Looking in the mirror, George ran a hand through his hair, trying to steady the nerves that had been building all afternoon. Dinner with Chris shouldn't have felt like a big deal, except Lydia would be there.
He checked his phone again. Chris had just texted him.
I'm here already. Lydia is on her way.
The words made his stomach tighten. He wasn't ready. He had been telling himself he was, but who was he kidding?
George still remembered the first day she walked back into his world.
It was three weeks ago on her first day at the set. He had known she was coming. Still, knowing didn't prepare him for seeing her again.
During her first year in college, he used to sneak into UCLA just to catch glimpses of her between classes, sitting on the lawn with her notebooks, sunlight tangled in her hair. She had always dreamed of studying there, and when she got in, Chris told him. George was so proud of her he called his GrandMa in the middle of filming, just to share with her the good news. But after she started dating Jack, he stopped going to UCLA. Watching her love someone else was too much.
He hadn't seen her in two years. He told himself it was better that way, that she deserved peace without the shadow of their past. But every now and then, he'd find himself scrolling through her Instagram, hoping to catch a glimpse of her.
Then came the night before her first day on set. He didn't sleep. He lay awake wondering how much she had changed.. if she still laughed too loudly, if her eyes still crinkled when she smiled. She was Twenty One now; he'd last seen her when she was nineteen. She was now old enough to make her own choices. Old enough to undo him all over again.
When she finally walked onto set that morning, it felt like the air shifted.
He saw her before she saw him..poised, beautiful, effortlessly luminous as the director walked her and other extras through the script. For a moment, he forgot his lines, forgot the crew, forgot everything but her. Every guy on set turned to look at her, even Leo, the second lead, who made no effort to hide his interest.
George's chest tightened. He told himself not to stare. But then she looked up and their eyes met.
Her surprise was unmistakable. That flash of recognition, disbelief, something soft beneath the shock, it hit him harder than he expected. He wanted to walk straight to her, to hold her tight, tell her he missed her..missed home, and tell her how sorry he was for disappearing. But he couldn't.
He had lost that right five years ago when he walked away. Walking to her would also draw unnecessary attention.
So he stood there, saying nothing, pretending not to care. Pretending he didn't notice the way Leo was looking at her. By the end of the day, she was laughing with a new friend, and George was happy for her.
The memory faded as his phone rang again.
Chris:Lydia's already arrived.
George exhaled slowly, a faint smile tugging at his lips.
"See you soon, Lydia," he murmured under his breath.
From the doorway, his grandmother's voice broke through his thoughts.
"Talking to yourself again, sweetheart?"
He turned, chuckling. "Just psyching myself up."
She grinned, slipping him a small note with her number. "Good. And when you see that pretty girl, give her my number and tell her to visit soon. I'd love to see her again."
George laughed, shaking his head. "You will, Grandma."