Spun Into Words

The Beginning

They were all there when it happened and I wouldn't have wanted it any other way.

We were having a night filled with laughter and love. Dan and Jessy had been flirting all night, finally giving in to their attraction. Jessy finally sealed some of the pain over the loss of Richy, knowing that the pain would always remain but that Dan would forever understand.

Cleo had a new guy, one her mom had set her up with from church. We all liked Sam, he was nice and treated Cleo well. He was perfect for her actually, he kept her from being so impulsive.

Lily was on the other side of the bar with Hannah and they were chatting with Jake. Something was going on between those three all night, but I couldn't figure it out.

Phil was tending the bar as he and Thomas seemed to be having a few laughs. It was good to see as it didn't happen very often.

We were all finally back in a good place with the world and we were safe. We were all finding our way to happiness again.

Even Jake.

The two of us had been together for about six months. After the mine, we didn't see each other for a while, but Jake, true to his word, found his freedom and his safety and made his way to me. He hadn't left my side since.

We were happy, much happier than either of us deserved. In a world that used to be filled with grime and dirt, we began to see one filled with a bright shining light and the hope of a future.

I was watching him with his sisters when suddenly Jessy called me to the bathroom. She said that she just needed company and a few minutes away from Dan, that he could be a lot. She spent a curiously long amount of time in there discussing trivial things about Dan that never seemed to bother her before.

I was on my way out of the bathroom when I heard it. The silence, the absolute deafening silence, then, a guitar started to play "In Your Eyes" by Peter Gabriel. I looked over and saw Thomas strumming the song that Jake and I first danced to right on the back porch of this bar in the middle of a lightning storm. After that dance, Jake and I belonged together and there was no turning back.

Dan was in the corner, smiling from ear to ear. He had peonies, deep red, which he walked over and handed to me, kissing me on the cheek.

I looked across the room and heard Phil, "In your eyes, I am complete..." He was singing the lyrics to the song now. I didn't know he could sing. It was beautiful, his low, heavy voice belting out the tune. The notes seemed to hang in the air.

Lily and Hannah were beaming ear to ear, tears forming in the corner of their eyes. They were holding hands and looking as if they might jump out of their skin.

Cleo and Sam stood back, but I saw her handiwork in the corner. A beautiful cake waits for some sort of celebration.

Jessy turned around and hugged me tightly. She held me there for a second. "Over there," she says, pointing to the back porch.

I looked up and saw him. His eyes were glossy and he looked more nervous than I had ever seen him. He signaled for me to come outside where he was standing. He was on the back porch where we shared the magical dance. The glass window covered the entire back of the bar. This allowed all those inside to see what was going on.

It was a beautiful night with no clouds in the sky. Edison lights surrounded the patio and someone had seen to it that orange blossoms and peonies were covering every outdoor table. Both the sight and the scent surrounding me in the air danced in my brain.

I met him and he wrapped his arm around my waist kissing me deeply. The kiss was followed by hoots and hollers from our friends. I could hear them from inside the bar. I should have been embarrassed, but I was not. He heard them, however, and tried to pull away, but my lips followed his. I was not ready to leave them yet.