Before the Kiss (Short Prequel to 'One Kiss')

'Dress It Up With the Trappings of Love' - Sarah

Hey everyone, this is the prequel to 'One Kiss', my other story. If you haven't read it yet, then don't read this; major spoilers!! x If you haven't read 'One Kiss', then here is the link. Enjoy! x http://www.wattpad.com/story/731505-one-kiss-completed

This chapter is dedicated to my friend Jayrooboo (aka JayJay) who has advocated this story from it's very beginning a little over a year ago. She has understood and withstood every emotional rollercoaster, so thanks, Jay. This chapter is for you! xx :*

Sarah leant heavily on her desk, watching the clock on the wall tick slowly. Before her was her evening piled neatly on the side of her desk; paperwork, and lots of it. It was nearly four o’clock, and while most of her colleagues chatted with their partners over glasses of wine and munching through their evening meals, she was here. Alone. Sighing, she pulled the ceramic crocodile grip from her hair, feeling instant release as her long brown hair swished over her shoulders.  At thirty years old, single, and alone, Sarah was one of those people who you might say that ‘life had passed them by’.  She was ridiculously pretty, skinny and had an impressive CV, but she never seemed to be able to find the right slot for her in life. At school, she had been a high-achiever; plucking achievements from the sky of education with an air of ease, and flying through her GCSEs and A-levels. University had passed in a blur, and before she knew it, she was a qualified English teacher with a first class honours degree in the English language. Yet she knew nothing about how to socialise with the opposite sex.

Having taught at Springfield Falls High for a little over two years, she was considering her move. There was nothing here for her in Springfield Falls; nothing worth staying for, put it that way. She was contemplating breaking the news to her boss, when a soft rap on the staffroom door had her attention, and Stevie, the cleaner, poked his head around the door apologetically.

“Sorry, Sarah,” he murmured, “I’m locking up now.” Sarah managed to spread a smile over her face.

“Okay, Stevie,” she replied. “Give me five minutes.”

She rose to her feet slowly, gathering her piles of paper, and her handbag. As she walked out into the evening air, she sucked in a breath. It was January, and the first day of term loomed over her like a smell. New years’ resolutions? Pah! Sarah just hoped to be able to get through the day that followed. The teacher’s car park was empty, and only Sarah’s Fiesta hid beneath the low branches of the maple tree. She waved a goodbye to Stevie, and then packed herself into the confines of the car. She drove without the blare of the radio, across the bustle of town, before finally arriving at the dark, cold flat that she worked for.

Then, alone, just as always, she got herself a large glass of wine, and prepared her evening meal with her companion for the night sprawled suggestively on her sofa; her paperwork. Then, she settled with just a pen and paper, and she began her work, hoping for a New Year miracle for the next day.

Of course, one only has to pray for a miracle for it to stand any chance of happening.