Wednesday, June 20, 2018

From the Archive : Cat and Falcon, Part 4

My heart beat rapidly, painfully
As the memories of what had been
Crossed my mind like a flock of butterflies
And I felt so ashamed
From the very start I knew
As you well knew, I knew
That no matter what happened
In my heart there was a place for you
But it hurts darling, oh so much
Knowing I shall never be
The one to receive your gentle touch
In the end though, in reality
It’s far better for you and for me
Knowing in truth that friends is all
That we will ever be
You’re the kind that must be free.

“Cedric, wait a minute won’t you? I’ve something for you!” Mariel called to Cedric , and he turned around. He noted sadly how much older she looked in the sunlight. Her reddish skin took on a slightly grayish tint. Mars hair which was normally tied up and tucked under her chefs cap, was down and loose, and you could see that salt and peppered through her coppery red hair was gray patches.

“Sorry. I didn’t know you wanted to talk.” Cedric replied apologetically, dropping his small duffel bag to the ground and hugged her.

Mariel paused, hugging him, and caught her breath. On the ship, the lower gravity was kinder to her. She appeared to be younger there. But every time they got back off the ship, Cedric felt as though his heart would break. Because he was always afraid that she might not make it to the next flight.

“I wanted to give you a ticket to the date auction tonight. You deserve to have some fun. And just so you know, I also am spotting for you to get a date, so I suggest you bid on some.”

Cedric felt his ears flushing as he took the ticket he was being offered, and then he slipped it into his pocket. “Why…Thank you Mar. What brought this up?”

“Paul and I got to talking last night after you left, so I sent ahead and had the ticket ready, but you didn’t stay put long enough for them to simply give it to you, therefore… I had to catch you and present it to you myself.”

Cedric cautiously accepted the ticket and hugged Mariela again. “Thank you. Although I really must say that it’s strange to think that you’re willing to pay to send me out on a date.”

Mar laughed and swatted him playfully. “Only because you deserve it. You take a lot of crap from the corporation. If I was in your shoes I’d never stand for it.”

“Ah.” Cedric smiled, then picked his bag back up. “Well I think that it will be fun. Maybe there’ll be someone interesting there.”

“There’s always someone interesting there…” Mariela replied, and then she watched him head off, and wondered who would be there that was new.

Cedric on the other hand…was trying to figure out how in the world they expected him to feel comfortable spending someone else’s money…

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