Time never passed so slowly as that moment when I sat down and waited impatiently for Raphael to wrap up his last meeting and return to his office. For the past few hours, I tried my best to come up with the perfect excuse to postpone our date for the evening. I thought I had everything planned, but as time ticked by and Raphael did not make his appearance, I could feel my courage weakening. Suddenly, the office door opened, and none other than the man I had been waiting for walked through the door.
"You're back," I said almost breathlessly as I quickly stood up from my seat.
"The meeting overran a little bit, but I think we're still good on time. Shall we head out?" Raphael asked invitingly.
His slightly cheerful tone only made it harder for me to break it to him that I couldn't make it. Although I had all of my excuses rehearsed, when the time came, I found it extremely difficult to find the right words.