Melina was a curvy seventeen year old brunette with pensive green eyes and an anxious smile.
The young woman was walking home. Wally was riding his bike, recognized her and stopped.
She was limping and looked like she was about to cry. Wally asked,” Are you OK. Melina?”
Melina replied, “Not really, My feet really hurt from standing all day. It gave me blisters.”
He then offered, “I could give you a ride home on my bike if you want.”
She smiled and said, “Yes. Thank you,” then immediately straddled the bike and positioned her-self on the seat behind Wally.
After hesitating a moment she reluctantly told him her address.
As soon as they started moving she wrapped her arms tightly around Wally and laid her right cheek between his shoulders. The way she held him made Wally wonder if there was more going on, but he said nothing.
It suddenly dawned on him that he never saw her with a boyfriend and maybe, along with being in pain from the long day at work, she was just lonely and did not get very many opportunities to touch, let alone hug, a guy.
He let the thought pass quickly and focused on peddling and keeping the bike upright.
A few minutes later they reached their destination and Melina got off the bike.
She thanked Wally again, but before going upstairs to her apartment pleaded, “Please don’t let anyone know that you gave me a ride and I live in The Pines of Perinton.”
Wally responded, “OK. I understand,” and they parted ways.
He never forgot her beaming smile and gentle touch of appreciation on his arm after he started to walk away.
Every once in a while she’d flash him that same smile in the break room at work or when passing in the halls at school, when no one was looking.
His girlfriend Laura had a reputation for being insanely jealous and he assumed that Melina did not want any problems with her at work or school.
Also, The Pines of Perinton was a subsidized housing complex. Most of the people who lived there were poor. Melina probably did not want any of her more affluent friends knowing that she lived there.
A number of years later, Wally and Melina actually dated for a while, when they were both in college.
Laura broke up with Wally soon after graduating from high school. She was enrolled at the University of Oregon and would be leaving for Eugene that summer. It was not realistic for them to stay together when she would be living on the other side of the Country. He agreed.
During that time period Wally continued working at Tops and took classes at Monroe Community College. Melina was also at MCC. They ended up in several classes together which led to them spending a lot of time together and eventually becoming an uncommitted couple of some sort.
However soon after Melina earned her associate’s degree, she was offered a position in Texas by AT&T and accepted it thus ending hers and Wally’s time together.
By that time they had both concluded that they were more friends in the end than marriage material for each other. They knew better than ruin what they had by taking things in a direction that they were not intended to go. .
It all worked out in the end for Wally anyways.
Laura had a hard time living so far away from home.
She really missed her family and Wally. She decided during her junior year to transfer back to Rochester and finish her degree in anthropology at Saint John Fisher College, where Wally was working on a bachelor’s degree in in computer programming (He graduated from MCC the year before).
The two talked and made amends. Wally realized just how much he loved Laura.
Laura had changed a lot while she way away. She had become more mature and self-confident.
Within a few weeks the two were back together again and a year later they were engaged.
I digressed again; let’s get back on track with the narrative: