Back Into Your Arms

I got home to my apartment and put the roses in a vase with water.
I smiled as I thought of Alexander. They must have been from him.
I had invited Alex over to have dinner the night before, he was always busy traveling to his business meetings but he always made time to come over and have dinner.
I made the 4 course dinner I had showed my students and waited excitedly for him. Feeling a little jumpy every time I heard what sounded like footsteps near the door. This time, I hadn’t seen him in a month, but that was okay because I had been busy anyways.
I heard a knock on the door and ran to it.
When I opened the door, Alex was standing there with some pink carnations. He didn’t look too happy when he handed them to me.

“Carnations? Were you not the one who left me these roses?” I asked confused as I walked over to the table to show them to him.

He raised an eyebrow.
“You got roses from another guy?”
He sounded upset.

“Well, I thought they were from you…” I replied quietly not sure on what to think.

“Throw them in the trash, why do you have them there anyway? What, are you seeing another guy?”

“What? No I’m not seeing another guy and no I can’t throw them away. They’re my favorite color…they must be from someone I know, maybe my dad sent them to me or my brother-”

He cut me off.
“You know what, I can’t put up with you right now. I had a terrible day at work and then I come here to find out you are receiving flowers from some other guy? You didn’t even appreciate the ones I brought you. I’m leaving.” He said harshly.

I didn’t understand why he was so upset; I didn’t even get to hug him or greet him or anything.

“Alex, please” I begged.

“I think we need to break up” Alex said walking out the door not looking at me once.

“Alex, what’s wrong? I haven’t seen you in a month and now you’re breaking up with me? I don’t understand!”

“You never do, you’re always so clueless. You said that accident affected your mind, I can finally see how” he said and slammed the door.

I was left in shock and for the first time, I understood. He must have wanted to break up with me a while ago, he wasn’t mean like that at the beginning. I was just too blind to see it.

I looked back at my 4-course dinner sitting on the table.
Untouched.
I sat down and ate alone but the sadness caught up to me.
Nothing in my life ever seemed to go right.
I looked over at the flowers from Alex. Ugly carnations. He never even cared to get me the flowers I liked.
I had really hoped those orange flowers had been from him, it would have showed me he cared, but they weren’t from him.
I still had no clue who they were from.
I sat there in loneliness contemplating my life.
I had been waiting to see Alex for a month, I had planned it all out, but it all turned out wrong.
**
It was finally Monday; I was determined to find out who had left those roses for me. Mrs. Shepard was sitting at her desk.

“Mrs. Shepard, may I ask you a question?”

“Oh why yes Miss Riley, what can I help you with?” she said to me looking up from her computer screen.

“Who brought me the flowers?”

She looked at me wide eyed.

“Well it was quite a handsome young fellow, I assumed he was the Alex you had been talking about, were they not from him?”

I shook my head.

“But, what exactly did he look like? What made you assume he was Alex?”

“Well he asked for you, he asked for Mel Riley, and well he had flowers in hand. He was very tall, probably 6 feet or so, I mean I don’t really know how to describe him Miss Riley”

I nodded, how could she remember a stranger anyway?
“Alrighty Mrs. Shepard, thank you. I’m going to set up for class”

“Not a problem Miss Riley”

I walked back in confusion, I stopped at the door to the main room and remembered the man who had been there on Friday.
He was tall, very tall and if I had to admit, he was quite good looking.
But why would he bring me flowers?
How did he know those were my favorite kind?
I wondered if he would show up to class. I was dying of curiosity now.
Who was he exactly?