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Part 9 - 5 Seconds After

"You'll be given love, You have to trust it - Maybe not from the sources you have poured yours, maybe not from the directions you are staring at..." Bjork, All Is Full Of Love

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And then, reality came flooding back. It was as if someone had turned the volume back up on the world. The dull hollow echo that was barely audible off in the distance became the mellow roar of the ocean. The cold air blew past my ears, rushing in from across the water and onto the beach where we sat in the unbelievably cold sand. Tiny spikes lightly grazed my skin as the granules of sand carried upon the wind rushed past my exposed cheeks.

She said she loved me.

We broke from our kiss and I looked deep into her eyes, which fluttered momentarily. Slowly, they followed the turn of her head to look out into the distant ocean, where the sky had gone from a muted grey to a deep and vibrant purple. The setting sun had just barely managed to make it below the cloud line to our right for a moment before it dipped below the horizon, the last of its light shattered and broken into a brilliant cascade across the choppy waters.

It's all I've ever wanted to hear from someone, and she said it.

I rested my chin upon her left shoulder and inhaled deep from my nostrils, taking in the intoxicating scents of the salty air and the botannical-laced shampoo she used. My arms clasped tighter around her waist and she tightened her grip upon my wrists with both hands as we sank into a modified embrace. The sweatshirt which she wore was mine, but somehow it felt different upon my skin as I wrapped myself into it from the other side.

Actually, a lot of things felt different as I wrapped myself into them from the other side... Much different than I'd always imagined they'd feel. She said she loved me... Did she mean it? And how could I really know if she did? Was this what I'd always wanted? Was this what it felt like for someone to know and understand and love me?

Had I finally found what I'd been looking for?