(The Wellers (name changed) are who I lived with in Switzerland after high school. Anouschka had come to Appleton as a foreign exchange student, and when I went to stay with them I ended up dating her younger sister Rachel. I was so in love with her, and although I still talk with Anouschka I have never been able to bring myself to write to Rachel, mainly because I would have no idea what to say.)

The Wellers had arrived in NYC for the sole purpose of dropping off Rachel at my house and letting us reunite for a week, and I was *SO*elated to finally be with her again. Ms. Weller was driving her and Anouschka from the airport and they met Tara and I at a restaurant along the way. After dinner Tara and I started walking down the dark highway (we were going to meet them in the city) and she and I started fake wrestling and we fell to the ground laughing like we used to.

The Wellers' car headlights shone on us and we discovered that they had stopped to let us ride with them. Anouschka was sitting shotgun and Tara got in the opposite side in the back making Rachel sit in the middle. Once I got in next to Rachel she wrapped her arms around me and we embraced the type of embrace that you give to someone who you never thought you'd see again. She was wearing grey jogging pants and I recall thinking how strange it was to see.

As we all talked and caught up I kept calling Anouschka "Noush" and I could tell that she was upset with me for some reason. I asked her if it was okay if I called her "Noush" and she grumbled back with "I prefer DEE Noush."

When we got into the city we parked the car and took an escalator down to a ground-level walkway which led to my house. It was along a beautiful river and I was wondering why I never stopped to notice it before. Rachel and I fell behind to catch up while the others walked ahead and I had so many questions that I didn't know where to begin.

She said "something smells" and I laughed and rubbed her back,exclaiming “Yeah, you're going to be smelling all kinds of things in this city. One minute I'll smell a field full of flowers and then I'll smell a homeless woman shitting into a tin can."

We both laughed the type of laugh that only occurs when you can't believe your luck.

Ialso noticed that I was much taller than her and I kept bending down so she could hear me better, but I realized it looked rude so I made a point to stop doing it. She had a camera around her neck and I was excited to take her around and let her get some great pictures of the city.

When we arrived at my house Anouschka and her mom were already inside with Kasia now (instead of Tara) and it began to occur to me that this was really happening. Suddenly I began to think about Kasia and I couldn't believe that she was okay with this, as it was obvious that Rachel and I were still very attracted to one another. I remember thinking to myself "If Kasia is still with me after this week I had BETTER marry her, because NO ONE is that cool."

Outside my window you could see the sun setting over the river, illuminating all of the sailboats and various other "rivery" things. I wanted to get onside to grab my camera but I knew I wouldn't get it on time. We embraced for a moment, still not knowing what to do or feel or say and it was wonderful. She went to use the restroom and I quickly scrambled around trying to find a shirt to wear (I had to find one long enough to cover my erection) but they were all much too small. By the time she came out of the bathroom I was too frustrated to bother, and since my hardon had disappeared I scratched the idea and we made our way inside.

Further inside the house we could hear their mom talking to Kasia with that voice that assured everyone that she still was hesitant to let her daughter alone for a week.

We walked in, awkwardly prepared for the wonderful week of awkwardness that lay ahead of us.