Miam miam...

On this rainy morning, Tiana and Ruddy were comfortably seated in a charming little bakery. They were regulars at this bakery. Indeed, at least once a week, when a strong desire for sweets and mignardises took them, they went there; to eat and simply share a good moment together.

-Sweetheart, how's your vanilla ice cream?

-As delicious as ever.

-And what about your melon ice cream?

-A real treat.

-I'll never understand how you can enjoy something that tastes so awful.

-To each his own, my dear. I can't blame you for not appreciating the good stuff.

-That explains why. Now, I understand better what I'm doing with you.

He burst out laughing as he grasped the hidden meaning of the sentence.

-Your caustic humor has always been the thing I liked most about you, my sweet.

-And I thought it was about my food.

-That's part of it too, honey, don't worry.

-That makes me feel better.

-Honey, do you remember that day? About two weeks after I got out of the hospital. I had contacted you to meet in a small café. You politely declined, saying you were very busy. It turns out that you had problems in your relationship, and that your man was very jealous. That day, I didn't insist, understanding that you had a problem that I shouldn't make worse. But the following days, the need to see you became unbearable. I was very grateful to you and I needed to express all my gratitude to you, in person. You were the only one who cared about me when I was in need of solid support. With my family I was on the outs, I had no friends. Besides, I was too ashamed that someone close to me knew about my misadventure! You were the only person I could count on, even though we were strangers to each other. I wanted to express my gratitude and get to know you better. For as strange as it may seem, we hadn't really been able to talk during my recovery. So I had called you, again and again and again ,and each time I had to face your refusal. Resigned, I stopped "harassing" you. Telling myself that you had a good life that I shouldn't disturb. Despite this, a little voice inside me told me that I should persist.

-My dear, it is often said that "the heart has its reasons that reason ignores".And you were right to listen to your heart. Do you remember that day? That day when I finally picked up one of your calls. I didn't let you get a word in ,just expressing the need to come and talk to you, in person. You had given me the location of your neighborhood, and more precisely your home address. But you didn't hang up. You knew that I was not well, and you sensed my deep distress, so you did not want to leave me completely alone the whole way. You were very thoughtful and this gave me the strength I needed not to collapse completely, before I reached my destination. Many minutes later, I arrived at your house, crying my eyes out. I had collapsed shamelessly into your arms, all the strength in my legs having left me. You had spent the next few hours trying to calm my sobs, to no avail. When I finally stopped crying, you offered me a sympathetic smile. I got up abruptly, causing your surprise. You had asked me, satisfying the desire to ask the question that had been nagging at you since my arrival: "What's wrong?" My answer was quick: "I don't want you to feel sorry for me". You didn't add anything more. You stood up and hugged me, in a gesture so simple, so frank...so soothing. At first, I recoiled, then finally I let myself go. In a soft voice, you had whispered to me "You were there for me when I was at my worst, let me be there for you in my turn" .My voice had slightly trembled when I confessed in an almost inaudible whisper: "My fiancé cancelled our wedding, he loves another".

-I was so surprised to hear such news that all I could say at the time was "At least he didn't wait until you were at the altar to tell you the truth. That would have been worse."

- I remember this sentence as if it were yesterday. I was like " Is he serious to tell me this kind of sentence at such a time ? "

-It was a failed attempt at a joke but I admit that it was not the best timing for it. Anyway. Stupidly, I started asking myself tons of rhetorical questions, purely clichéd questions in this kind of situation, such as: "How could we let such a rare pearl slip away? When, technically, I didn't really know you yet to be able to vouch for your supposed qualities. Who knows, maybe you were a real sourpuss and a killjoy?

-Very funny, sweetie. Hilarious.

-I'm just teasing you, baby. The fact is, I totally sympathized with your grief, having gone through almost the same pain not too long ago, just a few months ago. And, I didn't want to use empty and meaningless words to offer you a semblance of consolation. A subterfuge as useless as it is annoying. I didn't want to tell you that everything will be all right, that you will soon forget, that he will regret; because I knew that this is far from the truth. No, everything will not be okay. The road to recovery will be long and painful, if there will be recovery. Once the shock is over, there will be denial, then intense anguish. A certain feeling of guilt will follow, followed by a deep sadness. Then frustration, confusion. Certainly, a relapse. Acceptance. Resignation. Only after all these stages can you perhaps move on. You were the only one who could decide if you will move on or not, if you will get up or not. And, in this long process, all I could do was to hold you tightly in my arms, and promise you that I would be there, an unfailing support, that you were not alone in the world.

-Do you think you were completely faithful to your promise?

-Well, that my beautiful, it is up to you to tell me.

She smiled enigmatically before adding:

-My ice cream has melted. Now I need a puff pastry to go with it.