The Joker

Valentine [Part 2]

There were strings of fairy lights strung through the bushes and cherry blossom trees. The flowers had just blossomed, making some of the rays from the tiny bulbs turn faintly pink. There was a small stream with a smal stone bridge stretching across it, looking like the path of a skimmed stone across the water's surface, and a stone gazebo on the other side. It looked like something straight out of a fairytale. There were lots of benches in the fairly large gardens and I felt a slight warm flush creep up my cheeks when I thought I recognized a girl in a gold, floor-length dress sitting locked in a tight embrace with a sandy-haired guy.

Daniel grabbed my hand and pulled me away from those two, to a bench under a cherry blossom tree, almost leaning against its knotted trunk, next to the river with its picturesque bridge and gazebo in the back-ground. My shoes were starting to make the balls of my feet ache, so I hooked them off and let them hang from my fingers. The feel of the soft, manicured grass on the soles of my bare feet added to the idyllic atmosphere.

I laid my shoes under the bench and rested my back against the gnarled and knotted bark of the cherry tree, sitting with both of my legs curled under the stone seat, feeling the leaves of the ivy that climbed it on the exposed skin of my leg. I was facing him as he sat next to me. He looked at me and I saw something hidden in his deep, forest-colored eyes, though he did conceal it well. I could not name the emotion but, as he leaned in and his hand brushed past the double cuts on my arm, it changed to pain and sorrow before shifting back to the unnamable feeling.

He looked me in the eye and, slowly, as if not to frighten me, he started to lean forwards.

As his lips met mine, I realized what the emotion in his eyes had been: pure passion and desire. He pinned me to the tree and I responded with nearly indecent enthusiasm, twisting my fingers into his hair and clasping his face tightly to mine though I knew he could break my grip without even trying. Soon after his lips had started melding with mine I was gasping for air and he groaned against my neck.

“What’s wrong,” I breathed, still struggling to get enough oxygen into my system to stop my eyes from blacking over as his sugar-sweet taste saturated the cells in my mouth.

“You taste so good.” His voice was little more than a hushed, pained exhalation. I thought his statement was rather ironic considering how good his mouth tasted. “Like... I don’t know. Sweet chocolate? Straight sugar, maybe? But it’s got a bit of a floral flavor as well.”

I scoffed.

He raised an eyebrow, questioning my skeptic sound. “It’s just ironic,” I answered, elaborating when he continued to look at me confusedly. “You definitely taste really good, so it’s weird that I taste good to you.” I pursed my lips thoughtfully to one side.

His index finger traced my lower lip, my face relaxing automatically at his cool touch. “Come on,” he said, standing and taking my hands in his, pulling me to my feet. “Let’s walk a little.” His feet made no sound whatsoever either on the grass or the wooden bridge. I, on the other hand, made plenty enough creaks as we walked along the bridge, my hand trailing along the handrail. The stone was smooth and cool beneath my feet.

I stared down at the faintly rippling water flowing beneath the bridge, watching the reflection of the moon and stars wavering deep underneath the surface. A few cherry blossom petals fell, one by one, into the water being carried away by the current. I looked up at Daniel’s face, watching as his long fingers gently plucked the flowers apart and slowly threw them into the stream where they floated away.

He then turned to me, and we both leaned our sides on the banister so we were still facing each other. He cradled the side of my neck with his palm, his thumb caressing my cheek, drawing slow, small circles on it, and leaned in again to press his lips to mine once more. This time, our kiss was a lot more controlled, a lot less frenzied, than all of our other kisses had been. It was perfect, what with the moon up above and the soft murmur of the stream below. He cradled my neck in both hands and mine hung limply by my side as my head started swimming and I could only see black. Eventually, we broke free and, again, I struggled to regain a normal breathing pattern as well as fighting to clear my head. Daniel caught me when I was wobbling, about to fall over. I blinked a couple of times and my head cleared enough for me to catch a glimpse of a heart-stopping crooked smile as he carried me bridal style to the open-sided gazebo where he sat me on the bench until I was sure the lightheadedness was gone. It was strange. I hadn't even felt him swing my legs up. He was kneeling on the ground in front of me to make sure that I was okay and, when I was sure that I was, he pulled me in for another kiss, breaking it off quickly, though still resting his forehead against mine.