Best left unsaid?

They sit across from one another, silent in the booth
She smiles awkwardly and tucks a blonde hair behind her ear
A single gold stud decorates her earlobe
Her neck slightly flushed as it disappears behind the collar of her cream shirt
He pretends not to notice, focusing on the steam swirling up from his tea
The hustle and bustle of the cafe proceeds noisily around them
Neither seems to notice
Cups clatter, people chatter
Non-descript music is piped in via the ceiling
But they are only there for each other
Secluded within an invisible bubble
A bubble briefly invaded as food arrives in front of them
Neither rushes to eat
He looks at her and sees she is gazing out of the window
Despite the condensation, bright morning sun shines in, bathing her face
She is glowing
He swallows deeply as the hairs on his arms stand on end
She is beautiful
Simply, beautiful
It is not the first time he has thought it, likely it will not be the last
Sensing his gaze, she turns to face him
He opens his mouth to speak
No words are forthcoming
He closes his mouth, stuck in limbo, not knowing what to do next
A waitress arrives offering fresh drinks but is quickly waved away
Picking up her knife and fork she begins pushing food around her plate with no real intention of eating it
Again he tries to speak
Air catches in his throat, a dry rasp all he can manage
His tongue is scalded as he glugs his tea
The pain is not unwelcome
Shaking his head, he chastises himself
After all this time
After all this time, finally having her to himself
All to himself away from the others
Finally having the chance to say everything, but having the ability to say nothing
Is this the universe telling him he should in fact say nothing?
Screwing his eyes tightly he takes a deep breath
His nerves dim just a little
As he reopens them he discovers she is looking straight at him
Their eyes lock together
He stares into her blue eyes, enraptured
And everything comes flooding back
The first time they met
The first time they spoke
Their first days spending time together
Laughs, hugs, silly nicknames, long discussions, friendship
And then, something more
Desire, lust, love
But always just out of reach
The timing never right
The chance never there to be taken
She feels it too and has to look away
Not for the first time, she feels confusion
Away from each other, they both have it all
Everything they’d ever wanted
Except
Except each other
Is it wrong to feel loss for something you never had?
She looks back to him
He extends a hand across the table
Without hesitation she takes it, their hands joining as one
A warm tight embrace
She looks back to his face
His eyes have filled with tears
She smiles a small but sympathetic smile and utters two simple words
“I know.”
It is his turn to smile
Tears still threatening to come, he leans forward and kisses the back of her hand
She squeezes his hand tightly in return
And with that, she is gone
She slides out of the booth, throws her coat around her shoulders and walks away
He watches her go, admiring her shape as she moves
Leaning back, he exhales slowly
Perhaps some things are better left unsaid
But at least she knows
They both know
And maybe in another time
Maybe in another life
Maybe a chance will be there to be taken
Picking up his tea, he is pleased to discover it is full warm
He finishes it in a single gulp, throws down some notes on the table and walks out into the sunshine.