Text message, 2:03am:  "Hello how have u been"

Of course, I didn't respond.  I was asleep.

Text message, 9:53am:  "Hey michelle u doing alright i know i havent called in a while im sorry ive been very busy but havent forgot about u"

How to respond?  I could go for the angry, bitter angle.  The sweet, ever-forgiving angle.

"Yes i'm fine thanks. Hope you're doing well"  Nope.  Cold indifference will work for me.
"Ive been doing good alot of training r u mad at me"

Yes, I was mad that I let myself think this long distance thing would actually work, that we would actually get to communicate while he was training for the Marines hundreds of miles away.  Yes, I was mad that he didn't call or write once when he promised every weekend.  No, I couldn't be mad, he was just too sweet ...

"No babe"
"U still miss me"
This was easier after the "r u mad at me" thoughts filtered through: "I don't know"
"That sucks i know its my fault"
"No, I think we both should have known that it wasn't going to work"
"Whys that"
"Because you're far away and at training. I guess there's no way really to make that work"
"Ill be done in 2 weeks is there someone else in your life now"
Conveniently, someone just exited my life last night: "No but aren't you supposed to be in virginia after training?"
"No things have changed. I'm staying here"
"So you'll still be far away and i still wont be able to see you and i probably wont hear from you"
"It would be a regular job, weekends off. I would have my cell and i would come see u on the wkends"
"Yeah but I thought you were going to have your phone weekends at training and i never heard from you. You never wrote me. I just don't want to get my hopes up again"
"I'm going to get a shower and then call you"

He called me.  He apologized for not being in contact.  He gave me excuses.  He promised things would be different. 

I forgave him.  I made him promise that the only reason I hadn't heard from him was because of his schedule.  I made him promise to not promise things he couldn't promise.  I told him I missed him. 

So now, I just have to wait 11 days to see him again.  I just have to stay single and not meet any men for 11 days, because once I meet someone who generates even half of the feelings I had for the Marine, I will easily blow off the Marine, deciding that he should have made more of an effort to keep in touch these past 6 weeks ...