He met her in a very ordinary way: He liked her pictures and the way she turned a phrase. He crafted his approach, hit the button and just hoped, and suffered hearing nothing for a day. In time she wrote to say he seemed okay.
They had an absolutely ordinary date. He had three brews and she had two and then he paid. He walked her to the train, she said, “We should do it again.” She turned to go and then he called out, “Hey. Why don’t we do it again right away?”
We’ll walk to the docks, where the river shimmers like a scimitar. I’ll work out the nerve to tell you just how beautiful you are.
She said she had to get up early the next day. She’d be in touch, and thanks so much, but now it’s late. She went down the stairs; he thought he’d get some air and walked out to the river anyway. It glistened as he pictured all the same, flowed to the ocean in its ordinary way.