When someone from the past comes back into your life and wherever you last saw them, or knew them, is where they’ve stayed, in your mind anyway.  My seventh grade gym teacher, Mr. Kappa, is probably not stalking around Paul Revere Middle School, in too short shorts, a mustache akin to that of a walrus and a whistle, seemingly glued to his lips. But, this is how he appears to me when I look back.

I ran into this guy I went to elementary school with. Actually he found me on Facebook.  Social Networking websites are the double edged swords of the 21st century.  I was a little excited. He looked good (according to his fb picture). I’d a MAJOR crush on this kid in 3rd grade. It’s weird, I’m in my 30s but I remember 3rd grade clearly. We sat across from each other in Ms. Redway’s class. Me and my bff, Cydney  teased him every chance we got. How else was he supposed to know I liked him?

It was crazy that he found me when he did. My girlfriends and I were planning a trip to Miami. He’d just moved to Miami…………  At the time I thought, it must mean something.  In hindsight, I go back and forth between resigning to the randomness of life and insisting it all happens for a reason.  The older I get I find myself subscribing to the ‘random’ theory.   I wonder if I’m growing more cynical and bitter or just rejecting the happy ending  that romantic comedies try to convince us is in our imminent future. 

We hung out the second to last day of our trip.  When I saw him, it was weird? I remembered this gray and white striped t shirt he wore. I think it was an Ocean Pacific shirt. (Don’t be alarmed, I’m not some obsessed stalker.)   I just have a involuntary capacity for random and mostly useless information. I’ve been called a human tape recorder. I know commercial jingles, the latest Top 40, movie quotes and all kinds of trivia.   I am a beast when it comes to Six Degrees to Kevin Bacon. Ask my co-workers. From time to time they try to stump me.  I’ve got IMDB etched on my brain..

We hung out, literally, up to the time I had to leave. In total, we saw each other for 40 hours.  I had to race to the airport so I wouldn’t miss my flight home.   We kept in touch for a while. I even went back to visit. I hadn’t seen this kid in over 11 years, before that day on the beach.   Yet, I hopped my happy ass on an airplane, and went to spend 4 days with him.  He could have grown up to be completely psychotic, but was having a fairly lucid day when we, um, re-met a few months before. But I thought  it was okay, all based on a boy who didn’t exist anymore, and that damn gray and white striped t-shirt.

 There were phone calls every other day, and cute text messages and IMS, then one day, like it usually happens in long distance relationships.    He went incog-negro on me.

That boy wouldn’t have faded away like he did.  It’s one thing to know I’ll see your retreating back.  It’s another, when I’m not prepared. 

Several weeks later, he reappeared via text.  He was thinking about me.  He wondered how I was.   He wanted to tell me he missed me.  

I didn’t reply.  I didn’t really know who this guy was.