Float

Tomato Soup

It is our choices that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities. ~J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, 1999.

*Anna's POV*

What is it that we desire?

The love or the abuse?

Sometimes I feel like I'm doing it all wrong.

Like, I've been walking through life backwards with my eyes closed.

My dad says the twenties is just an awkward stage in life, but he never grew out of it...

When I'm with Jacob I feel like I'm frolicking through the misty flumes of golden lights, sinking below my tears and fright. While breaking all of my bones hoping to one day to be somebody, I recognize.

He is a soft impression that crescendos my mind.

I like how he doesn't say much, but his strong midnight eyes always generate an authentic kindness.

I can't help but notice his tall frame, that fits perfectly into his grey-shirt and rugged jeans. He looks exactly like Jess, a character from my favorite tv show; Gilmore Girls.

If I wasn't already planning to become a Sister Wife in a polygamist family, then maybe I would admit that I found him attractive.

"We are going to the boardwalk!"

I said, stubbornly as we left the parking lot.

Jacob raised a cool but curiously subtle eyebrow at me. He paused to study my face.

"I'm hungry, and I know we just met, but I'm psychotic without food," I said pushing him ahead, half joking.

Jacob shrugged.

I took that as a yes.

We walked silently through the paved streets of our small town. It was like a silent sanctuary against the flooding coast of our hearts, beating softly with life and activity.

When I closed my eyes I could hear the bicycles tires treading down the roundabouts, and the buses creaking and groaning with exhaustion. As smoking grey clouds dispel in folds of the air.

I could see children laughing and playing in the grassy hills while picking purple lilies like a florist.

My town was a tiny inclination of something grand. I could feel the warmth that spewed from the dark slates of the perfectly slanted homes, as daylight coursed through the open shutters.

I saw the architecture emulate fine arts and colors, blending and weaving like the quivering strokes of a legato played on a violin.

Our town, Little Quails was peaceful and scenic. A shelter in nature.

However, the boardwalk was where the rich mineral dust settled against the shores of earth, overlapping the sands of time, drawing out the embankment of wild youth.

Beyond the bright blue Maidence fields, came the swirling dreams of wonder.

It wasn't like Venice Beach, but it was lovely. People trickled in like childhood memories, coming for the food, the attractions, and the sense of community.

My stomach growled as we reached my favorite soup kitchen. The aromas of garlic, fresh herbs, and today's special turned me into a beast.

I grabbed Jacob's hand dragging him inside, "I need Tomato soup now!" I sang at the top of my lungs.

Jacob winced trying to cover my mouth with his strong calloused hands.

"Don't shut me up, this is the best part!" I continued to sing, stringing the words out in an ill pitched manner.