‘Friday morning… why does it have to be Friday already?’ I asked myself, staring at the ceiling while lying in bed. It’s not that I didn’t like Brian; it’s just that I was still hurt by the fact that he hadn’t kept his promise. He had promised he wouldn’t forget me, that he’d call, and he broke that promise.

“Hey John,” I said, walking into work less than an hour later.

“Hey Mel. Are you excited about your first day with a co-host?” he asked.

I just growled at him, walking away. I made sure I was early so that I could get settled and situated before Brian came in. As I sat in my office checking my e-mails and voicemail, John walked into my office with a scowl on his face.

“Is Mr. Waltz-right-in-and-steal-my-job here yet?” John asked me, taking a seat. John had been working at the station for several years, trying to work his way up to being my morning show co-host, but had remained unsuccessful.

“Nope, but I’m expecting Mr. I-promise-to-call-but-never-do to show up any minute,” I responded, the bitterness seeping from my voice.

“So what’s the deal with you two? Did you used to know him or something?” John inquired, playing with my stress balloon.

“We went to high school together. He was one of my best friends, but when he went off to join the Backstreet Boys, he forgot about me,” I explained, tears unwillingly filling my eyes.

John simply nodded in response as I flashed back to the last time I had ever spoken to Brian. I didn’t even notice John slip out the door.

July 20, 1993

“Hello?” I answered the phone, out of breath from the intense workout I had just put in on my outdoor basketball net.

“Happy Birthday, Mel!” Brian exclaimed into the phone, the smile evident from the tone of his voice. Just hearing his voice put a smile on my face as well.

“Brian, my birthday was last week,” I laughed. It had been over a month since I had heard from him, so it was good just to hear his voice.

“I know. I’ve just been so busy lately. This was the first time I’ve been able to get a moment to myself,” he explained, regret in his voice.

“I’m losing my best friend, aren’t I?” I sadly questioned.

“You’ll never lose me, Mel. I promise I will never forget you. How could I forget one of my best friends?” he guaranteed. I heard a voice yelling for him in the background followed by him yelling in response before coming back on the line. “Hey Mel, I really need to go, but I’ll call you as soon as I get a free moment. Bye.”

“Okay. Bye Brian.”

That was the last time I ever heard from him. Despite all his promises, I never heard from him again, and I still hadn’t forgiven him for breaking his word or my heart. It wasn’t until later that I realized I had been in love with him, but that didn’t matter because he had forgotten me.

I heard a knock on my office door, breaking me from my thoughts. “Come in,” I yelled, quickly wiping the tears from my eyes.

“Hey,” Brian said, hesitantly entering my office. “I’m not interrupting you or anything, am I? If I am, I can...”

“You’re not interrupting,” I stopped his rambling.

We sat there in silence, staring at each other, each wanting to say so much, but each at a loss for words.

I turned my attention back to my computer, continuing to check my e-mail, but finding it very difficult to comprehend anything knowing that Brian’s eyes were watching my every move. I saw him shift nervously in his seat out of the corner of my eye before letting out a nervous cough, clearing his throat, preparing to speak.

I stiffened in my chair, my breath caught in my throat, my hands shaking, and my heart pounding like a hammer against my ribcage. I felt myself start to panic when Brian made another throat-clearing sound before once again readjusting his position. He was now sitting forward in the chair, his elbows resting against his knees and his chin resting against his fist.

“Mel… I…” he started, stumbling over his words in an attempt to hide his nervousness. He took a deep breath before trying again. “Melanie. I know I… made a lot of mistakes. I… There’s no excuse for the way I acted. I… ummm… I broke a lot of promises, and I was a jerk. I’m sorry that I hurt you. I… I never forgot about you, Mel. There were so many times I picked up the phone and almost called you, but I didn’t want… I figured you hated me. I thought you would just yell at me. I… didn’t want to hear the disappointment in your voice. I’m sorry… I just… I’m sorry.”

I sat there, staring at the man I had been in love with as he poured his heart out to me in a desperate attempt to explain his actions. I was so confused, emotions coursing through me. I felt angry that he had broken his promises. I felt betrayed and hurt that I wasn’t important enough for him to put forth an effort. I felt happy that he had never forgotten me, hope trying to push its way through the walls around my heart. But most of all, I felt disappointed. I had expected more from Brian.

“For the longest time, I wanted nothing more than for you to apologize and make everything better. I trusted you, Brian. You promised, and I believed you, like a fool. I… I thought I meant more to you than that, but obviously I was wrong,” I responded, mad at myself for letting so much emotion seep into my voice. No matter how long it had been or how much he had hurt me, he still affected me the way he did in high school.

“I’m so sorry, Mel. I don’t know what else I can say. I never meant to hurt you. After we got done with Europe and came back to the states, I knew I had made the biggest mistake of my life. You have always been there for me through everything and I just turned my back on you after promising I wouldn’t. I hated myself because of that. I wanted to go to you so many times and make things right, but every time, I would talk myself out of it, saying that you would hate me or that you wouldn’t give me a chance. And then something else would come up with the group, and I would focus all my energy on that, trying to forget. I never did forget, though. I couldn’t. You were too important to me,” he confessed, desperate to make me understand.

I held back the sob that tried to force its way out. I didn’t want to lose control in front of him, but the more he spoke, the more he broke down my defenses.

“Mel, you have to believe me. I never meant to hurt you. When I found out you were working here, I programmed my radio to record all of your shows, and then I would listen to them on the road just so I could hear your voice and find out how you were doing. I was the one who contacted Roger. I told him I would do the interview, but only under one condition. I told that you had to be the one interviewing me. I’ve thought about you every day since I left, and all I am asking for is a CHANCE to make it right. I know I have a lot to make up for, but I want to try. Please, just give me a chance,” he begged.

That was it for my control. At his emotional confession, I broke down and started crying. I couldn’t believe that he had recorded all my shows just so that he could hear my voice. He had put forth the effort to get in touch with me, and that made a huge difference. It hadn’t been by coincidence. He had purposefully sought me out. That showed that he was serious about making it up to me. In that instant, my heart let go of the anger and bitterness it had been carrying around for years and opened up to the man in front of me once more. It was going to take some time before I was completely open with him, but I had faith that he would prove himself to me.

“I missed you, Bri,” I told him, my voice dripping with honesty.

The smile on his face lit up my whole office as he spoke the words on a thankful sigh. “I missed you, too, Mel.”

The weeks that followed were spent catching up and rebuilding the bond that had been shattered in high school. The more time we spent together, the more my heart healed, and the more I let him into my life once more. It didn’t matter that he had hurt me because he was here now, proving to me just how important he held our friendship. I still had my doubts and worries, but they were lessening with each passing day.  But another problem grew bigger each day as well. The feelings I once tried to bury grew even stronger than before, and I fell deeper and deeper in love with him every time we talked. It hurt me to think, though, that nothing could ever happen because he was married to a woman who was a beautiful as she was brilliant. A woman Brian loved more than life itself. A woman named Leighanne.