An Altered Ending

Five years after she graduated, Ellen Mitchell thought her life would be different. She wouldn't be back in the city she grew up in, would not have a dying mother, and certainly wouldn't be without "him." Yet here she is, exactly where shouldn't be. Then the e-mail comes in from a long lost friend and former professor, the "him" that she didn't think would ever be left behind, that should have been so much more. With that renewed contact lost dreams are brought back to life, petty rivalries seem to resurface, and feelings pushed down for the sake of survival come back in full force. But is it too late? Has it been too long? Have too many things changed between them? Or is it as Ellen always feared and that, when it comes to Simon Avery, it's a love that will remain unrequited.