen her only a week before, and even though he had not spoken to her and she had not noticed him, he had been okay; his heart hadn't swelled with unhappiness like it had in the past, nor as it was now. He watcher her, and for the first time since the early days of their breakup, he wanted her and missed her. He knew that it was an unrealistic goal, and one that lacked merit or was worth pursuing, but then and there, whatever had happened to them in the past, he wanted her. Ryan wanted to be the one who Taylor's eyes shone brilliantly one, warming the soul; he wanted her gorgeous smile to be the result of something witty and funny he had said. To those lingering hands and soft, petal like fingers, Ryan wished to reach out and take them in his and kiss them gently.

As he remained frozen in his thoughts, memories of their time together resurfaced. He thought of her in Newport, eager to be with and share something with him. Ryan thought of the early days of their courtship, the happy days of long ago when they had been caught up in the delirium of learning about one another and the unmistakable happiness of finding out what secret treasures each person held. Small seconds, moments that had seemed forgettable at the time, came streaking through his mind. He remembered holding her while they waited for Seth and Summer to show up for a double date; he remembered silently holding her hand while waiting for a movie and the feelings of pride and happiness he had because she had been so beautiful that day. Yes, there were fragments of time, but together they had put together such a beautiful picture. Pity then that the picture had lead to nothing but a piercing sadness. Had it been so long ago that she had come over to Thanksgiving dinner at the Cohen household? Had it been so long ago that she had once been a refuge from her mother's home?

"Hi Ryan." It was Taylor, her hazel eyes glittering in merriment.

"Hey." He must have been completely out of it because she had appeared almost out of thin air.

"So what's up? I saw you standing here; I don't think you blinked for like two minutes."

"Sorry." He felt incredibly embarrassed and awkward now. How long had it been since he had heard her voice, had stood only feet away from her? Her scent was as he remembered it but her voice seemed deeper, more mature and sensual. "I should go."

"No wait—I wanted to say hi to you. How have you been?"

"Not too bad—all right I guess." He tried to smile but all that came of it was a shy grin. She looked lovely standing there, in the fading afternoon sunlight. The sunlight illuminated her locks, which created a halo of light through her hair. They stood in silence, both not sure of what to say next. Taylor had not really changed since their break up, still gorgeous and overpowering in her beauty.

"Summer says you're having a big party for Thanksgiving."

"Yea—my mom and my dad are coming over so that might be a"

"Disaster." She finished the sentence for him, smiling all the way. "I'm leaving tomorrow for Newport; my mom is trying to throw the biggest dinner in the history of Newport. The governor might even be there."

"I'm sure you'll have fun." Taylor laughed at that.

"I bought a new dress for the occasion so showing it off will probably be the highlight of the evening."

"Are you bringing him with you?" Ryan nodded his head towards Carlos on the green.
"Yes—first time meeting my mother."

"I feel sorry for him." He was trying to play off this meeting with a bravado that was difficult to maintain.

"Well I've given him as much warning as possible—but she isn't really that scary anymore—she was pretty sweet to you."

"Yeah she was." Taylor played with a lock of her hair and bit her lip, as if trying to think of something to say so she could keep this conversation going. She at least appeared to be perfectly at ease; it had the effect of making Ryan feeling less at ease.

"So Summer told me about you and Sadie—I was happy for you."

"Were you?" His tone came off sharper than he would have liked; Taylor frowned.

"Yes—she sounds like a sweet girl."

"She is—she makes me happy."

"That's a good thing to look for in a relationship." It appeared that Taylor was about to apologize but then stopped, as if she decided it was better not to drag up the past. "He's petty sweet too." She looked back at Carlos and her eyes were full of fondness; yet there was a touch of sadness in her eyes too that Ryan had not detected earlier. "Not as sweet as you though." Those words couldn't but help from coming out.

"Sadie's lucky then." He didn't want to go down this road, not today.

"I guess she'll be with you at Thanksgiving?"

"She's cooking dessert right now."

"And she cooks too—well Sadie certainly has her advantages." Taylor spoke in such a good-natured way that Ryan believed that she was glad for him. "I won't be cooking at all—my mother doesn't believe I have any culinary talent even though I did spend three years in France and have cooked for her. You remember—I always made you good meals."

"Yes—it was always a fancy dish that I couldn't pronounce."

"That's because you refused to learn any French." Taylor laughed in a soft, playful manner. A silence spread over them and it was like the silence of the past, good and comfortable. For a madding moment, as he looked into her, he wanted to grab her and kiss her and make love to her on that soft earth below him. Ryan opened his mouth to speak, but whatever it was he meant to say was interrupted by the voice of Carlos calling for Taylor. "I have to run." She waved to Carlos and turned back to Ryan. "I'm glad we got to talk a little. Don't be a stranger." She waved good-bye to him and wished him a Happy Thanksgiving in a small, fading voice.

Ryan stood silently and watched her recede into the heart of the campus. He stood as a man spellbound but then his cell phone rang. It was Sadie; the spell was broken.