#ifoster

The festival was winding down, much to Deirdra’s disappointment. She wished it would go on forever. While she loved her work, she really appreciated these days off when she could just have fun and relax. This day in particular had gone by way too quickly for her liking. If only I could slow down time, she thought.

She hummed to herself, smiling at all the little fun filled moments she had experienced that day. Especially the moments spent with a certain person. The more time she spent with them, the more Deirdra found herself craving more of those moments. Just talking with him made her more happy than she’d been in a long time.

She looked around, trying to see if she could find him in the thinning crowd. It took her a few minutes to spot him, but eventually she caught sight of him. Their eyes meet. Smiling, Deirdra started walking in his direction, not wanting the day to end without talking to him one last time. 

She had barely gone a few steps when someone else caught her eye. The man was standing only a few feet from where Zac was and for a moment, Deirdra thought she was imagining things. Because he couldn’t be here. Not here. Not now. She blinked and did a double take. He turned toward her and smiled. Deirdra’s own smile vanished and the world seemed to collapse from under her.

She suddenly couldn’t more, could barely even breathe. She felt cold and she was shaking. The man moved toward her. Run! Deirdra’s mind screamed at her to move, to get away, but her body refused to cooperate. “Hello, Deirdra.” He smiled again, as if they were the best of friends.

From over his shoulder, she could still see Zac. He was headed towards them. The sight of him, knowing he’d soon be there, gave her courage. She took a step backward and found her voice as Zac came within ear shot. “Hello, Richard.”