I was driving to work and I passed a teenager driving herself and two friends to high school. I smiled to myself.

I remember looking forward to each school day because there was a small chance that that one boy would notice me, say hi, or even trip and fall at my feet, just so I could say or do something to break the ice and begin a relationship. I would casually stalk the halls, looking for him and his posse. I would walk past pretending not to glance back at him. I would search for him in the cafeteria, between classes, and wistfully think about him while taking notes.

A huge emotional tide swept over me in the car. Euphoria, excitement, elation, a surge of adrenaline and hormones I haven’t felt since those mornings long past. I relived the giddiness, the swooning heights of cloud nine and it was a shock. I had forgotten how smitten felt.

Thinking about those days brought it all back, vividly. I felt a loss when I parked the car and had to open the door, bursting my bubble of memory, and face reality.