She Needs Love

Chapter Seven

Song: Silhouette by Aquilo

The pungent smell of caffeine penetrated Daniel's nostrils. He poured himself a cup of black coffee as he waited for the microwave to finish heating up his food. Whenever his parents were away for work, he found himself thriving off microwaved food and store-bought coffee.

Each time they left, they made sure to leave behind a stack of money on the kitchen counter. Whenever he saw his mother standing in the kitchen, hastily digging for her wallet in her purse – he knew it was time for them to leave again.

His father always complained that Daniel wasted all their hard-earned money on mindless drinking and parties. Little did he know that Daniel never spent a single penny more than necessary. He was saving up for something big. By now he had two thousand dollars stacked away in his room.

The microwave beeped. He pressed the button and yanked out the steaming plate, slamming the door shut with his elbow. With a plate of unevenly heated pasta in his hands, he headed toward the living room. He picked up the sketchbook and continued where he had left off.

This page was strikingly different. It was covered in ink from corner to corner. Not a single blank space on the two pages. It would be a lot to take in for anyone. A muddled mess to most. But Daniel felt an undeniable sense of familiarity the second he laid his eyes on it. A place that he knew all too well.

Tall skyscrapers. Subway stations. Even the random coffee shops that were scattered along every street. Busy people who hurried down the avenue. Car-traffic that never came to an end. But what had fascinated Daniel the most was the intricate night-sky that hovered over the city. It settled the busy atmosphere that threatened to take over everything.

It all felt so close. He could almost smell it.

There was no doubt that the person who drew this knew New York City well. Maybe better than him even. That person, whoever she really was, must have wandered the streets of the Big Apple religiously to recreate it with such truthfulness.

There was nothing he longed for more than to return to the place where he truly belonged. Despite having lived in this tedious town half his life, he still felt like a stranger to it. He could name all the roads and the coffee shops, but he could never call it home.

He lifted his gaze and looked through the massive glass window that covered his living room wall. His eyes fell on the oak tree that had been standing there for decades. Withering leaves that returned each spring, only to witness nothing. He saw the exact same road, where the exact same cars had been traveling the exact same routes for as long as anyone could remember.

Everything was the same as it had ever been. Nothing ever changed. Every day, people carried out their routines to the letter. Routines that were identical to everyone else's. If you dared to do anything differently, you got labeled as a troublemaker. A menace to keep away from. But back in his old town, that was everybody's way of living.

But this person, this girl whose identity he had finally uncovered, had taken all his longing and desire for a life long gone and put it on two pieces of paper. This person might just be the person who would understand him in a way that no one else had been able to. Not even his best friend. Someone who could fathom why he was the way he was. Someone who wouldn't judge him, but accept him for his true self.