Clearing your throat, you looked down the street, the milky light of the lanterns illuminating the cloudy sky over London.

The smell of metal and water was in the air. It would rain soon.

"Uh, listen...", embarrassed, you looked at your mobile. "I have to run home but if you want we can walk a bit."

Invitingly, you pointed down the street, where the shops mingled with apartment blocks and eventually merged into an entire residential neighbourhood.

His eyes widened with excitement. As did the smile on his face. He had really white teeth. And still that boyish charm when he was excited, as if everyone really wanted to be friends with him.

Immediately your heart leapt and you smiled too. It was so surreal, like you were back in your final year of A-levels, about to have the best summer of your lives.

Together. Just like it had always been for years.

"How the hell did we lose sight of each other?", you suddenly asked, your eyes narrowed in disbelief.

Shrugging his shoulders, he let out a snort and shook his head. Only now did you realised how much his face had changed.

Kyle used to be a skinny boy and until the end of puberty he had been short, with hardly any beard growth. Most of the boys had teased him, saying he would have been better off being a girl.

Now he had the face of a man one would look after while walking down the street. He was handsome, with long eyelashes and the ability to make everyone feel comfortable around him.

"Shit, I have no idea...", he admitted and took the first step in the direction you had pointed. LIt all happened so quickly. You started your training. I moved in with... uh..."

"Maddison I think her name was.", you lifted your chin with a laugh. LI take that stutter as an assumption you're not an item anymore?"

"Absolutely not. That was... twelve years ago?", snorting, he fished for his cigarettes in his pocket with one hand and offered you one.

You shook your head.

"Don't smoke. Not for quite a long time."

The click of a lighter scratched your ears and an orange light came on.

"How come?"

You laughed.

"Back then we only smoked because it was cool.", you shrugged. "God, secondary school was rubbish. Every kid was mad stupid."

"We were stupid kids.", he remarked with a raised eyebrow.

You led him round a corner, away from the main road and into a smaller side street where the cars were parked on the narrow pavement. The shadow of trees fell over you. You wrinkled your nose as the scratchy smell of smoke filled your lungs.

"We were the stupidest.", you shove your hands in your pockets to keep them warm. "But how are you actually doing? What have you been doing since we were twenty?"

"It's been a while, hasn't it?", he gently put a hand on your shoulder and pushed you into place so he could walk along the road.

Now it was downwind and the smoke was blowing onto the street instead of into your face.

"I'm in the army.", he said, taking a deep breath.

"Really now?", you frowned.

"It's hard to believe I followed Pop's wishes, innit?"

You tilted your head, a little perplexed.

"With your grades? I would have seen you at the hospital. Chief physician, heart surgeon or something."

He licked his lips, scratched the black hair on his chin with his thumb. You rub your own chin. The last few days of overtime had left little time to shave. A little fuzz was already growing on your (S/C) skin.

"Yeah, no, I'm not setting foot in a hospital again.", he shook his head with a last puff of his cigarette and threw the stub away.

Silence fell over you. You had to think for a moment. Then you stopped and looked at him. Something shimmered in the brown of his eyes as your gazes met.

"I heard about your mum...", you had to swallow hard at the memory of the woman who had been like a second mother to you since kindergarten. "I'm sorry... I... tried to call but..."

"Voicemail.", Kyle nodded weakly. "I... went straight to Afghanistan after she died. And then straight on to Iraq. Makes it hard to be available when you're squatting in the desert."

He laughed, but it sounded sad, broken. You swallowed hard.

"I'm sorry.", you whispered.

He shook his head.

"No. No, it's not a problem. I... don't blame you."

"Still.", you two picked up pace again, but it felt like he was trying to run away.

There was a brief, depressed silence in which neither Kyle nor you could find the right words. The blood rushed in your ears. He had a strong stride, steady as if he always had to march.

You stopped in front of a park and pointed your head to the other side.

"I have to go that way.", you said and took your phone out of your pocket. "If you want, we can exchange numbers. To catch up."

With his hands in his trouser pockets, he stared into the shadows of the park.

"I'll walk you home.", he finally said and went ahead.

Something in your chest opened up.

Why did you feel so excited?

Sand and small stones crunched under the soles of your shoes. Wind made leaves rustle.

Taking a deep breath, Kyle put his head back and savoured the feeling on his skin. The silver of the moonlight kissed his nose, his full lips and made the dark colour of his skin sparkle like the shell of ripe hazelnuts.

Suddenly you remembered the hazelnut tree that had stood behind your primary school. Whenever they were ripe enough, you had picked all the nuts before the others could have and exchanged them for two cans of Fanta from an old lady at the market on the way home.

Good memories that made you smile.

"It really has changed a lot.", you sighed.

His eyes opened.

"Hmm.", he was smiling again. "And? What have you been up to?"