Gild the Lily
After so many years, the impact became clear. Slowly but surely. Tell yourself it will be different this time and one is surely to believe it. Rachel did.
She had been given another chance. Counted those blessings and thanked God. All for that moment that Eddie had stood before her, grey and hardened by those years apart.
"We have one more chance, Rachel. Let's take it."
To respond in the negative had never been an option. They had both grasped the opportunity with both hands.
It had been fine, happy even. But the past was hard to forget, especially for someone like her. She needed assurance. He was assurance in himself, but that was still not enough.
It scared her. Those momentary lapses of concentration on something else, someone, anyone. The seconds they spent not talking after an argument. He was unhappy. He had to be.
She was happy but even so, she wasn't. A conflict that she could never win. All he had to do was tell her again, all those feelings he had shared before, and she reminded herself that this time would be different. Nothing was wrong. How could it be…