The rain did not come that day. The sky was clear, almost painfully bright , as if the world had decided to move on from the quiet comfort of grey .Aiden arrived at their usual place and felt the difference immediately. Without the rain , the silence felt exposed. Honest. Unprotected. He wondered if she would still come on a day that carried no sadness. Minutes passed. Then she arrived. Isla walked in slowly, her eyes searching the room and they found Aiden, it felt as both of them breathed in relief at the same moment. In that instant, Aiden realized a truth he had been avoiding: He waited for her. Not just for the meeting but for the peace her presence brought into him. She sat across from him ''It didn't rain today'', she said with a faint smile. 'Yes,'' Aiden replied, 'Perhaps even the sky gets tired sometimes''. Isla looked at him, as if reading the exhaustion hidden behind his words.''And people?'' she asked softly.''Do people get tired...of being strong?'' For the first time, Aiden looked away .He knew the answer. He had carried the burden of strength for years.
''YES'', he said quietly ,''sometimes a person doesn't want to be strong...but life doesn't give them a choice.'' A trace of moisture appeared in Isla's eyes, but she hid it behind a smile .
They sat in silence for a while.
Then Isla spoke gently, 'If one day e can't meet anymore...will memories be enough?''
The question sank straight into his heart .
Before answering, Aiden looked at her carefully. There was an unfamiliar fear in her eyes as if she could already sense a coming separation.
''Memories'',Aiden said softly, 'they stay with you, but they cannot fill an empty space''.
Isla lowered her graze. In that moment, an unfamiliar fear awakened in Aiden's heart.
The fear that the peace e had found might be temporary. The fear that some beautiful things do not last forever. AND for the first time, he silently prayed for time to stop.
But time never stops for anyone.