**Diary Entry**
Everything will be different now. I promise…
The workday was winding down. Only twenty minutes left until the shop closed. At this hour, customers were rare. This wasn’t a grocery store where you could grab what you needed in five minutes. Electronics require careful consideration. They cost a small fortune.
Emily glanced around the spacious home appliance store. Empty. Even the sales assistants had vanished into the back room. Only the security guard lingered by the entrance, eyes glued to his laptop screen. Something told her he was either playing solitaire or skimming the news.
She headed toward the staff room to call her husband, to ask him to peel the potatoes so she wouldn’t waste time cooking dinner later. Using personal phones on the shop floor was forbidden—management could review the CCTV footage at any moment and reprimand them.
Just then, a man walked in and made a beeline for the tablet displays. No assistants in sight. The security guard stepped out from his post but stayed near the entrance—he wasn’t allowed to leave it. Emily sighed and approached the customer.
“How can I help you?” she asked, forcing a polite smile.
The man turned quickly.
“I need a tablet. This one,” he jabbed a finger at a model on display.
Emily forgot how to breathe. It was like seeing a ghost—because in a way, she was. Him. The love she’d lost. She couldn’t be mistaken. But how? Why here?
When she didn’t respond, he turned fully and studied her face.
“Emily? Emily! Is that really you?” His voice brightened with surprise.
“It is. What are you doing here? We close in—” she checked her wristwatch, “—fifteen minutes.”
“Too late to buy one?” He scanned the near-empty shop. “Pity.”
“We stay open until the last customer leaves. I can recommend this model instead. Slightly pricier, but better quality,” she said, slipping into professional mode.
“Alright. I’ll trust your judgment,” Daniel agreed.
Emily bent to retrieve a sealed box from under the display. “Come with me, I’ll process the sale.”
Her fingers trembled as she typed at the till, making mistakes, hitting the wrong keys. She knew he noticed. The more she thought about it, the worse it got.
“Head to the checkout, I’ll call a cashier.” She hurried to the back room, desperate to escape his gaze.
A group of staff huddled around a table, chatting. “Someone needs to cover the till. I’ve processed a sale,” she said.
They scattered, one of the lads rushing out. Emily checked her watch—time to leave. She never did call her husband. She’d forgotten all about him. Her hands still shook. Why? Why did they have to meet again? She’d hoped never to see him.
She changed quickly and slipped out the back exit, where deliveries were handled.
The wet pavement glistened under streetlights. A light drizzle lingered, but Emily walked—just three stops away. She needed to clear her head…
***
She’d fallen for Daniel the moment she saw him. Knew he was in his final year, that his name was Daniel Whitmore, that half the girls in college swooned over him. But she couldn’t help it. Her heart raced whenever she spotted him in the corridors.
One day, in the canteen, she ended up beside him. Nerves left her brain foggy—she barely registered what she’d put on her tray.
“Got any cash? Hey, you listening?”
“What?” Emily finally realised he was talking to her.
“Cash. Have you got any? The card reader’s down. Cover me, I’ll pay you back.”
She nodded, fumbling in her purse.
As she moved away from the till, he called her over. With few seats left, she stiffly approached his table, set her tray down, and sat opposite. Daniel devoured mashed potatoes and a burger. She averted her eyes, staring at her own food, knowing she wouldn’t eat a bite.
“Not hungry?” He smirked. “First year?”
“Yeah,” she mumbled, daring to glance up.
Disoriented, she couldn’t believe she was sitting across from him—actually speaking.
“You’re odd. What’s your name?”
“Emily.”
“Unusual. Emily,” he repeated.
“Named after my gran,” she whispered.
He finished his meal, gulped down his juice, while Emily’s food sat untouched.
“Don’t worry, I’ll pay you back.” He studied her. “Meet me here tomorrow, same time. We’ll eat together. Enjoy.” He smirked and left.
She exhaled. Had he really just asked her to lunch?
The next day, she barely made it through her lecture, clock-watching. Daniel wasn’t in the canteen. Had she expected him to wait? Disappointed, she grabbed a salad and a muffin, heading to pay when Daniel appeared, covering her bill.
“Thanks,” she muttered. He took her tray to a table, sitting opposite.
“Not eating?” she dared to ask.
“Already did. Class finished early.”
He studied her openly.
“Listen, some of us are at Chris’s tonight. His parents are away. Fancy coming? Dancing, drinks. Where d’you live?”
“On Elm Street.”
“That’s close. Which number?” She told him. “I’ll meet you at seven. Enjoy.”
At seven, he waited on the corner. The flat was packed—strangers everywhere. Emily felt out of place. No one noticed her—not even Daniel. He danced with other girls, disappeared, reappeared.
Tired of watching, she grabbed her coat.
“Leaving? I’ll walk you.”
Outside, the wine eased her nerves. She even managed conversation, though she remembered none of it later. When he kissed her, she nearly fainted.
They started dating. Emily floated on cloud nine, ignoring friends’ warnings about Daniel’s reputation, her mum’s disapproval. Who cared what anyone thought? Daniel Whitmore loved her!
She nearly failed her summer exams, scraping by with two Cs and losing her grant.
“Mum, I love him. He’s perfect. We’ll get married,” she said when her mother confronted her.
“Married? You’re barely scraping through uni as it is.”
Then Daniel vanished. No calls, no visits. She got his address from the registry and went to his house. His mother answered.
“Daniel’s gone. Staying with his father.”
“Gone? He didn’t say anything. When’s he back?”
“Not soon. His dad’s business is in Manchester. Better opportunities there.”
“Can I have his number?” she whispered.
“If he wanted you to have it, he’d have given it. Move on.”
The door shut.
Numb, she walked home. How could he just leave? No goodbye, no warning. Why say he loved her if he was planning this?
She wept for days. Her mother called a doctor, who prescribed pills she flushed. She didn’t want to live.
But life went on. Months later, she met Tom in a clothes shop while picking a New Year’s outfit. He asked for help choosing a dress for his sister, then invited her to her birthday. They spent New Year’s together.
“Tom’s a good man. Give him a chance,” her mum urged.
Emily didn’t care. When Tom proposed in fourth year, she said yes.
He knew she didn’t love him but hoped she’d grow to. When their son was born, she poured everything into him. Tom became invisible. Of course, he strayed—hoping jealousy might stir something. It didn’t.
When he confessed, her face didn’t change. She let him go. But he stayed. Their son grew up, nearly finished school.
***
She’d thought she’d forgotten Daniel. But this chance meeting unraveled her. Logic fought her heart—and won. She wouldn’t let him ruin her life again. They wouldn’t meet again.
At home, Tom was frying potatoes.
“Finally. Hungry? Food’s ready.”
The table was set, even a bottle of white wine open.
“What’s the occasion?” she asked.
“No reason.” He poured the wine.
Later, watching TV, she asked, “Why didn’t you leave me back then?”
He understood.
“Because I love you. I know you never loved me. Not one kind word. Maybe I was a fool to stay. Have you ever felt anything for me?”
She didn’t answer. Yesterday, she might’ve had one. But today… They say a loving heart senses everything. Had he?
“I’m tired. Early shift tomorrow.”
The next day, Daniel returned—likely checking her schedule. Rain poured.
Over coffee, he explained his sudden departure, his divorce, why he’d returned. Compliments, regrets.
“I felt like a coward. I meant to write, explain… Then life happened. Married… I wasn’t ready. But seeing you… Are you happy?”
“Married. My son’s finishing schoolShe looked at Tom sleeping peacefully beside her, and for the first time in years, she finally understood what love truly meant.
