Spontaneous Moments

He came in from the bottom, from outside the building of his job. He had just gotten through with an angry conversation with a nuisance he knew, and nothing would make him feel better right now than to leave a crater in said nuisance's face. His body was tense and his expression displeased as he tried to steady his steps from becoming stomps. He swore that people like that man were what made his hair so gray.

She came in from the rooftop, her steps ginger and quiet. She felt stuffy in her formal business dress. As she made her way back to work, she wished she was outside again, in the brisk wind, away from people as she enjoyed to be. Walk along the creeks and enjoy the natural life, separate herself from everyone and everything. To be as spry as someone of four decades could be.

They walked through the metallic staircase, lit by several fluorescent wall lamps and colored by vandalizing graffiti. In between floors six and seven, they passed each other and, surprised to see someone else, looked up at each other.

There was silence on the landing as the two of them caught each other's gaze. Pure accident, just a normal day, and nothing to change it. But something happened, and their eyes brushed against each other, and everything ground to a halt.

He didn't care to blink yet- his actions were quite surprising to him, and he wondered why he wasn't moving. Also, he wondered why he felt numb- his anger was simply nonexistent, and the earth was suspended. Surely it must seem somewhat impolite, doesn't it? But these were underlying, not fully discussed by the different voices in his head. Futile warnings that he did not care to heed, as he stayed stagnant against the wall.

No apprehensive thoughts raced through her head, not even for a moment. Her intuition did not start to lecture her, and the voices in her head were silent. She was on her own, and she felt oddly thankful for that. She was also thankful that she noticed him for once, and wouldn't let this pass her by.

Yet a minute went by, and the two were statues, unmoving and mesmerized. It was she who ventured the first move, outstretching her hand so that it crossed half of the distance between them. He stood five feet away, and he finally blinked, letting life and the present time course through his veins once more. With nary a second of hesitation, he reached out his gloved hand and let her pull him closer. Half of the distance was traversed, and their hands lowered to waist length, still intertwined. With her right hand she lowered her scarf to her neck to reveal a slight, close-lipped smile across her thin lips.

He noticed, turned slightly red and returned the smile. His anger burrowed away to the back of his mind as he fell down the rabbit hole and into the moment. She spared a sparse, low chuckle before she let him go, only to put her hand behind his neck, her wrist snugly on his shoulder. He was surprised at this gesture, but decided to return it, putting his right hand in the same position. Her smile widened and she let him pull her a little closer, hesitancy but expectancy in his gaze.

The two stood there, unsure but unshaken. He had an idea of what the next move should be, but didn't want to risk offending her. They shared their gaze and smiles, hers optimistic, his nervous, while he thought it over. With the hopes that the only thing something would happen is if he tried, he lowered his left hand by her midsection, but was hesitant to do anything further.

She noticed and politely put her hand on his, moving it so that his hand was on her hip. He exhaled loudly, and smiled a bit wider. She giggled again and moved her left arm up and around his chest so her hand rested on his back.

It was he who slowly started to move. He never was trained in dance, past what he could watch as a spectator with his former wife, but he awkwardly moved, and she joined him in his rhythm. Their arms were somewhat entangled and awkward, but that didn't faze him. A few seconds in, though, he stumbled over their positioning, and almost fell down a short flight of stairs, taking her with him. With fast reflexes, though, she had let go of him and in the next moment caught him by the wrist, pulling him slowly back up.

He chuckled, trying a new approach, allowing her to swing him towards her, and then dance loosely with only his hand as connection. A suitable enough one for him, though, and he started to grin as she friskily twirled him around, losing composure amid a session of giggles. Her heels clomped along the concrete, and she found herself stumbling a bit as the situation overwhelmed her with the excitement, the joy, the fun.

He didn't think to stop her- in fact, as she took uncoordinated dance steps across the hallway. She fell against a wall, and allowed herself to rest, panting against the wall corner. He fell aside her to her left, laughing at a higher pitch than she, and placing an arm casually across her back.

When she felt his hand on her shoulder, she jolted, as she felt an unexpected chill, yet at the same time, an inexplicable warmth- despite the fact that she wore a thick tweed suit and he a thick white glove. A gasp leapt out of her throat, and it alerted him, who had barely noticed what he had done. He slowly began to withdraw, but she caught his hand. He faced her again, his heart beating loudly in his chest. She smiled, a wave of timidness overtaking her as she faced the ground. Slowly looking up, she gently removed the glove off of his hand and gently dropped it on the ground near her, then moving it away with her foot. He smiled and offered her the other hand, and she did the same with his right glove.

After both gloves came off, she reclaimed both of his hands. The warm chill returned as she interlaced her small, thin fingers with his, which were equally thin but quite a bit longer, and worn from many years. She closed her eyes and sighed, relieving her hammering heart with quiet, steady breaths. She dared herself to step a bit closer to him, and he made no move to prevent her.

Eventually, she dropped his hands, and for what seemed like an eternity, they were disconnected. He was confused as to what to do from there, and she was quiet, thinking, worrying, hesitating, weighing the options, and every moment was an apprehensive hell. She felt metaphorical pins and needles all over her body, but smiled again as she decided to reach up to his neck. She wrapped both of her arms around him, and brought him close to her in a half embrace. Without missing a beat, he wrapped his own around her waist, interlacing his own fingers and resting them against her back. She jolted again, but it passed.

He closed his eyes, trying to hide his frustration. He felt as if he was stumbling, as if he was doing something wrong. He couldn't even comprehend how he got into this situation. It was all so dreamlike, a memory, and he didn't know why this had all started, or if doing this was a good idea. It had been nearly six years since he had last loved, and five since he had last been in a relationship. He was in familiar territory, but it was all so new.

He snapped his eyes open partway, and looked into the woman in front of him. Her deep brown eyes, her short, paling blonde hair blown against her cheek, her thin, graceful lips unfailing to smile. She had moved a bit closer so that they truly were embracing, and he could feel her heartbeat against his. It was a truly almighty feeling that caused his eyes to shock fully open.

He let her presence wash over him- her optimism, her coyness, her bravery, her undying youth- and smiled, but only briefly. The next second, he had made the move himself, crossing between the short distance between them and pushing his lips against hers.

Almost instantly, she returned his affections, moving into him as they fell deeper into each other. They were at the point of no return, an edge of glory, and by now they had fallen in. She didn't let up for a full minute, and his heart did not cease to beat against hers.

They felt young again.

Finally, she pulled her lips away, and smiled, breathless and awestruck. Returning her smile, he slowly moved towards the ground and took a seat against the wall. She didn't miss a beat, settling next to him. She moved her leg on top of his and reclined her head on his shoulder. She felt a flutter in her chest, a longing fulfilled at last. It took all of her strength not to cry out of ecstasy, of relief, of gratitude. She had been alone for so long by choice, but he was the only exception.

He turned towards her, smile unfading. He heard her admit that she had noticed him since he started here a year ago. She looked pleasantly surprised when he said it was during the corporation potluck when she was initiating races with those twenty years younger than her that she made an impression on him. It was meant to happen eventually. By now, when he was graying alone and she was fighting her own age, it was the perfect time.

She spared a giddy chuckle, taking his gray cap off of him and placing it on her own. She smiled coyly as he straightened out his messy hair, embarrassed. He didn't make a move to reclaim the hat, though, and she was grateful for that.

They sat like that for a length of time neither of them could determine. There was occasional conversation, but no matter what, they did not get up from the spot they were in, and her head never left his shoulder.

Eventually, though, when the footsteps of their boss finally started to track them, they would help each other up and steady themselves on their own two feet once more. He smiled and, uneventfully, told her "Have a nice day."

"Where are you going?" she cracked wryly.

He chuckled and said nothing more as she took his hand once again, pulling him down the stairs, one flight at a time. He struggled to keep up with her steps but, hey, he needed to work out. Eventually, they made it to the bottom of the stairs and out the building, winded once more.

They exchanged one more short kiss before they turned to their west. Swiftly, they dashed down the street and around the corner until they could no longer feel the gray building watch them. They exchanged a last laugh as they started to make their stroll casual, hand in hand as they faded into the sunset.

It had only just begun.