Chapter 1

Part I: Clark

You know she's going to be there.

You know she's going to be there with him.

Although you pretend not to care, you are dying inside knowing that the woman you love is engaged to someone else. The woman you wanted to spend the rest of your life with. The woman who challenged you mentally, physically and intellectually. The woman whose body took you higher than ever before and whose words and gentle touch kept you grounded when you needed it the most.

And what hurts the most is that you were going to ask her to marry you the day she decided to walk away.

You're torturing yourself by coming here tonight, to a place you know she'll be. You lie to yourself saying you'll leave as soon as she arrives, that you just want to make sure she is ok. But when you do catch sight of her, you're too weak to move.

She's wearing that white dress you haven't seen her wear since the first night your paths crossed. The white dress that hugs her curves perfectly, with those laces that go from her waist to just her breasts. You smile to yourself when you remember the first time you took that dress off, kissing every patch of skin it exposed.

That's the moment she sees you, when you smile at the memory of her. When your eyes cross, you know she remembers it too. You can tell by the soft blush that covers her cheeks just before she looks away.

It's funny, in a place full of ancient sculptures and idols, with paintings worth millions, she is the only work of art that draws your attention.

She gives you a small nod and a shy smile, recognizing your presence. She has people all around her, so you wait to congratulate her on the work she's done. She deserves all the praise in the world and you couldn't be prouder. Even with the long nights doing research, the bad mood that followed the lack of sleep, you wouldn't change that time you spent with her for the world.

The pang of longing for those days hits you like a ton of bricks and all you want to do is go home and lick your wounds. But you stay. For her.

A man sneaks up behind her, wrapping his arms around the body that used to be yours.

You can't stand to watch it so you head to the bar and order a scotch, neat. You swallow it in one gulp before ordering another, barely noticing the burn the liquid leaves behind in your throat. As you down the second shot, your gut protests, tells you you're making a mistake but you shove the feeling aside. Having a buzz is the only way you can possibly stand being here tonight.

Part II: Diana

You feel him first.

Every cell in your body vibrate with electricity and you know the change in the air is because he is there. You knew he'd be there just as you know water is wet. You knew he'd never be able to stop himself from coming.

You want to run to him, wrap yourself around him and make up for the time you've been apart.

You purposely wear the same dress you wore on your first date, the one with the laces that tie both side of the fabric together. The one dress he couldn't never seem to get enough of taking off your body, preferably with his teeth. You blush at the memory at the same time he catches your eye. You're positive he's remembering that too. You look away but before you have the time to catch his eyes again, hoping one look could tell him all you don't seem to be able to, your fiance arrives and wraps his arms around your waist.

"Hey, beautiful," he whispers in your ear and you cringe inside.

Hal is a wonderful man. He's everything a woman could ever wish for in a man, but not you. He doesn't have those broad shoulders or that dark curly hair you used to run your hands through. Hal is tall, with narrow hips and shoulders. Swimmer's build, he's told you.

You feel like the most horrible person in the world because Hal is so great and kind and he truly loves you but you don't deserve any of that. You're only hurting him, even if he doesn't know it. You're leading him into believing you love him but in truth, you love another. You love the man who's drowning his sorrows at the bar, probably with the crappiest scotch he can get because it will kick in faster.

"You doing ok?" Hal asks and you only nod in response.

He knows you're broken, always has. He's already met you this way so he can't compare you to how you were before, when you were the happiest woman in the planet and dating the most amazing man. But you chose your career over him and it kills you every single day.

You were away for a year, even though you wanted to come back the moment you arrived in Paris. It was an amazing opportunity for you and he knew it too. He was so excited for you, for your dream to finally come true. He was on board to put his career on hold and move to Paris with you. But you broke his heart.

You told him you didn't want him to change his whole life for you, even if just for a year. That you needed that year to focus on your career.

The look on his face broke your heart, but probably not more that you broke his.

At first you tried not to think about him by keeping yourself occupied at the museum. It worked for the first 3 days.

About a month later, you decided to give it all up and head back home. You flew back one weekend, wanting to surprise him, to beg him for forgiveness. You couldn't find him anywhere. Your last stop was his mother's, something you dreaded to do. His mother was as in love with you as her son was.

With your heart on your sleeve, you went to her apartment. The anger and hurt you saw in her eyes, made you want to run for the hills. Politely as always, Martha welcomed you in, but the warmth with which she used to treat you was long gone.

"You were like a daughter to me," Martha told you once you were sitting on opposite ends of the couch. You started to cry because you felt like her daughter too.

But what she told you next made you want to die.

"He was going to propose the night you broke up with him, did you know that?"

The sob that erupted from your throat is anything but human. It was a mixture of a wail and a gasp and you cover your mouth with your hands to keep the sound from destroying whatever was left of your heart.

Martha held you while you cried, her motherly side getting the best of her. After what felt like hours, you lifted your head from her lap asked "What have I done?"

You remember that day like it was yesterday and even as you look at him from far away, you can't bring yourself to look away.

Part III: Clark

Despite making you sick to your stomach, you have to admit they look good together, Diana and her fiancé. You think for a second that maybe she is better off without you.

She looks happy, at peace.

You sigh, knowing you should have made peace with her leaving a year ago.

With your heart maimed, you swallow another shot of whiskey before giving her one last look and walking out the museum's door.

Part IV: Diana

Your heart starts racing when you see him leaving. He can't leave, not yet. Not when you haven't been able to talk to him, to say how much you've missed him.

Hal notices your body tensing and once again asks you if you are alright. You disengage yourself from his arms, mumbling that there is something you have to do.

When you finally reach the street outside, you desperately look on both sides of the sidewalk, hoping you'd catch sight of him. You saw him from the corner of your eye entering a bodega, without a doubt after more booze. You take a step forward before Hal's voice stops you on your track.

"So that's him, huh?" He asks, arms crossed as he leans against one of the Greek columns that decorates the main entrance of the museum.

You give him a puzzled look, but he knows you enough to know you're full of shit.

"The one that got away."

You feign ignorance, but once again, he calls out your bull.

"From the moment I met you I knew I could never compete with the ghost that haunts you. I never asked because I always hoped that you would tell me." He smiled sadly. "But you never did. I had to crawl and fight for every inch I could get."

You look at your expensive shoes, not brave enough to meet his eyes.

"I always knew there was someone but no one would ever give me a straight answer. I then realized that he was probably a douchebag who'd damaged you for anyone else." He stops fidgeting with his wristwatch and looks are you. "But then a month ago I found a picture wedged between the pages of your favorite novel."

You look at him, feeling indignation for him going through your things.

"I wasn't snooping. I went to open the safe and bumped on the self. The book fell and so did the picture," he explains before you have the chance to make a fool of yourself by accusing him of nothing you know he'd never do. "I had my fears confirmed, you still have feelings for this guy. I managed to find out who he is. Clark Kent, Pulitzer prize winner."

Once again you look at the ground, not sure what else to do.

"I wanted to see how you'd react to seeing him again so I invited him tonight."

Your head snaps up so fast, you later decide you had indeed heard your neck pop.

"You had no right!" You growl, but Hal's face remains neutral.

"I did, actually. I wanted to see if the woman I love would ever feel for me the way she felt about someone from the past. And honestly," he laughs mirthlessly, "I wish I hadn't, because now I know we could never be happy."

Tears are streaming down your face, no doubt ruining your makeup, but that is the last thing on your mind at the moment.

With your jaw set in anger, you ask "So you're going to break things up with me because I'm still not a 100% over my ex?"

The words come out of your mouth before you can stop them and you literally bite your tongue to stop yourself from saying anything more.

"No," Hal smiles sadly. "I'm breaking up with you because we both deserve more." He cups your jaw and runs his thumb on your chin. "You deserve to be happy and I deserve to be someone's first choice."

"I am so sorry, Hal," you sob. "You are an amazing man, but it's just-"

"I'm not him," he interrupts, somehow still smiling. "Now, I'm gonna go to the apartment and pack up my things. And you, you go get your man."

-o0o-