It was night in the meadow on top of the hill, a full moon hung lonely in the cloudless sky.
She sat on the corner of the wooden fence, her feet tucked expertly between the rungs, head bowed low, her eyes focused on the sketch book and pencil in her hands.
He walked slowly up to her, his eyes fixed on her skillful hands recreating the valley below. His broad shoulders did little to cast a shadow, as though the moon was shining through him.
She raised her head to take another look at the valley, she looked right at him. He held his breath, hoping she would see him, but she did not. Her head dropped once again to focus on the paper, he continued his walk to her.
He stood beside her, his hand rested on the top rung of the fence. He turned his body to face the same way as hers, nocking a row of pebbles of the fence. They landed in the grass, it rustled. Her head shot up, and turned to the sound. Again she was looking right at him but didn’t see him.
“Hello?” Her shaky voice cut through the peaceful silence of the night, filling it with fear.
“I love you” He said, but he knew she could never hear him. At least not anymore.
With no audible reply she returned to her drawing.
He watched her, still after all these years her beauty was as great as it had been when she knew him. Her hair was gray and her face was starting to sag with age and sorrow. Her fingers though still as skillful as ever, were now crooked from use. But this is not what he saw.
He saw the young golden haired girl with freckles that had roamed this same meadow as a child. He saw her laughing, calling to him to chase her.
He saw the young women with hair wound careful around her head, her smile was bright and her cheeks rosy. Her wedding gown glistened in the sun as she walked down the aisle to marry him.
He saw the young mother holding her child for the first time. So tired, yet so awake from the joy that filled her.
She finished her sketch, taking in a deep breath she slipped off the fence, her bare feet crushing the grass as it tickled her.
He watched her as she walked and slowly he followed her.
She stopped and turned to look at him.
“I know you’re here somewhere.” She whispered “Do you want to see it?”
Slowly she turned her sketch book so he could see it. It was the valley, so skillfully drawn it could have been a photograph. In the center of the valley stood a man.
“It’s you” She said pointing to the figure on the page. “I miss you”
He stepped close to her, he raised his hand to her face and wiped away the tears that had started to run down her cheeks.
She gasped, the gasp became a sob. He held her, and somehow he kept her upright as her muscles became like jelly. 
She cried herself to sleep like that. What a sight it would have been if anyone else could have seen them. An aging woman sleeping yet standing, rocking back and forth slowly, as if she was being lulled to sleep by an invisible person. This of course was exactly what was happening.
As the moon went down and the sun came up he began to fade. He laid her down in the grass, and sat beside her until he could no longer see himself.
“Goodnight my love.” Was all he said, and then he was gone.
When she awoke she could feel the dried tracks of her tears on her cheeks. She smiled as she remembered the tough of his arms and the feeling of her head against his chest. 
It had been the greatest dream she had ever had.

If only I could tell her it wasn’t a dream.