Matter matters

 As she sat on the stairs of the local government office building

 just waiting for the bus, he came over. 

He said bye to his friend and took the time to sit down next to her. 

He reached in his bag and handed her a mini beer.

She gladly accepted it and said hi back to him. 

They began talking and the rest is history. 

Just kidding. 

She had seen him several times in the past.

 He just seemed to pop up in the same places she would go. 

It's like they had the

 same mind. 

 Same thoughts.

 Same adventures. 

And he always had the beer. 

And each time they ran into each other he always gave her 

a beer without any expectation. 

Today though,

 as they both sat on the stairs just chatting away

 in the heat of the first day of summer, 

she realized she enjoyed talking to him. 

She looked at his arms and asked him to explain 

certain tattoos that had attracted her attention. 

He was surprised that she was looking at them 

and all the while excited to answer her questions. 

However she could see it in his responses

 that he was trying to snuff the beauty

 of the stories behind his tattoos.

 But it never occurred to her to ask his sign...

 Until they got to the old school of life... 

As they walked up the hill to the building she dared to ask him then, 

"What's your sign?" 

He looked at her and said, 

"Really?"

"I'm a Pisces.. " 

She got all side swept for a second.. then recollected herself. 

"Omg!" She exclaimed! "Me too!"

And they hugged a friendly good bye as they went their separate ways.

He was 35... 

The last dude she had cut off, 

'Mr. I wanna marry you Now' 

was 56... 

Was her plutonic ex right? 

Was she a cradle robber? 

Because the 56 year old  did the same exact thing as this kid... 

So then what was the difference? 

 Energetic flow. 

Simple as that. 

 To her, the 35 year old was always happy. 

Carefree.

 And sometimes an idiot. 

Yet he didn't care what others thought. 

Whereas with the 56 year old, 

he would worry about what others thought. 

He barely laughed except in private. 

He had an external façade to protect. 

And to her that was a waste of energy. 

With the 56 year old, she always felt totally drained

 after their interactions.

 Even if they went out and danced and drank beers. 

However, with the 35 year old,

 just the conversation on the stairs,

 the bus ride to the old school of life, 

and then a small kind gesture of good bye,

 filled her up with joy. 

Even if they never got together, 

the friendship and sweet interludes,

 we're enough to spark new hopes in her. 

And that was,

 to her,

 a true connection. 

No need to try. 

Just be.