The thrill of the chase

He was young, smart, driven to achieve everything there was to under the sun. She was his, always following him, patiently waiting for a nod from him. He knew she was always at his beck and call and may be, that is what made him think she would remain loyal, no matter what.  It wasn't like he didn't love her, (O, he did!) he only thought it wasn't time. She would try to hold him back or call on him, but he managed to turn her down, more often than not. He was proud of being able to resist the temptation so well, when most of his peers were succumbing.
High school, college, initial working years- all went past with the relationship not altering much. Everything seemed to be fine, at least to him! Then came success, he had achieved what he had set for himself, and more, by 35. Now, he thought, was a good time to give her the due. He could almost see her running to him, to show him what dreams were made of!
He had always had the upper hand in this relationship,  arrangement rather! So, what followed left him shaken! She declined! No, she didn't do it to spite him, but along the way, she had adapted to his ways and now, wasn't comfortable  changing the way things had been.  'The next step' which was to give them more time for each other, both in quantity and quality, was something he had envisaged her to readily embrace. On the contrary,  now, she had decided to play 'hard to get'. The tables were turned.
He wasn't going to give up easily, though. He was going to woo her. He couldn't let her go, now with all the time and 'resources' at his disposal. Sadly though, the closer he tried to get, the further she withdrew. Then the inevitable happened.  It had been his chosen path, she had only followed it to it's logical end. He lost her, drove away well-meaning friends and family and then, lost...himself.
Today, even before he could ring in his 37th birthday, he has called it quits! Ironically, after all the chase,  there  in his casket, she seems to have returned to him! Yes, he's finally got her, he's got his 'Sleep'.