By MVR
Date: 15 November 1999

Soft Decimation

She thought it would be good. They were alone together, finally. 
In bed. Like adults, which they were. And it was their 3 month
anniversary!
"Happy anniversary," he said in his soft voice.
"Thanks," she said with a smile.
He laughed quietly.
"What's so funny?" she asked.
"You never say what you're supposed to say."
"What am I supposed to say?"
"Happy anniversary."
"Oh. Happy anniversary."
She felt so warm at that moment. Anything could happen. He could
propose marriage, miracle of miracles.
"This is strange," he said, shattering her illusions.
"What do you mean?"
"I've wanted to be alone with you for so long, and now that
we're finally alone, I don't really feel...anything."
She was silent. Her dreams began to die, slowly and without
a fight. Like ants succumbing to RAID.
"Do you?" he asked.
"Yes. I feel everything."
He knew that she loved him. He had read her poems and seen it
in her wistful blue eyes. She had never actually said the
words, but she didn't have to. Everything showed on her face.
"I'm sorry. I can say that I love you. But I can't say that I'm
in love with you," he said.
Things should have ended there. They almost did. She said some
choice words. He left the room. She heard him working on her
mom's stereo. He had said he would put it together.
As the tears streamed from her eyes, she did what she always
did when she was falling apart. She picked up the phone and
called her sister.
As she talked to her sister, she didn't try to be discreet and
lower her voice. Her words dripped with venom. She heard silence
in the other room and then he went outside.
She hung up the phone and joined him on the patio.
They talked. Her ego was stripped bare and her chest was
full of a flood of tears, but she managed to regain her
dignity and be funny.
"You've got lousy timing," she told him.
"I was going to cook for you. The full meal deal. Stir fry with
wine and dessert."
 As it turned out...they ordered buffalo wings and got drunk and
got back together, for the usual reasons.