The Perfect Stranger
Laura Maxwell was only 19 and yet she knew the meaning of the saying ‘Always the bridesmaid, never the bride.’ All too well! She’d always been the one to set her friends up on blind dates or played the part of ‘ wing woman’ rather professionally; when it came to her own love life though, things never clicked and she’d for the most part been single. It wasn’t something that really bothered her, but every time she saw two people in love or watched one of those god forsaken rom-coms, she felt this faint tug at her heart.
It had been eight days since Laura had flown thousands of miles to be at her cousins wedding; and as she sat at the reception and took in all the sights: the beautiful lights, the family and friends socializing and the happy couple looking so in love, she couldn’t help but feel a bit envious. At the same time, she thought back to the beautiful ceremony that had happened earlier in the day, it was straight out of a movie and Laura hoped that one day when she got married that it would be just as wonderful, just as romantic. She was so lost in thought that she hadn’t realized the people slowly crowding on the dance floor. Even the most depressing, envious thoughts couldn’t keep Laura away from a dance party; just as she was about to get up, she heard a loud, booming voice behind her “Sometimes it gets so cold and gloomy in Alaska, spotting the sun once in a while becomes and event!” Laura turned around and tried spotting the owner of the booming voice. She probably was expecting a James Bond-esque individual, because she was utterly surprised with what she saw. The person that stood in front of her was an ordinary looking lad, the kind of person who one would expect to be shy and timid. Yet, here he had this huge group of people around him, feeding off every word he said and thoroughly enjoying every word he said. The way he spoke, the way his hands moved; everything was so liquid, so smooth! Laura had seen him in the church but hadn’t given him a second thought, but now for some reason she seemed to be so captivated by him. ‘I want a sappy, rom- com where guy meets girl at a wedding and they run away to Vegas and then..’ Seemed to be the far out thought playing on repeat in Laura’s mind. He was just a stranger, there couldn’t be any harm trying…. Or could there?
Laura looked in the mirror one last time; she thought she looked pretty, presentable at least, and with that she got off her seat. With a wine glass in hand and butterflies in her stomach, she made her way through the crowd, until she could almost touch him. Just as she opened her mouth to say “hello”, the DJ started playing a rather romantic version of ‘Hallelujah’. As everyone else broke off into pairs and waltzed around, Laura turned red, embarrassed at being the only ‘single’ person on the dance floor. She stood still for what seemed like eternity when suddenly she felt a hand on her shoulder, “Hey would you like to dance?” Laura recognized the voice, it was Mr. Captivator! “Uh huh” was all that Laura could muster up. As they danced slowly, the lights around them dimmed and suddenly the world felt safe. He brought her in closer and when they looked each other in the eye, it felt so familiar, so comforting. When the song ended, they continued to dance with no care of the world around them. He slowly bent down and whispered in her ear “ You know I noticed you the very moment you walked into that church; It was the most beautiful sight I’ve ever seen.” Laura couldn’t believe what she was hearing; she didn’t know who this guy was, she didn’t know if she’d ever see him again, hell, she didn’t even know his name. But yes, she did agree that that moment was perfect and that just like those sugar coated rom-coms, she had found her perfect stranger.
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