Tiffany stood in line at the café waiting for her iced caramel latte. Work finished early so she decided to spend the time sitting at the old café she and Yuri used to go to during the weekends. Yuri…

It’s been one year since they broke up. Tiffany could clearly remember Yuri’s face with tears pouring down her cheeks as they lay in bed together for the final time. For the last year, she tried to get her life together. No longer was she in the apartment they shared. Last month after getting a enough money saved up she finally got herself a condo. It made Tiffany proud that she could finally call something her own after all this time. Not once in her life had she had a place to herself. After high school she moved into the dorms and stayed there the entire time during college. That last year her and Yuri met and moved in together after graduation. For two years they lived together, slowing driving each other crazy. Yuri became so busy with work and Tiffany was itching to go out and explore the world. They knew they loved each other but the timing couldn’t have been any worse. There was no choice but to set one another free and hope for the best.

With a sigh, Tiffany pulled out the chain that had the key Yuri left behind. She didn’t have the heart to part with it and told the landlord that she lost the keys. It didn’t matter if she had to pay a fine as long as she got to keep the last thing Yuri left her. She tucked the key back under her shirt, where it remained close to her heart and took the latte from the barista. She turned around looking down on the ground when she heard a voice.

“Fany? Is that really you,” asked the voice.

Looking up she saw none other than Yuri staring back at her with parted. “Yuri…,” she whispered.

“What are the odds,” Yuri declared with a big smile on her face.

“For real, I haven’t been here…in a year…”trailed Tiffany suddenly looking down on the ground again.

“Mmm…it’s been several months since I’ve stopped by myself,” Yuri said and rubbed her hand nervously behind her neck. “Would you mind if I joined you?”

Tiffany’s eyes met Yuri’s again and she could see the hope in her eyes. Smiling she said, “Why not. I’ll be in the booth by the window.” She noticed Yuri’s eyes get even brighter as she shuffled off to get in line.

Yuri got her hot chocolate and sped walked to the booth that contained the now red head Tiffany. It was no wonder that she couldn’t recognize her ex at first. It didn’t matter though because Tiffany simply looked stunning. A year apart only made Tiffany that much more beautiful. She sat down across from Tiffany and saw the red lipstick marks on the straw in front of herself.

Yuri mumbled to herself, “Oh I wish I was that straw.”

“Did you say something,” asked Tiffany.

Throwing her hands up Yuri shook her head and nervously replied, “It was nothing. I was wishing I had a straw.”

“That won’t work with your hot chocolate anyway. You’d burn your tongue,” Tiffany replied with a chuckle. “I’ll never understand how you would want to drink hot things when it’s hot outside.”

“Well think of it as me sweating away all the impurities from my body,” laughed Yuri.

Tiffany eye smiled at Yuri and said, “You never change.”

“I see you have though. You look really nice with red hair,” complemented Yuri.

“Thank you,” Tiffany said with a blush. Looking over Yuri’s appearance she tiled her head to the side with concern. “You look a bit skinnier. How are things going for you?”

Caught off guard momentarily, Yuri took a sip of her hot chocolate to try to think how to phrase her answer. “Mmm…I’ve been working harder at work lately, even traveling around for conferences. Things hadn’t let up for me until two months ago.” It was the truth but what she omitted was that she took it upon herself to work overtime to numb some of the pain from losing the love of her life. By the time she had recovered it was too late to back off those extra tasks she started.  

“Please be careful Yuri,” Tiffany said with concern in her eyes.

“Not to worry. I got a promotion 2 months ago so the workload oddly enough shrank significantly. I can now put some of it on my underlings,” smiled Yuri.

“Congrats. I’m really happy for you that all of your hard work has finally paid off,” Tiffany said with a warm smile.

“Things are improving. What about you? How are things,” asked Yuri as she sipped more of her hot chocolate.

“I got my first condo not too long ago. I have to admit, it is a bit weird living by myself for so long but it’s something I need to experience. I went to a few national parks too throughout the year. The world is so full of beautiful things. I’m really glad that I’m getting the chance to explore it,” Tiffany said then finishing up her iced latte.

“I’m so proud of you,” Yuri said and drank the rest of her hot chocolate. “Do you want to walk to the park with me for just a little longer?” Yuri knew she might be pushing it with Tiffany but the feeling deep down inside wouldn’t let her pass up this chance.

Tiffany nodded and they both stood up and left the café. The sun was getting lower in the sky and they walked slowly next to each other in silence for awhile. While it was fun making chit chat getting to know how the other was doing, the big question was lingering in both of their minds: How are we doing?

“So…,” Tiffany probed, “how’s life been treating you? You know…going out?”

“Ah. It’s alright…been on a few dates but nothing serious. W..what about yourself,” Yuri asked with a side glance as they approached park benches.

“Same with me. I’ve been on a few dates and they went nicely but…,” Tiffany trailed.

Yuri sat down on the bench and offered her hand for Tiffany to take as she sat down next to her. “But it hasn’t really been the same has it,” she asked knowingly.

“No matter how much I tried to get over this…get over us…nothing could really compare,” Tiffany sighed.

“I know the feeling. They were fun dates but nothing set off that spark like…you did,” Yuri said squeezing Tiffany’s hand a little. “Fany, differences aside, I really can’t see myself with anyone but you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. However, I know this break was for a purpose…I don’t feel like either of us are ready yet.”

“There are so many things I want to do before I settled, things I should have done after college to explore the world and myself. I want you to be part of that Yuri. Yes, I can do things by myself and I plan on it but it is better when those experiences can be shared,” replied Tiffany.

Yuri took her hand and cupped Tiffany’s face before placing their foreheads together. She whispered, “I promise you Tiffany when I finally get settled I will come back for you. I will become a woman you will be proud of and we will travel together. I’ll show you the world’s wonders if you let me.”

Tears fell down Tiffany’s cheeks again as she pulled away from Yuri. Yuri’s thumbs brushed away the falling tears as Tiffany reached down and pulled out the chain. Yuri’s eyes widened and after the initial shock her tears flowed down.

Never again did Yuri think she’d see that key. Tiffany removed the chain and placed it around Yuri’s neck.

“That morning devastated me. I didn’t have the heart to give the key back to our landlord so I took it. Since then, it has been close to my heart waiting for me to return it to its rightful owner,” whispered Tiffany. Her hand lifted the key between them. “I accept your promise Yuri and I am willing to wait only if you will come back and return the key to my heart. If you return it to me through mail then I’ll know to lock that part of my heart forever and never open it again. If you return it to me personally then I will accept the good and the bad and open my heart to you once again. I don’t want your answer now. I really want you to think about what you want and what you can handle. This time I’ll put my trust in fate.”

Yuri placed her hand on Tiffany’s as they now both held on to the key. She nodded at Tiffany once and smiled before leaning in and placed a lingering kiss on her forehead. She whispered, “I won’t forget what was said tonight. Until next time.”

“Until next time then,” whispered Fany as she felt Yuri’s hand slip off of hers to wipe away the last of her tears. With a smile on both of their faces, Yuri left and Tiffany stared at the newly forming stars.

Yuri looked up at the stars in the night sky and thought to herself, “After all this time, you still loved me as much as I loved you. One day I’ll prove to you that we can work it out. I have faith that I can.”