Maria lay in her bed, watching the sun slowly light up her empty bedroom more and more. Another sleepless night. Three in a row. She'd been a mess since he left. Pointless memories, she thought, such precious moments with him, now pointless.

She closed her eyes and pictured the beach where they first met. She'd gone to spend the day with friends, but when she met him in the line for an ice cream cone, she couldn't tear herself away from the hypnotic, mysterious man that had captured her heart instantly. When she returned to her friends they urged her to go back to him. They knew she'd met the man of her dreams.

When Maria opened her eyes again they were filled with tears. The memory overtook her mind.

She laid on a beach towel next to the man she'd met earlier that day. Enjoying the warm rays of sun and the cool ocean breeze as they talked about anything and everything. They talked until the sun set. She'd never met anyone like him before. His blue eyes hypnotized her, his kind smile melted her heart.

She could remember their first kiss like it had just happened. They'd talked all day, the sun was just starting to set. They were sitting on a tall sand dune, just watching the sun go down. She glanced over at him finding that he had already been looking at her, his blue eyes pulling her in. She'd gotten lost in his ocean yet again. He reached up to touch her cheek, running his thumb across her cheekbone and down across her bottom lip. Then, he leaned in, pressed a slow, sweet kiss to her lips before pulling away.

Maria's heart fluttered at the memory. She remembered all of their kisses, all of their touches. All the time she'd spent building what she'd hoped to be her last relationship. Until he dashed that dream. Committing to a relationship wasn't something he could, not with how much time he spent on the road for his job.

Maria rolled onto her side, facing the window and glared at the sun. She threw her covers off of her and stomped over to her desk. She wrenched open the drawer that held everything she'd ever written for and about him. Things she'd never shared. Things she never would share. All the pieces of her heart she'd given to him that he'd unknowingly broken. She had been stupid to think he'd choose her.

She picked up the letter on top of the stack. Her retelling of the night they'd spent walking around a small park near her apartment. The same weekend she'd met him on the beach, he'd asked to meet her there to go on a walk. They'd held hands as they strolled through the lush, green grass. She'd removed her shoes to feel the coolness against the soles of her feet, enjoying nature the most she could. He'd followed suit, smiling and laughing about how silly it was.

"It's called earthing," she'd explained to him as she gazed into his icy blue eyes. She blushed as he laughed still, his smooth, deep voice made her tremble with nerves. He was so perfect in every way. "Seriously! It's good for your soul to connect with nature physically. You'll see!" They walked until they needed to sit.

It was just turning to dusk when they heard sprinklers go off in the distance. The sound puzzled them until the sprinklers around them started spraying. Maria squealed as he laughed and they ran together, attempting to get out of the soaking spray. It had been too late, though. They were soaked to the bone. He ran out reasons to keep running and stopped her by pulling her into his body under the rain-like drops. She curled into the warmth of his body and looked up into his eyes to get lost again, she was sure she'd developed an addiction to him his beautiful eyes. He kissed her again that night. He kissed her so deeply that she could still feel it.

Maria touched her lips as she set the letter back down. Didn't matter anymore. He didn't want her, he'd said. Didn't want her to love him. So, he left.

Maria walked to her kitchen, craving the warm comfort of coffee. She needed something to help the cold empty feeling she felt. After pouring a cup she sat in her favorite chair, leaving the television off, sitting in silence. She was occupied with her thoughts of the day he left.

He'd spent the morning with her, starting with her making him breakfast once he arrived, tired from travelling and quiet because he knew it was the last time he would see her. She remembered he looked so sad, like his heart was breaking. She could see it in the way he slumped his shoulders and stared at the floor almost the entire time he'd been with her.

"You'll be better off without me, Maria," he'd told her. "It's not gonna work."

She felt her knees start to shake. They hadn't even started anything yet, but she could feel her heart begin to ache at his words, shaking her to her very core. He never explained why it wouldn't work. He just pressed a kiss to her forehead and left. Left her heart shattering into a million pieces as it felt like she couldn't breathe without him near.

A tear trailed down Maria's cheek as she thought about that day. The worst day of her life. She sat in her chair and cried silently over the man who'd broken her heart. She finished her coffee, feeling numb after crying so much the last three days. Her head ached. Her heart ached. Her whole body hurt.

Her heart jolted when she heard a soft knock on her front door. She hoped beyond hope that it was him. Her tall, dark, mysterious love. She peered through the peep hole. Her heart raced as she found the blue gaze that she'd been wishing to see. She hurried to unlock the door, fumbling with the chain and deadbolt, both not opening easily or fast enough. She flung the door open..

"What do you want, Randy?" she asked, trying to put venom in her voice, trying to be angry for the hurt he'd caused, but it only came out as a sad whisper.

"You." His voice made her heart jump out of her chest. "I'm sorry. I thought I could leave you alone. Thought I could let you go," he said as he wrapped his strong, tattooed arms around her shoulders and crushed her into his hard, well-muscled chest. He held onto her for dear life, it seemed.

"Randy," Maria mumbled into his chest, "Please don't leave me again."

"Never. I can't." He pulled back slightly and pushed her chin up to look her in the eyes. "I love you too much." Tears clouded his beautiful eyes. She could see the storm raging behind those blue eyes. Those blue eyes she loved so much.

"I love you, Randy." She went up on her toes and pressed a kiss to his soft lips.