As he sat at the school that afternoon, waiting for all 32 of the little girls to finish trying out for spots on the junior high cheerleading squad, he couldn't help but think what a desolate life he led. His wife all but slept in a different house, his kids were growing up and - with the exception of Andy - were rarely at home, and he had few friends outside of family members. He looked around the lobby of the gym, where all the parents were waiting for the daughters to finish up as well.
He couldn't help but notice that most of them were chatty women, who every once in a while would glance up to make sure their daughters hadn't made a mess of themselves. He, on the other hand, sat alone in a corner and watched as Marie and 2 of her closest friends ran through their cheers and giggled on the opposite side of the room. How quickly your life changes, he observed. Could he possibly have ever been so young?
"See, you are too predictable. I knew what you were going to do," Ashley said from the water's edge as Taylor sat in the murky shallow water sputtering.
"Well the least you could do is help me out," he said.
"Don't think so, taylor Hanson. I'm not that stupid," she said, stepping back and folding her arms over her chest. She smiled smugly.
Taylor climbed out of the pond, and walked over to Ashley, dripping wet.
"Ok I admit it females are smarter than males," Taylor said. "Truce?"
He offered his hand for a hand shake. When Ashley took it he pulled her into a hug. Getting her wet too. "Not!" Taylor shouted, pulling away and making a run for it.
"UUUUGGGGHH!!! Taylor I am going to kill you!!" Ashley shrieked running after him.
"Gotta catch me first," he laughed.
Taylor snapped awake. He had been so far away in dreamland that he hadn't realized Marie had disappeared. He asked another of the girls standing nearby where she had run off to, and the girl told him that Marie's group had been called to go in and tryout. "Oh," he'd said, sinking back into his chair.
He thought about that day by the lake. The day with Ashley. It hadn't been very different from all the other days he'd spent with her. They had been practically inseparable. He'd never really considered what life would have been like without her; he took it for granted that she would always be there.
"You think we will still be friends when we grow up?" Ashley asked. Taylor looked up, her question of insecurity startling him out of his homework-induced trance.
"Of course Ashley. Why do you ask?" he asked, frowning with confusion.
"Oh I don't know. I was just wondering..."
He'd never thought twice about it until she announced she was going off to France. For awhile after that, he'd thought he would die without her. In fact, he was pretty sure he would. All he wanted to do was crawl in a hole and hide from the world. Then he'd met Chloe, Ashley's temporary replacement.
But was she really temporary? Taylor wondered absently. After all, Chloe was the one who was still here in America. Ashley was somewhere in France, living a life completely separate from Taylor. He'd heard she'd married some rich professor a few years ago...
"Daddy?"
Taylor again drew himself out of his reverie. He looked at Marie who was grinning happily. "What is it, sweetie?" he asked.
"I'm finished. I can't wait until they announce the scores!" she chimed.
Taylor smiled at her. "I can't either."
"Can I have a dollar to get a coke out of the machines? I'm thirsty..."
Taylor pulled out his wallet, and handed her a dollar bill. She took it and thanked him before running off with her friends. He sat back in the chair. At one time, he couldn't see himself with anybody but Ashley. But with one little question he'd asked in a moment of loneliness to a sweet, pretty girl from France, he'd completely changed the courses of both of their lives.
