I didn't ask the cute girl for coffee today!

I should start by mentioning that I ran into an old highschool acquaintance today. She was always the girl I considered to be the cutest in my grade; smart, funny, ambitious, beautiful... Everything I look for in a girl. Naturally, I had a crush on her. Still do actually.

I was the awkward teenager back then, poor social skills mixed with a harsh case of social anxiety. It was bad. I started growing out of my shell in senior year, and had a couple fun chats with said girl, but they never really amounted to anything. Plus, in highschool, there's the added pressure that everyone talks and it's impossible to talk one-on-one with someone. She and I ended up going to different universities.

As luck would have it however, we lived closed enough to each other that we would take the same bus to school; I'd just get off at an earlier stop and transfer. On very lucky days, she and I would end up taking the same bus, she'd recognize me, sit next to me, and we'd chat until my stop came.

They weren't anything substantial, just talks about school and how things are doing. This would happen about once a month, giving us enough time between chats to warrant a small update. By that time, my social circle had expended, I had a girlfriend, and loved socializing with everyone. She, seemingly having done nothing but become smarter, nicer, and even more beautiful, was a joy to talk too. After one of our chats, when I had gotten off the bus, I made the decision that, next time I saw her, I'd ask her to coffee and try to start a friendship.

Which is probably why I never ran into her again. Both first and second year of uni finish up, I break up with my girlfriend at the time, start working full time for coop, and meet another girl who became my second girlfriend.

Which is why, naturally, I would then run into her again, briefly, while walking around my new girlfriend's campus. We didn't have time to do much beyond wave and say hello, but it was nice to see her again no matter how brief.

The last time we had chatted was almost two years ago; the run in on campus happened 6 months ago. Today was the first time I saw her since then.

It was on the bus again, naturally. I was facing the back of it, turned to see which stop was next, and noticed her standing in front of me. She hadn't seen me, and I wasn't sure it was even her until she sat down. Once she did, I quickly snagged the seat beside her, smiled, and said hello.

We chatted until she had to get off the bus, and it was great to catch up with her. Unlike the previous times we had talked, I was finally single, having broken up with my second now-ex a couple months ago, and my crush on her resurfaced as we caught up over the pasts 2 years.

Our talk lasted about 20 minutes, and it was only after she got off that I remember I didn't ask her to coffee, nor her number.

Now I'm beating myself up over it. Because who knows if there will be a next time.