The Love In Our Lungs

Chapter 17

"Your name is like coffee, but instead of it having an 'o' it has an 'a.' Don't you think that's funny?" Tyler chuckled. It had been that sound that allowed me to come out of my thoughts with only the crickets surrounding us. Stores nearby were closed, yet there was the occasional light emitting from some apartment or the building which was only made out of glass, with few customers inside of it, peering out to see the teenagers giggling as they were drunk on fruit punch.

"Good observation of yours," he replied and made a move to hold my hand, and even though it was dark outside, I could see his fingertips move along to grasp onto my skin. A slight breeze seemed to come our way, the blue of my dress coming up slightly. Pale interlaced hands made a move to fight the wind and being successful at it, we giggled. Silence soon followed us.

I'd have to break the news to him at some point. It was just thought now, but the many threads that time controlled would snap. Time would make sure it was something more than just a thought. The smile that. Had once been edging at the corner of my lips had slowly been vanishing, with the hope that if it went by slowly, he wouldn't notice its presence not being there anymore. Tyler kept swinging our hands forward once he did notice, and at this point, we were just walking around aimlessly on the streets of Missouri, Mark Twain looking at us from above where he sees the place he once lived in.

I was glad he wasn't pressuring me to tell him about what was bugging me, and even more so when the approaching sound of music kept coming closer to us. I stopped moving once I saw the radio station.

"Want to ask for a song?" He asked. I kept my stance as he went inside to do whatever his mind had planned. It was a moment of silence all to myself, that is until the feeling of isolation started to kick in; there was no one in the streets. Not even a rat coming out of the sewer.

I felt alone and I knew that it was because my date had left to tend to his thoughts and desires. The cold couldn't compare to the loneliness that was trapping me in the middle of a maze. Tyler was the way out of it, with invisible walls reaching the sky, all of them with different paths, most leading to a dead end. A dead me.

My thinking was cut short when I saw Tyler emerge from the doors of the radio station. He had a smile resting on his face, one that held mischief, contentment, and a not yet known feeling to my eyes.

"What?" I asked. My arms extended, and I waited for his answer. Figured I did, that he wouldn't respond. He approached me and held my hands, both of our arms stretching out as he led me who knows where into the depths of the street. I groaned when I started to hear the speakers located on the street being turned on. It was nine at night, people would be sleeping by now. This man thought that laying an orchestra to my feet would make me smile as much as he was right now. I love his smile though, and he wasn't looking toward the speakers like I was, he was concentrated on staring at my eyes. Something I did frequently, was to figure out what he was feeling, and at that moment, he was distancing that emotion I wanted to wrap my fingers on.

"What are you doing Tyler?" I held a frustrated face the entire walk, the speaker's noise descending into the sound of violins. He still didn't answer me.

I shrugged once he had released me from his hold and started swaying to the music. The song was going through its bridge, the melody ascending into what would be a magical moment for those listening to it. I joined our arms together and just as the loud cheer in the song came up, we skinned. Heads held high through the power of our screaming singing voices. We twisted we laughed, and somehow we choreographed each other through the movement of our eyes. When one of us looked at the other, they knew in which direction to move their feet towards, the angle of which their arm would be. Most of the time, Tyler looked at me, except for when my head had dipped down, my eyes looking at the stars above.