When Vincent takes shelter in a bookshop one stormy day, he happens upon a book of male nudes. One of them brings back memories of his first, and possibly greatest, love -- Daniel McClary. When a sales assistant tells him there’s a man who resembles the model in the picture that comes into the shop every week, Vincent wonders if it could be the same man who broke his heart twenty years ago.<br><br>He looks up Daniel’s Facebook page and is disappointed to discover Daniel is married and has two sons. Nevertheless, he starts to frequent the store, watching and waiting for the man he’s sure is Daniel. Finally, Daniel makes an appearance. Vincent approaches him and says hello, immediately realizing his love for Daniel is still strong. But what difference does it make? Daniel’s a family man.<br><br>However, the next time they meet, Daniel reveals something which gives Vincent a tiny spark of hope.

Down Memory Lane

“It’s Vincent. We dated for a while in the nineties. I lived in Northbridge.”


Recognition dawned on Daniel’s face. The furrowed brow disappeared and his smile returned. “Vincent! Wow. That was a long time ago.”


Vincent nodded. “It was. Twenty years or so, but let’s not dwell on that.” He laughed. “What’s been happening?”


Of course, he knew what had been happening, courtesy of Facebook, but it was more polite to ask him rather than inform him he’d been studying his page.


“I’m living in England now. I have a husband and two wonderful sons.”


Vincent felt a pang of jealousy, which took him by surprise. He already knew those things, but hearing them from Daniel’s mouth was unexpectedly brutal.


“Really? That’s…fantastic. Wow. Sounds like you’ve got the perfect life.”


Daniel shrugged and gave a half-nod. “Mmm. Yeah. Maybe.” He seemed suddenly uncomfortable, a suspicion he confirmed when he changed the subject. “And what about you?”


Chapter 4