Meet Me on the Bridge

by Sarah J. Harris

‘When you get to my age . . .’ She coughs, clearing her throat. ‘It hurts to remember things you took for granted in your youth. Your looks, career, friends . . . You don’t realise how quickly everything can be taken away.’

‘Spin the stone and make a change. Transform the world and rearrange.’

but being with Alex has shown me what a relationship should feel like – a series of small, kind moments rather than grand gestures that swiftly run out of steam.

‘Every decision we make, however small, has repercussions.

‘You’re learning the impact this is having on everyone around you,’ she continues.

‘The smallest change in the past creates huge ripples in the future, which are often disastrous.

‘No, I’m luckier. I fell in love with him at first sight. We’ve only shared the briefest of time together, but it’s been the happiest and saddest experience of my life. Through loving him, I’ve discovered I’m strong enough to do anything. I’m a better, braver person.’ I wet my dry lips. ‘When you meet that person, everything falls into place. They feel like home. It’s like returning to your favourite painting and loving each brush stroke all over again.’

‘You’re wrong about the archives. We should preserve people’s stories – their lives and deaths – and learn from them, not throw them away. Who are any of us without that shared history and experience? It’s what binds us together. Without that, we have nothing. The answers always lie in the past.’

‘Because the past matters. It always has.’