Just a modern day fairy tale i wrote one day on a whim. It's kinda sappy, kinda cute, and i like it. Read and Review please!

Chance, Cheese, and Serendipity

The summer was just finishing, and Denelle was happy that her summer job as a waitress was soon ending. It was a small, yet busy restaurant that attracted many strange and unusual people as it was in the artsy part of town. It was just after six, and she was getting ready to go home, when her boss asked her to handle one more customer. Denelle sighed and showed the young man to a table near the window.

"Thank you," he said, taking a menu from her. She smiled politely, took his drink order, and then headed to the kitchen. She poured him a tall glass of Coca Cola, got out her little notepad, and took the young man his drink.

As she approached his table, she realized that he was perhaps the most amazing looking fellow she had ever seen. He had light brown hair that was neatly trimmed, and its natural colour; a rarity these days. His eyes were a deep blue, much like her own, and twinkled brightly when she drew nearer. His brow was soft and his face had an overall friendly appearance. One wouldn't call him handsome, but he certainly had a unique look about him that captured and captivated one's eye. She blushed when he smiled at her, revealing two rows of perfect white teeth. But it wasn't the perfect teeth that caused her to rouge, nor was it the perfect shape of his pale pink lips, it was the fact that the smile was intended only for her and was truly genuine.

"May I take your order?" she asked shyly, handing him his Coke.

The young gentleman looked up from his menu and straight into her eyes, causing her heart to skip a beat. "I would like a large plate of spaghetti please," he said, his voice carrying a gentle yet manly tone.

"Alright," she said, writing it down on the paper.

"And also," he said, never breaking eye contact, "instead of sauce on top, is it at all possible for me to get grated cheddar cheese?"

Denelle could not contain her smile at his strange request, and asked, "Don't you like sauce?"

He revealed that dashing smile again and Denelle could see a hint of pinkness appearing on his defined cheekbones. "I don't actually," he said, "I just never have for some odd reason, so I learned to enjoy cheese on my pasta instead of sauce."

Denelle smiled and a small giggle escaped her rosy lips. He laughed with her, a rich laugh that would make anyone join in with, despite not knowing the joke. "I'm sure grated cheese shall be fine," she said, and went to give the chef his order.

Denelle sat on a stool in the kitchen waiting for the pasta with grated cheddar cheese. She peeked through the doorway at him where he sat alone near the window. In her mind, she tried to guess what the name of this curious fellow could be. But as she racked her brain for every male name she could, one in particular kept popping out at her; Adam. She laughed to herself and thought how funny it would be if that turned out to be his name. Then, because she was bored and found herself liking this 'Adam' very much, she made a bet with herself; if his name was indeed 'Adam', then she would ask him to dinner for the following evening, and if it wasn't, then she would forget him forever. Just then, the food was ready so she placed it on a tray and carried it out to 'Adam'.

She arrived at his table and placed the plate of pasta in front of him. He smiled and was about to thank her when his cell phone rang. He motioned for her to wait a moment, and pulled it out of his pocket. Denelle smiled to herself when she noticed that his ring tone was the theme from her favourite movie and play, The Phantom of the Opera.

"Adam here," he said into the phone when he answered.

Denelle froze when she heard this, and could do nothing but stare at the table. I suppose I must ask him out to dinner then, she thought to herself. She simply could not believe that she had correctly guessed the stranger's name, and was quite dumbfounded. Just under a minute later, he flipped the phone shut and smiled at her once more. This time when he smiled, a shiver went up her spine and she felt strangely.

"I'm sorry about that," he apologized. "Thank you for bringing me my spaghetti with grated cheddar cheese on top…" he stopped, not knowing what to call her. "What's your name?"

Denelle looked down at her shirt and saw that she forgot to put her nametag back on. "Oh," she said, "My name's Denelle."

She could have sworn that she saw Adam's face pale when she spoke her name, but brushed it off as just being paranoid. "Denelle," he repeated after her. "That's a beautiful name." And then he smiled a smile that made her think that he knew something that she did not.

Denelle blushed at the compliment and managed to muster out a whispered 'thank you', before heading back to the kitchen. Once there, she mentally kicked herself for not taking the chance to ask him out. He's sweet, funny, amusing, handsome, and likes Phantom of the Opera…what more could I ask for? Why didn't I just make my move? She leaned against the wall and attempted to work up the courage she needed to speak to him properly.

Finally, the time came to go out, clear his dishes, and give him the bill. Denelle played out how her conversation would go over and over in her head until she was quite confident with her speech. She approached Adam's table and got ready to speak.

"This meal was delicious," said Adam, "my compliments to the chef."

"I'll be sure to tell him," she said, and then cleared her throat and began to speak. "I," she said, rather hesitantly.

"Yes?" he asked, penetrating her with a stare from his gorgeous blue eyes.

"I," she began again, "I wanted to know if," and then, Denelle lost her nerve, "if the Coke was alright, we've been having trouble with the fridge lately." It was a terrible lie, but she couldn't think of a better one.

His eyes lost their twinkle, and Denelle could have sworn that his face had a look of disappointment, but again, brushed it off as being paranoid. She nodded her head, handed him the bill, and hurried off to the kitchen. She peered out the doorway as he placed his tip on the table and then went to the front counter to pay. Then, Denelle watched as possibly the most amazing man she had ever met, walked out of the restaurant and out of her life.

Denelle was once more getting ready to leave to go home, when her boss called her back again. "Wait," he said, "that young man left something for you." He handed her a top of ten dollars, and a piece of folded paper.

"Thank you," she said sullenly, and went out to her car to read the paper.

Denelle, it said.

As I sat at my table during dinner, I tried to imagine what name a beautiful girl like you could possess. I knew that it must be something strange, for how could someone of your beauty possibly have an ordinary name. After much mental deliberation, I settled on Denelle. Then, though I know it is strange and possibly even quite stupid, I made a bet with myself. I bet that if Denelle was indeed your name, that I would ask you out to dinner tomorrow night. When I discovered that I guessed your name correctly, I was put into utter shock, and could not act on my intentions. Denelle, I am so glad to have met you and I know that in some way, big or small, you have made an impact on my life. Sadly though, I don't know your last name, your number, or where you live so I can't get into contact with you. So, I have decided that if you and I are truly meant to be, that serendipity will take its course and bring us together again one day. I know that this must seem all very peculiar to you, it does to me too, but I really somehow felt a connection to you.

Someday soon,

Adam

Denelle's hand shook as she read the paper over and over, taking in all that was happening. Then, as she pulled out of the parking lot, she smiled and secretly hoped that one day, she and Adam would meet up again and live happily ever after.

20 Years Later

"…Someday soon, Adam," Denelle finished reading, and folded the paper up.

"I'm so glad that someday soon did happen," said Adam, hugging his wife.

Life for the two had been wonderful, and now, on their fifteenth anniversary, they were once more going through the tradition of reading Adam's letter. Serendipity had indeed worked its wonders for them, though; they had to wait two years. They met at an obscure garage sale at Denelle's cousin's house in the country. He was admiring an abstract painting, and she was busy bargaining a price with an elderly couple. She had finally sold them the old dresser they wanted, and was heading to the house to put the money away when someone banged into her.

"What are you doing?" she asked, somewhat annoyed.

"Oh I'm sorry," he said, the last syllable trailing away when he looked into her eyes. They bother stood in silence for several moments, just staring at each other. And that's how they met again. After that moment at the garage sale they were inseparable and it was evident to everyone that they would be together forever. And now, as they celebrated their fifteenth anniversary, they really believed that they would be. Neither had ever been as happy as at that moment, looking into each other's eyes, while their two children looked on from the floor.

Adam flashed her his still heart stopping smile, and she nestled her head into his shoulder. And they sat there like that on the sofa, in true happiness and true love.

The End