Love In Waiting
Rachel
Rachel checked her phone again. John would be here any minute. The pair had met on Tinder four months earlier. Under normal circumstances, this would be a first date like any other. A match, followed by some flirty messages that would eventually lead to coffee or drinks at a local spot.
Not this time. The world was different now. Sick. Contagious. It wasn’t safe to leave home unprotected, least of all to meet a stranger from another city.
Rachel looked at her reflection in the rear view mirror of her car. Her pretty face was unusually tense. She’d done her homework. John was everything he said he was and hours of video calling let her know she would be safe with him.
But it wasn’t her safety she was worried about. She’d left the home she shared with her elderly mother and sickly brother under the pretense of needing to buy groceries. She was the only one able to leave the apartment in the midst of the COVID pandemic.
She would take all the precautions she had read about, including keeping a safe physical distance from John. She would be safe and her family would be too.
John
John had thought of nothing else other than seeing Rachel for the first time. It would be through his own eyes instead of a phone screen. He smiled broadly. It had taken weeks to convince her to meet him in person. Rachel needed to find the courage in herself and from loving him to agree. And when she finally did, he knew she loved him.
He’d made good time for the first part of his trip but now John was running late. Traffic had backed up in the last 30 miles and there was no way around it. His phone battery had died an hour before and without a charger, there was no way to let Rachel know any of this. It didn’t matter though. She would wait for him.
Rachel
Tears filled Rachel’s eyes as she backed out of the parking space. The risk was too great. John would understand.
Comments without a personalized avatar will not be published.
To Leave Comments - Please SignIn with GoogleI like the theme in your story. As in life, do we do nothing, or do we take the risk? Perhaps for love – well who knows? .
This resonates with so many people’s views at the moment, but as you have written from 2 viewpoints it does the job twice over.
Very well intertwined story. The story is relatable from John and Rachel’s perspective very nicely.
Comments without a personalized avatar will not be published.
To Leave Comments - Please SignIn with GoogleIn real life we often wonder what the other person is thinking, especially in a situation like this. And, how much more difficult online dating must be with Covid-19! I really liked reading the two views…and, I do hope they get a second chance once the pandemic is over. Well done!
I feel really close to Rachel, we deserve to be loved and COVID can’t take that away. ?
I could totally relate to your story Joy. Love never runs smoothly. Rachel’s tension was palpable but she did the right thing. How disappointing though, for both her and John. I like to think love won through in the end.
Comments without a personalized avatar will not be published.
To Leave Comments - Please SignIn with GoogleI love that you take this to a place where we really can feel for both characters. Beautifully done!
What a beautiful story of love during this pandemic time. Hope they have a second chance when the pandemic is over. Very touching and moving. Good job.