He was 13 years her senior. When she was celebrating her sweet 16, he was celebrating his wedding anniversary. She was a girl about to leave home for the first time. He was a man building a home. He was a man who had experienced things she hadn’t even thought of. By the time she was 21, he had been around the world and back several times. She was still trying to find her way through this thing called life.

Yet, somehow their paths crossed.

Now, two adults, one still getting their feet wet and the other had swam, coached other swimmers, retired and was now swimming again. Those thirteen years were easily upped to twenty once you took into account  his experience and her life inside the bubble. He took on the role of teacher and she took on the role of his student. She was ready to learn and eager to please. Their approach to the situation was obviously totally different. For her, it was living life on the edge, outside the bubble and a far cry from the life she’d imagined. For him, it was nothing out of the norm. His seniority made him priority and her inexperience made her the ideal pupil. He knew what to say, when to say it and how to convince her what he was saying was genuine. She, thinking she was ready for the world, kept her guards up at first before succumbing to the fantasy and falling into a world she knew nothing about. Her gut told her to flee from the temptation. However, the voice on the other end of the phone encouraged her to let go and maximize the moment. She was definitely no innocent angel, but this was certainly uncharted waters.