He loved her. She loved him. They wanted what was never shown. They'd never tell. Yet the love followed them, day and night. And then, they were seeing them, getting back. Until finally, it wasn't just 'him' or 'her' anymore. A story with less black and white and more of flashy spiel. This story is not about finding love. It is about bringing back the forgotten love. Not about when and how, it is about 'them' doing what and why. "He just was. She just was. They just are."

THEM

He
The beep of his alarm woke him. 6 am. A glass sits half empty beside the blue glow of the clock number. He turned on his pillow to see a dip in the other side of the bed. Blue sheets. Grey walls. She is already up.

They never touch when they slept. Not anymore. He hears the faucet in the bathroom turn off. He swings his legs out of bed, waiting.
A his and hers closet lined the narrow hall to the ensuite bathroom. He stands as the door opens. She brushes past him and he moves out of the way. They said nothing to each other.
The water was warm. It ran over his short black curls and down his strong back. He washed and got out quickly. White counter top. Black shower curtain. The mirror was foggy.
He wipes it off with a hand. His left hand. A gold band sits on his ring finger. His the other hand is busily brushing his teeth. A man with brown skin and dark eyes looks back at him.
He hears her in the closet outside the bathroom door. He waits. Waits for her to leave. The sounds move to the guest bathroom and he exits the ensuite.
He dresses quickly. Black socks. Dark blue suit pants. Brown belt. The white undershirt stood out against his dark skin. With his suit jacket, white dress shirt and black tie over his arm, he leaves the room. She is coming in. They nearly bumped into each other.
Nearly. 
They do not speak. They do not make eye contact. They are aware of one another only to avoid each other.
He puts on his dress shirt, tie and jacket in the living room. He goes to the kitchen. Silver appliances. Blue counters.
He makes coffee. Just for him. Black. He drinks it and read the paper. He hears her come downstairs and into the kitchen. His eyes did not leave the paper. He finished his coffee. He leaves to work.
Work. Consulting firm. He goes into his office. He was recently promoted. He didn’t tell her. The day goes by.

He stays late at work. He gets dinner from a food truck outside his building. He goes to the gym.
He arrives home late. She goes to bed early.
He showers. The water was warm. It ran his sore muscles. He washed and got out quickly. Black bath mat. Grey Tile. The mirror was foggy.
He wipes it off with a hand. His left hand. A gold band sits on his ring finger. His the other hand is busily brushing his teeth. A man with brown skin and dark eyes looks back at him.

She
The beep of her alarm wakes her. 5:40 am. A glass sits half empty beside the red glow of the clock numbers. Behind her she feels the gaping emptiness. The space. Black duvet. Blue curtains. She always gets up first. Swinging her legs out of bed, she quietly gets up and heads into the bathroom.
The water is cool. She is tired and it helps wake her. She scrubs her skin and washes her long brown hair. Turning off the water, she steps out of the shower. She wraps one towel around her body and another around her hair. White drawers. Grey towels. The mirror is slightly fogged.
She wipes it off with a hand. Her left hand. A gold band sits on her ring finger. Her other hand was busily brushing her teeth. A woman with cream coloured skin and blue eyes looks back at her.
She hears the alarm go off and glances at the locked bathroom door. She begins to hurry. After brushing her teeth, she pulls on a rob, towel still on underneath. She opens the bathroom door.
She sees him sitting on the edge of the bed, staring at the glass of water on his bed side table. It’s a little south of half empty. The imprint she left in the bed is still there.
He stands. She sees the space between where their bodies lay. It is growing.

She walks through the his and her closet that made a small hallway on either side of the bathroom door. She picks up her clothes for the day and goes to the guest bathroom. She closes the door.
Twenty minutes later she leaves the bathroom. Her hair is in a tight bun. She wears a black pencil skirt and a beige button up top. She has stockings on her long legs that are even longer when wearing her 3 inch black heels. The heels are down stairs. She will get them after she hangs up her towel.
She walks into the bedroom. She hears him move into the bathroom and close the door. She thinks, it’s all the better that I do not see him. She hangs her towels and house coat on the back of the bedroom door. She goes down stairs.
She goes into the kitchen. Black wall tile. White cupboards. She makes coffee. Just for her. Two milk. One sugar. She makes toast. Butter. Honey. She eats and drinks.
She hears him come down the stairs. She tightens the lid on her travel mug and heads for the door.
She slips on her heels and leaves the house before he comes down the stairs. The house that does not feel like a home anymore. She goes to work.
Work. Law Office. She goes into her office. She is now a senior partner. He doesn’t know. The day goes by.

She goes home. He’s not there. He always stays late now. She makes dinner. She eats. She gets ready for bed.
She washes her face. The water was warm. Silver faucet. White soap. She brushes her teeth and looks at herself in the mirror.
She brushed a lock of brown hair behind her ear with her hand. Her left hand. A gold band sits on her ring finger. She stares at it.

He
The beep of his alarm. 6 am. The glass sits three quarters. He can feel her absence. He thinks, I do not care.

He hears the faucet in the bathroom turn off. He swings his legs out of bed and looks at the glass. He thinks, waiting. He thinks, almost empty. He looks over at her glass.
He stands as the door opens. She brushed past him and he moves out of the way. They said nothing to each other.
He showers. He dresses. He goes downstairs. She is in the kitchen.
He makes coffee. Just for him. Black. She had already done the same. He thinks, two milk, one sugar. He drinks it and read the paper. She leaves. He leaves.
Work. He goes to a coffee shop for lunch. The pretty barista flirts with him. He flirts back. She gives him her number. He takes it and leaves. He throws the number away. The day goes by.

He stays late at work. He eats. He goes to the gym.
He arrives home late. She is already in bed. Readying. He thinks about saying hello. He doesn’t.
He showers. The mirror was foggy. A gold band sits on his ring finger.

She
The beep of her alarm. 5:40 am. The glass sits nearly empty. She slept on the very edge of the bed. She stands and sees that he did the same.
She showers. She gets dressed. She sees his alarm hasn’t gone off. She thinks, he’s going to be late. She thinks, I don’t care.
She walks through the his and her closet that made a small hallway on either side of the bathroom door. She picks up her clothes for the day and goes to the guest bathroom. She closes the door.
She goes into the kitchen. She makes coffee. Just for her. Two milk. One sugar. She makes two eggs. Soft boiled. She eats and drinks.
She hears nothing from upstairs. She doesn’t care. She takes an apple from the fridge and goes to work.

Work. A co-worker flirts with her. She flirts back. He asks her out for drinks. She says yes. They plan to get drinks the three nights later. She plans to leave her wedding band at home. The day goes by.

She goes home. He’s not there. She makes dinner. She eats. She gets ready for bed.
She washes her face and brushes her teeth. She smiles at herself in the mirror. She thinks of wearing her hair differently the next day.

He
6 am. The glass sits half full. He can feel her absence. He thinks, I care. He thinks, I’ll try.

He hears the faucet in the bathroom turn off. He swings his legs out of bed and looks at the glass. He thinks, conscious effort. He looks over at her glass.
He stands as the door opens. She brushed past him and he moves out of the way. They said nothing to each other. He thinks, good morning.
He showers. He dresses. He goes downstairs. She is still upstairs.

He makes coffee. Two cups. His. Black. He hears her come downstairs and takes an apple from the fridge. He pours her coffee. Two milk. One sugar. He pushes it towards her and leaves.
Work. He goes to a different coffee shop for lunch. The day goes by.

He comes home from work. He is late. He is always late now. He thinks, I shouldn’t be so late tomorrow. He goes into the kitchen and opens the fridge. There is left over take out. He did not order it. She did. He doesn’t eat it.
He makes scrambled eggs and toast. It’s late. He does not want to cook. He eats then goes up to the bedroom.
She is already there. Sleeping. He looks at her. He stares at her. He goes into the guest bathroom so he does not wake her. He brushes his teeth, washed his face and stares at the man looking back at him.

She
5:40 am. The glass is still nearly empty. She had slept on the very edge of the bed. She stands and sees that he did not. She thinks nothing of it.
She showers. She hears his alarm. She gets dressed in the guest bathroom. She hangs her towel in the bedroom. He is already downstairs.   
She goes into the kitchen. He is in the kitchen. He does not speak or make eye contact. He slides a cup of coffee towards her and leaves. She is surprised. She takes a sip. Two milk. One sugar. She smiles into the cup.

Work. A co-worker flirts with her. She flirts back. Her reminds her of their plans the two nights later. She looks at her wedding band. The day goes by.

She goes home. He’s there. She’s surprised. He is eating dinner on the couch and watching TV. She opens the fridge to make dinner. He has made it for her. She takes the plate to warm it. She thinks, thank you. She thinks, maybe I should try.

He
6 am. The glass sits two thirds full. He sits up. She is still sleeping. He sees that she did not sleep on the edge of the bed. He thinks, I care. He thinks, I’ll keep trying.

His alarm woke her. He sees her looks at the clock and rush to the guest bathroom. Before she is out of the room he says, hi. He sees her pause and keep going.
He showers. He dresses. He goes downstairs. She is still upstairs.

He makes coffee. Two cups. His. Black. He makes two eggs. Soft boiled. He makes toast. Butter and honey. He hears her come downstairs. He hears she is rushing. He leaves the food on the counter beside her coffee. Two milk. One sugar. He leaves without speaking to her.
Work. The day goes by.

Home. He makes dinner. He leaves a plate for her in the fridge.
He hears her come home. He hears her open the fridge. He hears her say, thank you. He smiles.

She
5:40 am. The glass is one quarter full. She had slept on her side of the bed. Not the very edge. She stands and sees that he the same. The space between them was shrinking. She thinks, conscious effort.
She showers. She hears his alarm. She gets dressed in the ensuite. She opens the door and sees him standing beside the bed. She says, Good Morning. He smiles. She missed his smile. She smiles back and walks out of the bedroom. She hears him say, Good Morning.
She goes into the kitchen. She makes coffee. For two. Hers. Two milk. One sugar. She makes two eggs. Soft boiled. She eats and drinks. He comes into the kitchen. She pushes a black coffee towards him. She feels their hands touch when he takes it. She does not flinch away. She misses his touch.
She turns to leave. He grabs her hand. She smiles and lets out a breath she had been long holding. She hears him say, Thank You. She feels him release her hand. She leaves for work.

Work. A co-worker flirts with her. She cancels drinks. The day goes by.

She goes home. He’s there. She’s surprised. He is eating dinner on the couch and watching TV. She opens the fridge to make dinner. He has made it for her. She takes the plate to warm it. Once it is warm, she goes to the couch and eats beside him. She sees him smile. She missed that smile.

He
6 am. The glass sits three quarters full. He notices she slept nearer to him than normal.
He showers. He dresses. He goes downstairs. She is still upstairs.

He makes coffee. Two cups. His. Black. He is late. He writes her a note and places it under her coffee. Two milk. One sugar. The note says, Hi.
Work. The day goes by.

Home. He makes dinner. He leaves a plate for her in the fridge.
He hears her come home. He hears her open the fridge. He hears her say, thank you. He smiles. He hears her come sit on the couch with him. He thinks, two nights in a row. He smiles again.
He looks at her. He thinks, she is so beautiful. She catches him. He looks away, embarrassed. She smiles and bumps his shoulder with her own.

She
5:40 am. The glass is two thirds full. She had slept on her side of the bed. Not far from him, but not touching.
She showers. She hears his alarm. She gets dressed. She sees him. She says, Good Morning. She sees him smile. She hears him say, Good Morning. She smiles.
She goes into the kitchen. She makes coffee. For Two. She makes breakfast. For two. She hears him come down stairs. She hears him pause. She looks up at him. She says, Breakfast? She hears him say, Thanks. They eat together. She catches him staring at her. She smiles, embarrassed. He smiles too.

Work. A co-worker flirts with her. She does not flirt back. She smiles at her wedding band. The day goes by.

She goes home. He’s there. She’s not surprised. He is watching TV. Dinner for two is in the oven. They eat together. She thinks, Trying is good.

He
6 am. The glass is almost full. He sits up. She is in the shower. He waits. She comes out in her towel. A small towel. He stares. He sees her smile when she sees his expression. He sees her walk to the guest bathroom with her cloths on her arm. He sees her drop the towel just before she leaves the room.

He takes a cold shower. He dresses. He goes downstairs. She is still upstairs.
He makes coffee. Two cups. His. Black. Hers. Two milk. One sugar. He makes an omelet and shares it on two plates. He hears her come downstairs. They eat together. He catches her staring at him. He smiles.
Work. The day goes by.

Home. He makes dinner. He hears her come home. They eat together. They talk. He says, I miss you. He sees her pause. He feels his heart drop. He hears her say, I miss you too.

They
The alarm clock beeps to wake her. 5:40 am. She hits it to turn it off.
The alarm clock beeps to wake him. 6 am. He hits it to turn it off.

The alarm clock beeps to wake him. 6:09am. He groans. He had hit snooze. He tries to roll over to turn it off. He can’t. He feels a weight on his chest. He looks down to see her sleeping there.
Her glass is full.
His glass is full.
He unplugs the alarm clock.