He was sitting in the coffee shop trying to finish the presentation. He hated speaking and had procrastinated to the point where it was now an emergency. And that didn’t make it any easier to write.

He knew he should just take the coffee back to his room, but the silence just made him more nervous. The sounds, of course, distracted him so he felt like there was no winning.

Looking out the window, he saw a woman standing alone along the water. Her gaze was fixed on the far shore and she seemed lost in thought.

He looked down at his laptop and started to type, but her face kept interrupting his thoughts. He found himself writing her story in his head.

She was waiting for her lover to return. They, of course, had been separated for months because it made the story so much more compelling. He was to return this morning and they would unite.

He’d had to take a job far away to save up money for their wedding because their families didn’t approve of the union. Wait. Really? Was he seriously writing a Victorian novel in his daydream. He found himself laughing and the customers close by gave him a questioning look.

Back to the presentation. He finished the last slide and looked up, stretching. She was still there. It looked like she was a statue with how still she was, the wind blowing her hair in her face. His mind started back on the loop.

His evil boss had sent him on a long assignment and she was awaiting his return. He was coming in on one of the ferries and she wasn’t sure of the time. But, she knew he would come back to her.

He imagined their reunion on the dock, a passionate kiss, and holding hands as they returned to her hotel room. They wouldn’t leave the room for the entire weekend as they reacquainted themselves. The room would smell of sex by the time they checked out.

Then, on Monday, they would go to City Hall and get married…

Just as this thought formed, he saw movement at the dock. She turned around, grinning, as two small children came running at her. She bent down to give them hugs and then smiled at the man who was walking slowly behind.

That smile–looks like she already has her happy ending.