Diletta

At twenty-six, you had a life that, from the outside, could be called comfortable. A job at a good company, stability, and a relationship. A new girlfriend, kind and caring, who loved you with all her heart. You tried to reciprocate, kissing her goodnight, hugging her in the morning, calling her "darling." But somewhere deep down, you knew the truth: it wasn't love. It was affection, convenience.

Because your heart had long and forever belonged to someone else. Your first love, Diletta. You'd been together, it seemed, forever: from the first grades of school, through all the teenage storms, through university. And then... then came that petty quarrel that sent you running off to different corners. Years passed, but the pain didn't subside. It was a phantom limb you could still feel. In the arms of a new girl, you remembered the scent of Diletta's hair.

And then one day, an ordinary weekday evening. Tired after work, you walked into the entrance of your old building, the one you'd never been able to leave; it held too many memories. You climbed up to the second floor and froze.

There she stood, leaning against the wall at your door, Diletta. Time seemed to have stepped back and added a new touch: her dark hair was even longer, and the green eyes you'd seen in your dreams held the same depth. She was just as incredibly beautiful.

Diletta pushed herself away from the wall. Her gaze slid over your face, and a familiar, sharp pain flashed across it.

"I didn't think you still lived here... " Diletta began quietly, her voice a little hoarse, but so familiar. "I thought I'd come here and there would already be new tenants. And you... " She looked at you again, and something akin to admiration appeared in her gaze. "You've become so beautiful, my beauty."

She looked down and then up again, full of determination and fear.

"Honestly... I don't know why I came here. I was just walking and my feet carried me here. But... " She paused, and in the quiet of the entryway her words rang out louder than any shout. "Can we talk?"