Love at the time of Closure🔊

David and Heather had always been inseparable from the time they were kids. Their families were next-door neighbours in the small town of Vernon in British Columbia, and the two were the best of friends from day one. They grew up together, went to college in the same city, and eventually became sweethearts.

David was a Computer Science major while Heather was an ardent student of Literature. Despite what seemed like polar opposite interests, their bond was unshakeable, winding and weaving through the chronicles of their closely-knit existence. It was bearing witness to love blossoming at its finest. Pivoting around shared laughter, affections, aspirations, and dreams, it felt like both had found their life anchors in each other. They shared a connection so beautiful that even silence between them was comfortably sweet.

However, a chilly December night in their final year changed everything. Under the glittering copper-toned leaves, David proposed to Heather. Contrary to what everyone expected and what David was certain of, Heather said 'No'. A painful, jarring silence followed. She didn't provide a reason; she just walked away, leaving David, heartbroken.

Life post-college took them to separate cities. They had lost touch. The connection that once nourished their life seemed to suffocate them now.

Fifteen long years of silence passed only to be broken by a chance encounter at a software conference in San Francisco. David was now the founder of a successful start-up, and Heather was a respected keynote speaker and author.

Heather was at the podium when she spotted David amidst the crowd. As their eyes met, a flurry of bitter-sweet emotions engulfed them both. After the conference, tentatively, each approached the other, reconciliation of their shared past evident in their eyes.

As the evening fog wrapped around the city, they found themselves at Fisherman's Wharf, walking in silence, history trailing behind. David finally mustered the courage and asked her, 'Why did you say no that night, Heather?'

Heather, after a long pause, replied with a sigh. 'I always knew you were meant for great things, David... bigger than Vernon, bigger than both of us. I did not say no because I did not love you, but because I loved you too much to clip your wings. I feared that our marriage might limit us to our small town when both of us had dreams the size of oceans. I just… couldn't do that to you. To us.’

It made sense to David now. His heart sighed, wishing they'd had this conversation years ago. They stood by the ocean in silence, hearts brimming with unspoken emotions, both familiar and uncanny. Gradually, the unuttered words, silence, and their past started dissolving into the fog around them. For the first time in years, David felt free.

As the night wrapped itself around them, the two bid goodbyes, promising to remain in touch. They hadn’t found love back in each other’s arms, but they had found closure, and sometimes, that's what true love is all about. It is as much about holding on as it is about letting go.