THE SHORT STORY
The Meeting Place by Annette Foster
T
he Cathedral stood proud in the winter sun. It was a glorious day, considering it was only two weeks until Christmas. The
cathedral’s towers seemed to reach high into the cold, blue, cloudless sky. Christmas lights were in place and ready for darkness to fall before being turned on to reveal their glory. The big Christmas tree inside the entrance to the cathedral gave the holy place even more Christian appeal. Sarah was not a religious person but, at this time of year, the cathedral did make her question her beliefs. Sarah sat on a bench in the shadow of the
ancient building. It was the meeting place that had been arranged online. She was about to meet a stranger, and she began to nervously fiddle with the strap of her handbag. Wrapped in her favourite warm winter coat and a woollen hat pulled firmly over her ears to keep the chill at bay, her vision was limited. In the cold light of the day - and now sober
- Sarah wasn’t too sure if this was such a good idea. She really had no idea what this man would be like. His online photo didn’t look too bad. That’s if it was actually the same man! It had been her friend Sonia’s idea, and had
sounded like a good plan after they had downed a bottle of wine between them.
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“Let’s do each other’s profile on a dating site!”
Sonia said, looking slightly flushed in the face. “Okay,” giggled Sarah. And before they had thought it through
properly, the ‘Make Live’ button was clicked and their details were live, online, for single men to view. Sonia didn’t get any matches and felt a bit
sorry for herself, especially as it had been her idea in the first place, so, when Sarah received a message in her inbox from the mystery man, she tried to be happy for her friend. Being supportive, she told Sarah that she should reply and arrange to meet. Sarah, on the other hand, although delighted, was somewhat cautious. Someone wanted to meet her? She was a divorced, middle-aged woman, with grown-up children. She hadn’t dated for such a long time. There was no internet dating when she was younger. You simply went to the local disco, had a dance, and left with the boy who took your fancy. Not these days. Everything was online. You date, having only seen a profile and a photo, it seemed! Looking up at the impressive building, Sarah
reflected on the numerous events that the cathedral had witnessed: wars, severe weather, burials, marriages, and much more. It was
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