Every Night's Another Story
She sits down, wondering if he's thinking about her thinking about him. Probably not. It was an empty theatre, with the exception of the two. Her seat was two rows behind his, and slightly to the right. The lights were already dimmed and the previews were playing. She sniffled for some reason. It could've been because she was still sick from that concert festival last week--she always fell ill after going to shows. Something about being pressed against dozens of sweaty strangers made her immune system go berserk. She could have been sniffling because she was struggling to hold back tears. Why would she be crying? She has no idea.That new Ben Affleck movie looks horrid. He'd be good-looking if he weren't a Boston fan. The man two rows in front of her had a nice profile in the glow from the screen. The movie begins and she settles in, pushing her seat back, resting her aqua-blue Converse All-Stars on the seat in front of her. The smallest of smiles flickers across her lips as she sees that he is sitting in the same position she is.About fifteen minutes into the film--which she is enjoying quite a bit--he gets up and leaves the theatre. She is saddened, for two reasons: he wasn't as immersed in this brilliant piece of cinema as she was, and...she was alone. She bites the inside of her cheek. Not even a minute later the door opens again and he returns, a full bag of warm popcorn in hand. Oh. Her eyes stay focused on the funeral onscreen, but she watches him in her peripheral vision as well. Silently praying to a god she doesn't believe in, she hopes that he'll take her nonexistent hint and come to sit next to her. Perhaps share his buttered snack as well. She notices he looks directly at her and hesitates. Heart beat increases slightly. He returns to his old seat. She sniffles again.The film continues and she is entranced by it. She is so glad she went to see it, even though she had to go it alone. She would have preferred to go with... but he had already left for college again. The movie was close to ending. Sam was crying because Andrew was leaving her, even though he said he loved her; she was crying because no one had ever truly loved her like that. The man two rows ahead of her probably assumed it was her stuffy nose causing all the noise. She really thought Andrew was leaving Sam. But no. Typical Hollywood ending said that the hero always comes back for his girl and, as per usual, he did. She felt a new flood of tears coming on. It never happened like that. Boys leave, girls cry, no happily ever after. She was so jaded for being so young.She managed to keep a straight face as she walked through the door the man two rows in front of her held open for her, exiting the theatre. She offered her thanks and left the building. It wasn't until she had fallen into the hot confines of the front seat of her car did the deluge start. She didn't know why she was crying. She was just sad. Ten minutes later, her salt-water reserves had emptied and she sniffled as she buckled her seat belt and left the parking lot. There was no desire to go home.At the mall, she was even more alone. Couples everywhere, and she couldn't even find a familiar face. She left, dejectedly, two hours later and spent the evening alone, letting herself get caught up in the happy fictional world of the television. Its warm glow was nowhere near as comforting as the warm embrace of a lover.God, she missed him.
