HE was her world and his happiness and well-being were the most important things in her life. That evening she took him to the mall for ice cream and met her cousin with her two kids.
“Hey Rachel,” Jennifer greeted her delighted, “I haven’t seen you in a long while.”
“Oh hey, it’s so nice to see you,” Rachel expressed, giving her a hug.
“So where have you been? What have you been doing?” Jennifer asked.

“Work and more work.”
“Girl, you got to take a break sometimes.”
They sat down and chatted casually about home and family after the kids had finished their ice cream and were in the play area. The inevitable question, of course, was how Rachel was coping with life being a single mother.
“I’m doing just fine,” she replied with a little smile, but Jennifer did not miss that flash of pain in her eyes. She squeezed her hand comfortingly.
“You’re strong,” the family knows that, given what you’ve been through and something better may come your way.”
“Thank you.”

They continued chatting a little longer of different things as the kids were still playing and Jennifer suddenly asked, “Did you hear about the basketball star from the US? He was at your school, right?”
Rachel answered coolly, not giving away that she knew anything about him, “Yeah his visit caused a lot of excitement among the students.”
“I heard he’s really handsome with a stunning, well built body, and girls are going crazy over him.”
“That happens when you’re a star,” Rachel said with a smile.

“But the strange thing is,” Jennifer stated, “He hasn’t been showing real interest in anyone.”
“How do you know that?”
“It’s what I’ve been hearing.”
“Oh,” Rachel exclaimed quietly, her thoughts going back to what he told her that day.
“I have come back to see you.”

“Is this for real?” she questioned silently.
Jennifer was talking to her and she snapped back to the present.
“Have you seen him yet?”
“Who? No. Yes—I.”
Jennifer laughed a little, looking at her puzzled, “You seem distracted.”
“Yeah, just a little…”
The kids came running back, much to her relief.

That night, in bed, she tried not to think of anything Jennifer said but her mind still wondered. She didn’t see or hear from Bryan for two days and she was thankful so her mind won’t be disturbed by his image and she could settle down with her work schedule.
But Nathan kept looking out for him.
“Is he coming back to see us, mommy?”
“Not sure, baby, he’s quite a busy person.”

“Oh,” he went back to his toys but she saw the disappointment on his face and she thought of Bryan.
“He walked into our lives so unexpectedly and has apparently won my son’s heart.”
She couldn’t let him feel down so she asked him, “Would you like to go to the movies? Transformers is showing.”
His face brightened up with a joyous smile then he said, “But what if Bryan comes to see us?”
“He’ll probably come back another day.”

He didn’t seem to like that but he settled for the movie.
They were about to leave home, the taxi already waiting outside when Bryan stopped by. Nathan’s face lit up and he expressed with joy, “You’re back!”
“Missed me?”
“Yes, I did.”
He looked at Rachel and asked, “Did you?”
She smiled wryly, not answering.
“So, where are you guys going?”

“To the movies,” Nathan answered excitedly and taking hold of her arm, he asked, “Mommy, can Bryan come with us?”
“No, baby,” she answered immediately.
“Why not?”
“Well, there will be too many people wanting to meet him, talk to him and…”
Nathan looked at her not quite understanding and she looked at Bryan, a little crossed, “You’re not helping me here.”
He shrugged, smiling, “I have no objection to going to the movies.”

“Damn,” she muttered under her breath and said a bit exasperated, “Okay, he can come.”
On the way, Nathan thrilled to be riding in Bryan’s luxury ride said, “Cool car.”
Bryan looked at Rachel and asked, “Do you think so too?”
“No,” she answered abruptly, still not pleased with him.
“You know, I’ve never seen you vex about anything, you always had this beautiful smile that brightened my day.”
And there again, was that sincere tone in his voice and the look in his eyes.

It awakened something in her that she had suppressed over the years because of pain.
From the moment they entered the mall, to getting tickets and snacks, young people were calling out to him, wanting to shake his hand and take out pictures. Rachel and Nathan had to go ahead in the theatre and he joined them just before the movie started.
“Same thing I said,” Rachel voiced as he sat down.
“That’s my life, endless attention, hardly any privacy, but I have to live my life.”

Nathan was a happy little boy with a basketball star next to him, his popcorn and drink and the Transformers movie.
He touched his mother’s hand and said with an affectionate smile, “Thank you.”
“What for?”
He inclined his head slowly towards Bryan and she smiled, happy that he was happy. Back home, after the movies and after putting Nathan to bed, she said to Bryan, a little apologetically, “I didn’t want you with us but it was fine.”
“I take it he was quite happy tonight.”

“Yeah,” she said, not looking directly at him, afraid he might see something in her eyes she didn’t want him to see.
He knew though, what she was battling with and after a short while, he sighed and got up.
“I guess I have to go.”
She nodded with a gentle smile but at the door he turned back and said, “I forgot something.”
“What?”

He came back close to her and kissed her on the cheek, a slight, lingering kiss, “Good night.”
That was so unexpected, it left her stunned and she caught her breath only until after he was gone.
“Oh wow.”
The next day, her mother came to visit whilst she was rearranging her kitchen, adding a few new decors.
“Hi, mom,” she greeted her, “How are you doing?”
“I am doing fine, by the Grace of God,” her mother replied, “But I have been wondering about you because I have not been hearing from you recently.”
“Sorry about that, but you know how busy I am with work, Nathan and home.”

“That’s why I told you, you should get—”
“Don’t go there,” Rachel interrupted her, “It’s why we can’t talk regularly.”
“Okay,” her mother accepted, “was just trying to help.”
“Thank you,” she gave her a hug.
The day was spent nicely with her mother, something they hadn’t done in a long while and as she was getting ready to leave, Bryan stopped by.
“Well, hello,” her mother reacted with interest, “Who is this handsome, young man?”

“A friend.”
“Interesting!” she remarked, “It’s about time she has a friend.”
Rachel gave her a warning look that Bryan did not miss, so after she left, he asked, “What was that?”
Rachel sighed, “Since my divorce, she had been pushing me, out of care, to have someone in my life.”
“And you don’t want to?”

“No.”
“Why?”
Rachel looked at him, a little impatient.
“Do we have to have this conversation?”
“Not if you don’t want to, I’d just like to know.”
She sighed again, then after a long moment, she said, “I don’t want to be hurt again.”
He did not respond for a long moment, then said in that tone, “If you can allow yourself to believe in true love and listen to what your heart is saying, you would know he is close by, not to hurt you but to love you.”
He got up and kissed her again on the cheek, a little more lingering and saying softly, “Very close.”

To be continued…