And There She Was

            It was easy to drift off on the subway.

            He would often listen to his music with his headphones on the way back to his apartment, but today, Parker was simply enjoying the silence. Well, silence is a bit of a stretch.

            Ka-thunk, Ka-thunk, Ka-thunk. The subway bumped along down the track. All around him, people spoke to one another. It was a wall of noise, but Parker didn’t hear any of it. He was lost in his thoughts about the day, what would happen tonight, and figuring out the rest of his week schedule-wise. Mixed in with all of that were fantasies. Parker enjoyed the subway rides, as they were some of the few times when he could let his imagination run free. Vivid daydreams, absurdly specific predictions, and abstract ideas circled through his mind.

            Parker looked around the subway car from his window seat. It wasn’t particularly crowded today. Most of the seats were filled, and there were a few people standing, holding onto the rails. Absentmindedly, he turned behind himself and started to survey some of the characters on the train. An old man with a long beard. A tired looking mother with two kids playing on their iPod touches. A heavyset man eating a sandwich. A business man in a suit, talking intensely on the phone. An old woman knitting. A tall and lanky guy ducking so that his head wouldn’t hit the ceiling. Parker turned back to face forward in his seat for a moment. But his curiosity wasn’t quite satisfied yet. So he turned to his left to see who was sitting on the opposite side of the car.

            And there she was.

            Standing in the aisle near his seat holding onto the handrail was a girl. She looked to be around the same age as him, if maybe about a year younger. She wore Converse Chuck Taylor All Star sneakers and slim dark jeans. Above that she wore a loose zip-up hoodie. Her long brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail, revealing her pretty and round face. Medium-sized rectangular glasses sat lightly upon her nose. She wasn’t a bombshell beauty; her prettiness was a bit more reserved. Her whole appearance gave off a very relaxed and casual vibe, but showed that she at least cared how she looked, enough to look nice and not sloppy. She had the kind of attraction that didn’t turn heads but if she was noticed, it would, as Parker would say, rope ‘em in.

            Parker was immediately taken with the girl on the subway that he had just seen for the first time.

            He realized he had been looking at her for perhaps just a moment too long and immediately jerked his head forward. Strange as it was, however, he wanted to see her again. He slowly panned around the whole train, planning to linger on her for just a moment. When he got to her, he was surprised to see her looking in his direction. As soon as he looked at her, she turned away, smiling slightly.

            Parker’s eyes opened wide and he turned back forward, smiling to himself. She had seen him! And smiled! He had to think quickly. What next? Could he say hi to her? Talk to her? What could he even say? Was it weird to try to talk to a stranger on a subway?  

            His smile fell. There was no way he had the guts to talk to this girl, even if it somehow wasn’t creepy. He never could. This happened all the time. It wasn’t uncommon for Parker to fall for strangers. It was a loop; every time he would see the girl, fall for her in his head, despite knowing nothing about her, and then move on. It wasn’t really that big of an issue, as he didn’t dwell on these things for too long. But in this moment, Parker wished that, just this once, he might have the courage to try to talk to this girl. He sighed, looking forward, as the train continued zooming through the tunnel.

***

            The subway screeches to a halt at the station. Parker stands up and grabs his bag, slinging it over his shoulder. As he makes his way towards the opening door, he notices the girl also heading for the exit. She makes it off first, and as she walks onto the platform, a small cylinder drops out of her bag. Parker notices this and stares for a moment.

            Chapstick.

            He briefly hesitates before deciding what to do, scoops up the chapstick, and runs up next to her.

            “Excuse me,” he says. “You dropped this.”

            She turns to him, slightly startled. “What?”

            “Your chapstick,” he answers. “I saw it fall out of your purse. I wanted to give it back to you.”

            “My… chapstick?” she asks, smirking.

            “Uh… yeah. Heh.” He hands it to to her and she puts it back into her bag.

            “Well… thanks.”

            “No problem!”

A painfully awkward silence lingers as they head up the stairs to the streets above.

            “Good choice, by the way,” Parker says.

            “What?”

            “Burt’s Bees. Vanilla. That’s a great chapstick.”

            “Oh. Thanks! Yeah, it’s my favorite. I always make sure I have a stick of it in my purse,” she responds.

            “Well then I would say that you have good taste!” he says. Inside, he cringes. What a completely stupid response. How has she not walked away yet?

            “That’s kind of a bold assumption to make about someone you just met and know nothing about, isn’t it?” she asks with a smirk.

            Parker is humiliated. “Oh, uh… yeah… sorry, I’ll just… uh…”

            “Dude,” she says. “I’m totally messing with you. I’m flattered that you think I have good taste. In fact, the fact that you think that I have good taste tells me that you yourself have good taste!”

            Parker is speechless. Did she really just say that? “I… uh… th-thank you…”

            “Look, I don’t usually do this, but here’s my number. Gimmie a call this weekend and we can grab a coffee together. I’d love to explore more of your tastes,” she says, scribbling down her number in pen on the back of his hand. “I’ll talk to you soon!”

            And with that, she turns a corner and disappears into the crowd. Parker stands in disbelief, wondering what just happened. Did that just happen? This isn’t how things work in real life. Girls don’t ask you to get coffee when you pick up their chapstick in a subway station. He hadn’t even really said anything that would cue her to do that. He didn’t even get her name! And yet, there it is; a number scribbled onto the back of his hand.

***

            Parker paces nervously in his apartment, cell phone in hand. “Come on…” he muses to himself. “Just DO it. Call her.” Carefully, he slowly brings his index finger to the bright green circle with the phone on it before quickly tapping it. He jerks up the phone to his ear to hear it ringing.

Ring.

Ring.

Ring. Parker sighs. She’s not gonna answer.

Ring. It was just a fluke, she’s-

“Hello?”

Parker freezes. Holy crap, she answered. He struggles to find his voice but nothing comes out.

“Hello, is anyone there?”

Parker swallows, then coughs. “Hey, yes, hi! Hi! Sorry, hi! It’s me! How are you?”

“Who is this?”

“It’s me, Parker!”

“Parker? Parker who?”

Parker gulps in order to get his stomach back down to his abdomen. He never told her his name. He only got her number. “Uh… Parker! I’m the guy from the subway station with the chapstick, and the-

“Oh, hi, Parker! What’s up?” He hears her snicker. She knew. He relaxes a little.

“I was just wondering if you wanted to maybe get some coffee this Saturday?”

They do, meeting up at a small coffee house. After some casual and awkward conversation, Parker is surprised that they actually hit it off. Things go so well that he eventually asks what’s been bugging him.

            “Hey, so, I’ve been wondering… why did you give me your number, despite the fact that I didn’t really do anything?”

            “Full disclosure?” she answers. “I saw you on the subway and I… I thought you were kinda cute.” She giggles. His cheeks redden. “So when you came and talked to me, and gave me back the chapstick, I took it as a sign and took a leap of faith.”

            “Wow…” he says. “Well, I guess I’d say you stuck the landing!”

            “Yeah, I guess I did.”

***

            A few weeks pass by. They continue to hang out with one another. One night, after seeing a movie, Parker is walking her home.

            “I really liked that,” she tells him. “It had everything you could want in a movie. Fantasy, romance, humor, you could relate to the characters… it was just an all around good film.”

            “Yeah, totally! It was really just kinda… perfect. I dunno. I had fun watching it.”

            They walk up to her front stoop. “Yeah, me too. I actually had a great time in general. This was… good…” she taunts. He looks down to see her looking up at him with her big blue eyes, magnified by her glasses. She flashes a smile at him. “So…”

            He turns down and looks at the sidewalk. “Yes… uh… okay, so… I was thinking. We’ve been hanging out a lot lately. So… is this like… what is happening here, exactly? Like, are we… a coup-”

Before he can finish the question, she pulls him into a kiss, catching him totally off guard. So much that he stumbles. The next thing Parker knows, the two of them are sitting on the ground laughing.

            “So… I guess that’s a yes, then?” He asks amid laughter, while standing and helping her up. In response, she just smiles at him and heads into her apartment, winking before she closes the door. Parker can’t help but have a skip in his step as he walks home after that.

***

Parker’s door bursts open as they come into the apartment and plop down on the couch, exhausted. “Well that was something,” Parker comments.

“Do you think they liked me?” she anxiously asks him.

“Of course. They’re my parents. I’m happy, they’re happy. They’ve always been that way.”

“Are you sure? I thought your mom was gonna have a heart attack when you told them about the time we went to that party when-”

“Relaaaaax. It’s totally fine. They loved you. I love you.” Her eyebrows shoot up. His do too, as he realizes what he just did. They both look at each other for a moment. Speechless. She blushes.

“You… I… I love you, too,” she whispers.

He turns dark red. “You… you do? You mean it?”

She beams at him. “Yeah. I do. I mean, we’ve been dating for over six months. I really enjoy spending time with you. I just met your parents, I mean, I… I love you.”

Parker wraps his arms around her, pulling her into a kiss. “I love you.” He can’t believe his luck. She’s perfect in every way. She brings out the best in him. He couldn’t be happier.

***

“There’s my graduate! Congratulations!” She jumps up and down as Parker walks up to her in his cap and gown, shrugging. She pulls him into a hug. “I knew you could do it!”

“Thanks, babe. But now comes the hard part.”

“Well you’ve got a job! In the city, even!”

“I know, I’m not… I’m not worried about that. I’m worried about this year that we have to get through.”

“Parker, just because I’ll be in school and you’ll have a real-person job doesn’t mean we’re gonna struggle. It’s just one year.”

“Yeah… you’re right. We’ll… we’ll be fine… right?” He looks at her. He is terrified. This relationship is the best thing that’s happened to him. He doesn’t want to lose it.

She only smiles at him. “Parker, please. Of course.”

***

Parker surprises her that summer with tickets to a show she has been excited to see since it was first announced.

“I can’t believe you got them! How did you do it?”

“Babe, don’t question my methods, just enjoy what I do for you.”

Parker has become much more confident in their relationship. He’s incredibly happy. She is too. After two years, things have never been better.

In order to see the show, they take the subway. Parker pays for the tickets and they board the train together. As they sit, Parker begins to sweat.

“Parker, are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. I guess I’m just excited to see the show with you is all,” he casually answers. She doesn’t suspect the real reason for his nervousness.

As the train slides to a stop, they get out and begin to cross the platform. Parker allows her to be a few feet in front of him. She absently notices that they are currently in the same station in which they met.

“Oh, hey, you dropped your chapstick,” she hears him say from a few feet behind. She turns to see him, down on one knee with a ring. “Will you marry me?” he asks.

“Of course I will, Parker!” she shouts. He sweeps her into his arms and they share a passionate kiss in the middle of the platform. Seeing what happened, people all around applaud. They don’t hear the wall of sound, though. They’re wrapped up in their own world, telling each other how great their love is.

***

Parker anxiously waits at the altar. After what seems like an eternity, the music finally kicks in. He turns and looks to the back of the church.

And there she is.

She looks stunning. Wonderful. Perfect. Against all odds, Parker is getting married to the woman of his dreams.

A million thoughts flood through his head as she walks down the aisle. Time slows down. How did they get here? How did a girl so perfect fall for… him? How is she getting married to him? How did things turn out so well?

She arrives at the altar and he pulls up her veil. It all happens so quickly, and Parker barely even hears the priest. He almost misses the part where he gets to kiss the bride. And before he knows it, Parker is a married man.

***

            One morning, about a month after the honeymoon, she wakes with a start and rushes into the bathroom. Parker rubs his eyes and limps out of bed, over to the bathroom door.

            “Honey?” he asks. “Is everything okay?” He receives no answer at first, aside from the sound of her losing last night’s dinner. “Oh… dear…” he mumbles to himself before sitting on the bed.

            A few minutes later, she opens the bathroom door and walks out, wiping off her mouth. “I’m fine,” she assures him.

            “I don’t buy it,” answers Parker, standing up. “This is like, four days in a row. If it were just a stomach virus, it’d be gone by now.”

            “Parker, I-” He puts his hands on her shoulders.

            “Go see the doctor today.”

            “I’m fine! It’s just-”

            “Please.”

            She looks at him for a moment. He looks right back into her eyes. He is full of worry and care, and she can tell.

            “Okay. I’ll call and make an appointment.”

            Parker sighs in relief. “Thank you. In the meantime, just relax. I’m gonna get you some water, but then I gotta get ready for work.”

            She smiles. “Thanks, babe. I really appreciate how much you care.”

            “Of course! I love you. I just want what’s best for you!” He pulls her close into a tight embrace.

             “I know, Parker. I know.”

***

She nervously paces in the living room, waiting for Parker to return home. When he does arrive, he’s surprised to see her waiting for him.

“Hey, honey, did you go see the doctor today?”

“Yes. Um… I did…”

“And? Are you feeling any better?”

“Well, I-”

“Are there any prescriptions you need me to pick up for you? Cause I was gonna run to the pharmacy to-” He notices her hand is on his shoulder.

“Parker…”

“What’s up? What did the doctor say?”

“…He told me I’m pregnant.”

Parker freezes. He looks up and down at his wife, expressionless. “You’re… pregnant?”

“Mmmhmm…” she forces a nervous smile.

Parker immediately embraces her and starts crying. “I’m so happy! Let’s do this together, babe! We’re gonna have a baby!” The two of them cry tears of joy as they embrace. They are unbelievably happy together.

***

“It’s a boy!”

Parker prevents himself from screaming too loudly into the phone to his mother. But he can hardly contain his excitement. He’s a new parent, after all!

After the excitement dies down, she and he are alone in the hospital room with their new son. “Honey,” he says. “We made this.”

“Oh, good Lord, Parker. Could you be more cliché? How many movies did you watch before you came up with that one?” she teases him. He laughs.

“I’m excited, okay? You know I get cliché-ey when exciting things happen!”

“And you know I love that about you.”

They smile at each other. Parker looks at his son. They have a baby. A perfect, newborn baby. They are a family.

They have a daughter about a year and a half after that. With two kids, they move out of the city and into the suburbs. They get a nice small house with a front lawn.

Parker’s parents had always told him that the years would start to fly by. Now that he has kids of his own, he sees how right they were. Before he knows it, their kids are going into high school, and they have been married for fifteen years.

***

Parker sits at the kitchen table, anxiously waiting for her to return home. She arrives a few minutes later.

“How’d it go?” he asks.

“I mean, it was fine. He’s a nice boy,” she answers.

“I don’t trust him,” he firmly states.

“Well of course you don’t trust him. He’s the first boy to take our daughter on a date!”

“He just seems… too nice. To me, at least.”

“Well maybe he actually is nice! Is that hard to believe?”

He looks at her in earnest. “Do you think… she likes him because he’s nice?” She looks back at him, reading him. He is nervous. Why is their daughter already going on dates? She was a baby like, a minute ago. She holds his hand.

“At thirteen? No. There’s no way she’s going on a date at thirteen because he’s nice. He’s probably more popular or something like that. Parker, this is literally nothing. They’re gonna go and see a movie and then maybe hug on the playground tomorrow, but that will be it. It’s totally normal.”

Parker smiles at her. “You always know what to say. How to make me feel better.” She pulls him to his feet and starts dancing with him.

“It’s because I love you. Now why don’t we have our own little ‘first date’ tonight?”

“But what about-”

“He’s sleeping over his friend’s house tonight. It’s just us for the next few hours.” She smiles at him and he smiles back. They continue to silently waltz around the kitchen together.

***

As the years continue to fly by, they make it a point to continue to have these intimate and romantic nights with each other. The years pass as their kids make it through high school and go off to college. Parker and his wife continue to parent them as much as possible, despite being empty-nesters. Eventually, however, their kids start to form lives of their own.

***

“Mom? Dad? You guys here?” their son asks, coming into their house.

“Of course we’re here, buddy, where else would we be?” Parker calls from the kitchen. Their son heads in, seeing his father making breakfast as his mother sits at the table. “How’re you doing, son? Where’s the wife?”

“Well, dad, that’s why I’m here,” he answers, before calling out the front door. “Okay, honey, you can come in now! Mom, dad, there’s someone I’d like you guys to meet.”

His mother frantically panics for a moment, flipping through her calendar. “Wait a minute! This isn’t… I thought she wasn’t due for another few weeks!?” As she asks this, their son’s wife enters through the front door holding a wrapped up blanket. Parker gasps, turning off the stove and sitting at the table.

“I’d like you guys to meet your first granddaughter,” their son tells them. His mother gasps and begins crying. Parker looks on, teary eyed as his son explains how the baby just wanted to come out a little early, but that there were no complications.

“But why didn’t you let us know? We would have been at the hospital for you!” Parker asks.

“We wanted to surprise you like this,” his son answers.

“Did I miss the big reveal?” calls their daughter from outside. She and her boyfriend enter, hand in hand. “Hey, mom and dad. Good to see you.” She turns to her brother and the baby. “Congrats, big bro.”

“Thanks, little sis.”

Everyone takes turns passing around the baby. “She looks just like you,” the mother points out to her son. “Just like you.” She turns and smiles at Parker.

Parker surveys the scene. His daughter, the spitting image of her mother, and her boyfriend. Who’d have thought she’d end up back with the punk she went on her first date with? His son, daughter-in-law, and their first child. His first grandchild. And finally his wife. They have now been together for thirty-five years. It’s been an incredibly happy thirty-five years. He thinks back on his life. What an incredible life it’s been.

***

Ka-thunk, Ka-thunk, Ka-thunk, Ka-THONK! The subway hit a bump, startling Parker. He looked at the map and saw that he still had a few stops to go before he got off. He turned and looked around the car again.

And there she was.

Still.

Just holding onto the bar. She leaned forward as the train slowed to a stop. The doors opened and she headed for the closest exit. Parker continued to watch her as she weaved in and out of the crowd and in and out of his field of vision. An opening in the crowd allowed him to see her being greeted by some guy. She seemed pretty excited to see him. People continued to walk in front of them, so Parker couldn’t see too clearly what was happening. But as the train pulled away, he saw the guy pull her into a kiss.

Parker sighed and turned back forward, leaning his head on the glass.

It was too easy to drift off on the subway.