To Save A Heart

Chapter 1

Thank you for the one person that voted! No one commented though.. :( But thats okay, I'm gonna continue. Because if no one appreciates this, at least they see it, that's better than no one seeing it right? 

-Leslie

Chapter 1

I was awoken on my fifteenth birthday with a kiss. It was a gentle peck on the lips but enough to startle me awake.

"Morning!" they sang.

I rubbed my eyes and rolled my eyes to the lovely image of Joseph running around my house like a mad man. In the small cottage, his daunting size seemed to double and I worried that he would hit his head. 

"Joseph! Really?" My mind swam with the fuzziness of sleep and the fact the Joseph had just kissed me. 

He had done it every year for the last five. It had become somewhat of a tradition starting when I was ten and he had turned 12 the night before. "I've never kissed a girl." he sheepishly  admitted on the night of my birthday. I just smiled and told him that I had never kissed a girl either. 

Joseph smiled and ruffled my hair. "What if I kissed you?" he asked. 

At the time, this seemed like a absurd thing. I was ten and the idea of kissing my childhood friend was repulsive. Joseph was already about six inches taller than me so he would have to lean down quite a way I remember thinking to myself. 

"Pretty please?" 

"No. That's disgusting."

"Please?" 

This continued until the day was done and I had to go home. That night all I could think of was why he would want to kiss me and not some other girl like Marry, everyone knew that she had liked Joseph for as long as it was okay to actually like a guy. It didn't bother me though that he didn't want to kiss her, it was very understandable. As Joseph had said, 'the devil would run from the sight of her face.' something that wasn't very nice, but sadly true. 

In fact I almost felt smug that he wanted to kiss me and not Marry.

In the morning, I was awoken with a kiss. I beat him up later, but from then on it became tradition.

Each time it happened, it was quite disturbing. And each time it happened, I ended up beating the shit out of him. Which, may explain why he was running around the cottage. 

"Don't come near me! Maria! Oh god don't hurt me!" Joseph coward in the corner, mocking me.

He knew that I wouldn't hit him if he gave up like this. It worked so well that he had taken to using it against me durning games that we used to play as children. But today I wasn't going to give in. 

I walked slowly over to him, and patted his back, pretending sympathy. 

"Are you okay? I promise that I wont hit you." I cooed.

His shaggy black hair was soft and as I petted his back, I began to play with his hair. Joseph was handsome, everyone knew it. He sometimes used to what he called 'a good persuasion.' Which usually involved him flirting with the bakers daughter until he got free bread. He would always share with me, but it was never as good as when I stole it myself. 

"Promise?" His voice sounded so innocent and small that I almost gave in. His blue eyes peaked out from under his hair and he eyed me. 

I leaned down and pressed my lips to his ear. "No." I whispered.