On a night when everything seemed lost, fate knocked on my door, and someone crossed my path. I cannot say there was an immediate connection or a spark of passion. However, when lightning strikes twice in the same place, you question the coincidences, especially if they come with interest.

Since I had exchanged contact with a stranger at the Sports Bar, I felt like I had returned to adolescence. At almost six feet tall, the Frenchman had a unique way of making anything sound highly attractive, including me. He knew various compliments and spared no admiration. Over and over again. The tone of his voice was just another tactic to keep everyone’s attention focused on him. His charismatic demeanour turned the world into one big party, and he was the host.

It didn’t take long for him to suggest a meeting. What could have been a simple dinner became much bigger than I expected. After all, when you get used to shallow dating models, any display of chivalry is like winning the lottery. And this time, everything was different.

Jean always surprised me with his gestures. Even though I didn’t know how to handle his grand displays of affection, I let him take the lead. He always made sure to kiss me in public and hold my hand at every opportunity. Inside me, I knew it was dangerous, but at the same time, why not live my version of the movie ‘The Holiday’?

With his expansive manner, he convinced me that life could be fantastic. He talked about his life in France and how he would like to take me to the south of the country. He made countless plans and always included me in them. He commented on how crazy his friends would be to meet me and that I had to try his mother’s food. Before the bill even arrived, we had enough plans until next year.

However, with the same intensity that Jean entered my life, he left. At first, it was easy to convince myself that the story would continue. After all, all those moments seemed genuine, and it was impossible to accept that it would end like this. But as the days went by, contact decreased, and with a snap of the fingers, we no longer spoke.

While I was lost without that person there, I felt relieved that I no longer had to sustain what was already heavy for me. Every time I received a notification, my heart came to my mouth, and I always wondered if I had written the right things in an attempt not to end the conversation. Anyway, it is impossible to keep someone who does not want to stay. Upon analysing the facts, I understood that that story had come to an end, and so, I had to choose between continuing to live with the expectations that I had created or moving on. As I was comfortable dreaming up invented scenarios, I continued living in my fantasies.

But at some point, the bill comes due, and circumstances demand that you move forward. So I took action and deleted Duolingo and stopped listening to the corny band that Jean had recommended to me. It no longer made sense to memorise the songs of a show that I wouldn’t attend.

I started flirting with strangers again, but I always regretted it when they asked for my number. I kept myself busy with crucial things, like my job, to pay my bills. Until one day, I realised that I no longer thought of him and hardly ever stalked his Instagram profile, maybe once or twice, when I was drunk.

Although many people advised me to consider his wrong side, I couldn’t. I could blame him for leaving me or not wanting something more serious with me, but in the end, this story was not meant to continue. Many times, we want to immortalise something that is intended to be just a moment or just an experience.

It took a while for me to understand the meaning of it all. Until one day, I invited my friend to dinner at the same restaurant where we went on our first date. Right at the entrance, he was enchanted that Jean had taken me there, and at that moment, I understood that some people come to remind us of our actual value.

A.M.