To have a second chance - Fiction - A short story

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Jeremy was in a frantic state when he put the phone down. He took a seat because the news nearly knocked him off his feet. He didn't expect this today. He was looking forward to a long relaxing holiday, starting tomorrow, after nearly three years of not taking one day off.  Now the worst thing that could happen to him, just happened.  

He had worked for this company for nearly forty years. He had dedicated his life to this job. He was an extremely dedicated worker, and he climbed the ranks quickly. He started off in the mail room, just like the all the others, but someone saw his potential and he ended up in sales. He had one of the largest networks and his monthly sales were always tops.  

The biggest issue, was not his performance, but his age. Tomorrow he turns 65, and he had been fighting constantly to stay at the company after the age of sixty. He put in a request to stay on longer, and it was granted, but the CEO just announced his retirement. Jeremy had absolutely no idea what he was going to do now that he was literally being forced to retire. 

Most people would be excited about this, but not Jeremy. It lay like a mountain before him, and he didn't have the strength to climb it. 

Everyone wished him luck on his departure, and he even tried to look excited, but he felt miserable. He was actually looking forward to his two week cruise, but now, even that made him feel more miserable. After his cruise he would have to return to nothing. 

His whole life had been built around his job. He had no kids, no living family members and no wife. He was alone, and he felt exhausted when he drove home that night. All that he had been living for was gone now. 

He went to bed early and set his alarm for three o clock. It was a two hour drive to the airport, and then he had to catch a flight to Madrid to get onto the boat. 

He was booked in a single cabin, and he stood on the balcony looking across the harbor. There were hundreds of people around him looking all excited about this trip, but Jeremy couldn't get himself to even feel excited. It had always been his dream to go on a cruise ship, but the retirement knocked him too hard.  

As he stood there, watching all the people wave to their loved ones departing from the harbor, someone tapped him on his shoulder. 

He turned around, and saw a lady standing behind him. He was immediately transported back nearly forty years ago. Mavis.... she was the same age as him, but now she had long grey hair and stood there looking defenseless. 

She had the same blue eyes, and it was those same blue eyes, that broke his heart nearly forty years ago. He felt his heart beat in his throat, and he felt the pain enter his heart again just like all those years ago. After she left him, he had never even looked at anyone else again. He focused so much on his work, that he forgot to live his life. The hurt was just too much and he struggled for many years to get over Mavis.       

"I made the wrong choice Jeremy....we were too young back then, I know I should have stayed with you."

Tears were streaming down her face. 

"You took away my life....ever since you, there has been no one else."

"I should've come back, I've tried so many times, but my father refused."

It was a different time back then. A different time and a different era. Her father forced her to stay away from Jeremy, because he was not good enough for her. It was only on his deathbed that he admitted his mistake. He destroyed the lives of two people because of his selfishness. 

"We can't turn back time, but we can spend our last years together"

Jeremy looked at her and pulled her closer. Forty years of anguish and pain disappeared the minute he took her in his arms again. 

"It took a lot of effort to find you today Jeremy...I hired a private investigator, and it cost me a lot of money, but it was absolutely worth it." 

"Perhaps we need to find out if they have any double cabins available." He said with a twinkle in his eye. Suddenly his retirement didn't look so bleak after all. 

-The end-