What she only wanted

Since I was born, there was a high tree next to our house. I have always planned to climb it some day. 20 years passed and finally the tree was cut before I climbed! Some opportunities can't be missed but once!

Rudy was parking his car when he saw Dolly waving at him
�Hey� Long time no see��
They hugged each other with a smile. They were old friends who didn�t meet but a few days each summer as Rudy comes back to his country to spend some weeks with his family.
Rudy was living in Australia since age 18.
He went there to study. He became an engineer, got a great job and never came back except for holidays.
�Have you met Sally, my new friend?�
�Nice to meet you sally!�
Sally had a smile that Rudy had never seen, yet a smile that said a lot.
That summer, the three friends went out together almost everyday.
During the next few days, Sally said no words� she just smiled, and Rudy was understanding.
They spent a lot of time together. Dolly always talked about ancient memories, about childhood games and forgotten friends. She always tried to urge Rudy to come back home and get a job in his native country.
He never gave a clear answer.
She also tried to ask him about girls but he never said a single word. He kept on smiling, just like Sally�
Dolly thought they were meeting privately or calling each other after going out with her. She couldn�t make anyone confess anything. She doubted they could understand each other so perfectly with just a smile.
She had known Rudy for almost 20 years but still feels she had to ask him so many questions and gather much info about him to get to know him better.
On the other hand, Sally knew nothing about his past nor his present. She never asked him a single question though it was clear how much she cared�
One day, as Dolly was a little busy with some other friends, Sally finally asked her first question:
�You want nobody, true?�
Rudy was so caught by surprise so that he didn�t understand
�I beg your pardon?�
Suddenly, they both started laughing at the over well-mannered attitude he was taking
�Come on� I know this feeling� You hate commitment or exclusivity � Or you feel like having some supreme call from above� You want nothing to tie you to this dusty planet� Am I wrong?�
�Probably not� but how do you know all that?�
�Well� I think I�ve just been through the same not so long ago��
�Interesting�, he thought..
Dolly came back and they never continued that discussion. The topic was closed.
Days were passing, summer was about to end and time came for Rudy to get back to Australia.
It was the first time he felt regrets.
He couldn�t stand the time� Everlasting moments passed before the planr finally reach the airport .The first person he called once he arrived was Sally.
She was not surprised at all. She had missed him as well.
They talked almost everyday, but something was missing: her smile�
They were not used to long talks�. It was quite strange!
They tried all communication means but nothing could replace her smile!
A while before Christmas, phone calls stopped. Rudy never knew why� He waited some weeks and soon got back to his hometown!
But Sally wasn�t there�
�She has traveled ��, Dolly said
�It can�t be!Why didn�t she tell me?!�
�Why would she?�
He seemed lost but he soon understood he had nothing to do with her and what she decided to do with her life!
He left back to Australia making Dolly promise to tell him anything she knows about Sally.
Sally and Dolly met back around Christmas time.
�Where have you been? I never imagined you could travel without a goodbye word!�
�I�m really sorry, I really needed to be alone for some time.�
�Why?...�
She kept quiet, but Dolly knew she was trying to escape her dearest memories.
�To forget him?... did you know that he came from Australia to see you?!�
�That is just impossible��
�What makes you so sure?�
�He just can�t love anyone� He told me himself��
�Well� maybe not��
�What do you mean?�
�He�s already in love � He told me so!�
Dolly never thought she could be misunderstood.
That summer she couldn�t be there. She was working in town.
Rudy came back as usual, his heart was full of hope to see Sally again.
Indeed, he found her but she wasn�t smiling anymore
She had changed a lot.
She never told him why.
He decided to stay there. He quitted his job in Australia to stay with her, she never made him feel as comfortable as before.
She never smiled at him again.
She didn�t let him get closer to her.
Dolly never interfered, Sally didn�t allow her to.
Several years passed before they had this discussion again.
�Hey� No guys around I can see��, Rudy finally dared saying
�None of your business� was Sall'y's only answer
Boy� she had really changed!
�Why do you keep rejecting my invitations?�
�You want nobody to be with� You want no commitment � Neither do I � Do you remember? We already know this about each other!�
�Yeah but��
�What?�
�Don�t you think I�ve made enough sacrifices?�
�You shouldn�t have��
And she left suddenly.
He was so tired and desperate that he gave up and went back to Australia to take his chances again.
He didn�t need to waste more time on hopeless expectations.
She, on the other hand, was quite sure she had made the right choice.
She waited there for another five years until she heard he was engaged.
It was the first time she broke down and told Dolly how bad she felt.
�I loved him, she said, but I respected his wish to stay single. He lied to me� He said so to keep me away without hurting me, he didn�t want me to know that he loved someone else� �
�You�re idiot� There has never been someone else��
�And what about his fianc�e?�
�You made him desperate enough to search for someone else�
�He never wanted any commitment� He had a vow�
�It was not a vow� and he was ready to break it for you!�
�For me?!!!�
�Yeah� I�ve told you� You remember? But you didn�t want to believe me. You were so conviced that he was using this vow story to keep you away!..�
�Because you said so� you said he already loved someone��
�But you never showed any interest to know who was this someone��
�Does it really matter?�
�Well� It was you��!!!