A boy in a hoodie stepped from behind a bush. We both hesitated. He seemed surprised to see me.

I saw a handsome young boy with intriguing eyes, but I couldn’t have because it was too dark. Maybe I’d seen something I hoped for instead.

We passed each other. After a few paces I turned and watched him disappearing into darkness. But he also turned and seemed embarrassed.

I’d like to think that our eyes met, but it was impossible to tell.

We continued walking, and when I looked around again, he’d gone.

I thought about it afterwards. A lonely field. Nobody around. Why had he been there? What had I been doing there?

I thought he might be an attacker, but I hoped he might have been a quick fuck in a bush.

He might have seen me as a murderer, but I wasn’t, and so he might also have seen me as a quick fuck in a bush too.

Neither one of us would ever know. I’d missed an opportunity, and I hoped he thought the same.