George Nicholson had, always, been a guy with a plan. Nothing was meant to happen on a whim in his life.
As his last year of university loomed in the distance, George put together a plan to spend summer at his home town of Lakebay with his two best...
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We were outside, sailing into an endless blue. The sky was clear and there was a soft breeze. We spent most of our time talking to Bobby and his researcher friends, Henry, Grace, and Eva. The sailing was smooth. Leah spent some time talking to Bobby. They were immersed into a deep conversation and he seemed a bit agitated, but otherwise supportive of whatever Leah was saying as he nodded continuously. After he left, I walked to Leah. She was watching the ocean, her eyes taking in the endless body of water. The salty breeze played with her hair, as her thick brown strands danced around her face.
I stood behind her, putting my arms around her, pulling her into me. She exhaled slowly as I rested my chin on the top of her head, breathing in her vanilla scent.
"Are you OK?" I asked her
She didn't talk at first. She just rested her head on my chest as she kept watching the ocean. I didn't want to pressure her to talk or to share anything, so I didn't say anything and just watched the ocean with her as the ocean breeze engulfed us.
After a few more minutes, she turned around to look me in the eyes. Her emerald green is shining under the sun.
"I am OK," she whispered, "Bobby was just worried about me and he wanted me to do more than give up on my dream of becoming an investigative journalist. He was my father's best friend and he was there whenever I needed him. I love him but right now I don't need someone to tell me what to do. All I need is some time to collect myself on my own terms and then I'll start walking my own path again."
I didn't say anything at first. My eyes were watching her as she looked at me intently. I leaned into her and brushed my lips with hers. The kiss started soft, then I deepened it as our lips moved urgently. Her tongue touched mine first. The warmth of her breath sent a tingling sensation down my spine. Her vanilla scent filled my lungs, as her lips danced with mine.
We broke away from some air, as I rested my head on hers. She moved her fingers up and down my back in a hypnotizing pattern.
"Truth." She said
"I believe in you, Leah." I told her without hesitation because that's how I felt. I truly believed in her and in her ability to overcome the toughest of situations. I could see it in her eyes. I could feel it in the way she was carrying herself.
Strong people are those who fall and get back on their feet on their own terms. Strong people are not ashamed to live their emotions and to show it to the world. And, Leah was one of those strong people. She didn't hesitate to show the world her emotions and she wanted to heal on her own terms and on her own timeline. There isn't a right or wrong time for healing. The process of healing is meant to be personal and unique to each individual and Leah wasn't afraid to show that to the rest of the world around her.
Leah leaned in once more and kissed me. We kissed as the ocean breeze embraced us, as the seagulls sung around us, as the world moved forward and we stood still in our own bubble.
