Charlie and Louise

     The dim light shimmered off the wine glasses in the soft murmur of the restaurant.  Candles swayed and flickered revealing all the depth of Louise's deep mahogany eyes.  After clinking glasses they took there first sip of wine and settled down after their toiling commutes.  A faint smile on Louise lips appeared when she noticed Charlie smoothing out the red and white checked table cloth.       "What are you thinking"? Louise said lightly to Charlie.
       "Oh nothing, this place always puts me in a sentimental mood"
Louise laughed she knew his habits; she always liked when he delved into his past.
        "Did you ever go to camp as a kid Lou"?
         "No not really, school trips mostly- my parents were too cheap to send us all."
        "Yeah my parents didn't see the point. I did go on one class trip once; we went to this place way upstate for three or four days with my Sixth Grade Class, just been thinking about it lately."

       Charlie took a big sip of wine. "I remember this place in the woods. There was this little stream surrounded by pine trees and I remember feeling such peace there. Maybe it was the quiet of the pine needles that covered the ground or the sound of the stream. But whenever I could I would break away from the group and just sit on the slope of the bank watching the water splash on the rocks and roll by. I must have spent hours there on that trip.  My classmates and teacher thought I was up to something or maybe that I was just nuts."
         "No argument here." Lou said with a warm friendly grin but regretted joking as soon as she said it. She knew for some reason he had turned uncharacteristically serious. “I’m just kidding honey."

          "I know, its just when I was there, remember I was just a kid at the time, the one person who knew what I was up to was one of the counselors of the camp. Her name was Sunny and I thought I was in love with her."

        "From the first day we were assigned counselors according to what activities we wanted to do.  Sunny was in charge of the environmental biological nature portion so I knew we would be skulking through the forest and allowed to get as dirty as we wanted; so I immediately signed up." Sunny was just that; bright- I mean smart she knew everything about all the flora and fauna of the stream and surrounding woods. She was also bright like when I saw her there was like a halo around her or something, like the air around her was lighter, more bright."

         Charlie stopped and was staring at the orange-yellow flame of the candle. “You know Lou, I think what made me really feel special about Sunny was that she didn't question my sitting around watching the stream apparently wasting my time; she actually understood it."

         Charlie snapped his gaze back up to Louise the candle's flame dancing in her eyes. "Lou that's how I feel about you now. But do you know which you are?”

         "What do you mean Charlie?" Louise said.

          “Guess who you are.”

           She just looked at him her head turned a little and touched her earring.

           “You’re both Lou- you’re both."