Short Stories

Take Your Pick!

I thought being around familiar faces would help, but the melancholy settled over my shoulders. Don't get me wrong: it's nice to see everyone after so long, but it's hard pretending everything's okay. Going over the same old pleasantries with multiple people was exhausting. Sometimes, I just feel like grabbing a megaphone and screaming the answers so I didn't have to repeat myself. And yes, I know this is my party, but I want to disappear, if only for a moment.

So, I did. I walked out to the patio with a drink in my hand as soon as I knew no one could see. As the night breeze hit my skin, I could feel my held breath escape into the night. I couldn't help but smile at the simplicity of escaping, even if it was for a small reprieve.

I don't hate being around people. It's quite the opposite; I love the feeling of togetherness and being surrounded, knowing that no matter how different we are, we are human and we are here.

It's just that as the years go on, I feel less comfortable with myself, as if I don't belong. And though I get lost in my head and it makes me want to escape, I still want to belong.

You're never really told how fragile your mind is. But it's something as precious as your life because it has the chance to shape it, for better or worse.

That's why escapism is my favorite thing to do at the moment. With all the suckiness of the world, it feels better to go away for a moment, even on a mental trip. So as I looked up at the cloudy new moon and smiled to myself, the only thing that really came to me was the peace of the Creator's night.

Until I heard the sound of footsteps nearing me. And then a voice, faintly familiar.

"So this is where you've been hiding, huh Kyra?" He joked in his smooth voice.

Oh, God, please, I silently prayed. The embarrassment came to me more quickly than the disappointment of being interrupted.

"Quinton!" I turned slowly with a big smile on my face. "Hi, how are you?"

"I wasn't sure if you remembered that you invited me, last night..."

"Of course, I remember..."

~The night before

I wasn't expecting much out of my night. Tyler, my twin brother, was coming home from traveling and his girlfriend, Jamie, wanted my help in throwing a welcome back party. I was supposed to meet with her at the bar, but she ended up oversleeping after taking on back-to-back shifts at the hospital.

I didn't know that at the time, but it didn't matter when I ended up seeing a face I never expected to see. We walked in simultaneously: I was by myself and he was with his group of friends.

It may sound weird, but once upon a time, I dreamt of his face. And he was in pain. He was plagued by shadows and for some reason, I was the only one who could ease them away.

And now the same face that was contorted in my dream was staring at me as if he recognized me. Granted, I'd never seen him anywhere else before. He was tall, with a medium build and wavy black hair that brushed his shoulders.

He held the door open for his group and our eyes met. It wasn't love that shocked my heart - it was fear. And not of him either; his easygoing smile revealed his kind nature before we even said a word to each other. The fear stemmed from what this could really mean - for us, for the future, for whatever was going on.

But whatever apprehension I had melted away as we conversed at the bar. We'd touched on the basic pleasantries before he brought up the weird happenstance that tied us together.

"Do you believe in fate?" he asked with a wry smile. I'd just finished my simple long island as he nursed his beer.

"I believe that things happen for a reason, no matter how tragic they may be." It's not an answer people want to hear, but I believe in meaning for everything.

"So the dream..."

"Would depend on the two of us," I finished with a far too wide grin of my own. He gave me a bemused look, and I continued. "For me, it felt like there was someone who needed my help. Do you think you need my help?"

"I might, but I think I'd have to get to know you better first." He chuckled and added, "We shouldn't get too deep in our first meeting, should we?"

"Understandable, but I don't mind. Unless you're uncomfortable airing out your secrets in a public place."

His demeanor shifted then from a breezy air to a bit cautious. "Would you like to go to a quieter place? With me?"

"What about your friends?"

"Mostly coworkers, and we were just going to talk about work."

And before I knew it, we were on his apartment's balcony. And yes, though I was buzzed, I knew what I was doing.

"Kyra?" he whispered softly. He held my cheek and there was something almost nostalgic that reached through my tipsy haze. We stood on the expansive balcony of his apartment. The rain's scent permeated the air as a soft drizzle began falling. At that moment, I felt giddy in this almost too perfect moment, as if I was reconnecting with an old flame, but this was our first time meeting in person. Yet the thought I had reflected in his eyes: What would have happened if the dream continued? "Can I kiss you?"

Looking back at it, I must seem really stupid. But I felt comfortable enough to say yes, and that's what I did. But as the rain picked up, so did we. It felt like we fit together, against each other as the nervous delicate touch grew into something more.

Then the winds picked up as his kisses cascaded down my neck. But it wasn't until the skies unleashed its downpour that I finally snapped out of it.

"Oh my," I gasped and pulled away. "My cat!"

"Your cat?" Quinton looked at me puzzled.

"Yeah, she's more like a warden if I'm not home in time, haha." I mentally shook off everything I was currently feeling - desire, fear, shame, the frigid air - and pulled up a photo of the last catastrophe she'd left me: toilet paper shredded everywhere. "I've learned my lesson then, and I can't have another repeat of history."

~The current evening

God, I know this life was meant for suffering, but to deal with this humiliation is too much! I mentally screamed. We stood there against the railing, not saying anything as we glanced at the scenery and twilight sky.

"You know," Quinton began, "once upon a time, I told the stars about you. And before you say something along the lines of, 'Why would you start with something so corny?' I wanted to let you know this."

"I was in a bad place at that time when the dream occurred. And one of those nights, it was a full moon; the city lights obscured most of them, but a few stars still peeked out. I won't get into what happened, not yet, but I was going through it. All I wanted was to get out. 'Help me get out' was all that repeated in my head. And I eventually went to bed and saw you. And for some reason, you saved me."

"I don't know what you've gone through, and I'm sorry that you felt alone in them. When I had the dream myself, I could feel the loneliness and despair coiling around you."

There was another brief moment of silence. Then he added, "I just wanted to thank you because you helped me find hope. And I'm sorry if I scared you...last night."

"Oh, thanks," I said with my face heating up. "Fortunately, my cat was asleep and the TP rolls were safe," I partially joked. "You shouldn't have to apologize; I consented to the kiss."

"I didn't make you uncomfortable then?" he sighed with relief. "Still, I should've done things a bit better."

"Like what?"

"Like actually taking you somewhere instead of immediately to my apartment."

"...Are you...asking me out?" I paused.

"I owe you at least a dinner," he softly smiled.

"Will you want to one day tell me your story?"

"Whenever you'd want to hear it."

"Okay," I answered. "I'd like to meet with you again. But not just so you can tell me your story; as you said, you owe me dinner." I grinned, and as we eventually walked back indoors, I thought about how maybe we could find a moment, person, or dream that we could add to our lives and cherish it. Though life is full of suffering, may you find the thing that makes it worth it: hope.