Free Dark Harbour: The Tale of the Soul Searcher by Joseph Kiel

the night, just before they made their way back to the flat. As they stood at the bar sipping their drinks, Michael and Larry were back to their eulogising of Samuel Allington, repeating how great he was, admiring all the wonderful things he did in the community. Being familiar with the fundraising at his church, Michael had heard about Samuel’s efforts, how he would volunteer a lot of his time to an organisation that helped disadvantaged children, taking them out on trips and such.
    It was yet another area where Danny felt he didn’t measure up to that man. Danny could barely look after himself properly, let alone lend his hand to good causes. Could anyone really be that perfect, though? Surely there had to be some blemishes to Samuel’s character. Maybe he snorted cocaine or secretly downloaded kiddie porn. Isn’t that what all the heroes did these days?
    Larry slammed his shot glass down with a belch. Danny had hardly touched his.
    ‘What’s up? A little too strong for Danny Boy?’ Larry teased.
    Danny ignored him.
    ‘Anyway, I gotta go shake hands with the devil,’ Larry added.
    ‘Me too, I think,’ said Michael.
    ‘Whoa! You ain’t shaking anything of mine, Mikey!’
    ‘I meant mine .’
    ‘Are you sure you’re not batting for the other team?’
    ‘Oh shut up…’
    Their bickering slowly faded as they walked towards the toilets, leaving Danny alone at the bar as he dragged his stubborn thoughts through his head. He looked down at the glass in his hands and swirled the amber fluid around. No matter how much he drank it was never enough to numb his feelings. There didn’t seem to be any escape from them.
    Sometimes he wished he never knew of her, that she never even existed. At least then he wouldn’t have to go through all that torture and frustration. But then what kind of world would it be without her in it? Darker, greyer, colder.
    He took another sip then spontaneously looked up towards the main entrance. The door swung open and she walked inside.
    Most of the time she would be walking by on the other side of the street, or Danny would spy her out of the bus window. Since that night in September, there hadn’t been that many times when she’d been in the same room as he, so this was clearly about to be one of the closer encounters.
    Everything slowed down. The clamorous chit-chat and the jukebox music seemed to gradually fade. Danny was only aware of her angelic beauty and his heart beating rapidly in his chest.
    She walked up to Samuel, naturally. He got up and kissed her hello. They both looked so happy to see each other, so full of love. He seemed so perfect for her and she seemed so perfect for him.
    After some small talk, Stella was evidently saying about getting a drink. Samuel’s body language indicated that he would go and get one for her, but she insisted that it was okay for her to go while Samuel carried on chatting with his friends. He sat back down. She walked towards the bar as she zipped open her purse.
    Danny’s heartbeat quickened even more realising she was walking directly towards him . This was definitely a close encounter, the closest there could be. His legs felt weak. His skin flushed. At the last moment, she looked up from her purse and her body softly collided against Danny’s arm.
    ‘Oh, sorry,’ she said to him.
    Danny smiled nervously, his power of speech failing him. She had spoken to him. He had entered her world. His existence was within her awareness.
    But that’s all he was. Some random stranger that she accidentally bumped into. That was his introduction to her life. Surely there had to be more to it than this.
    He leaned back against the bar. He could feel her arm still pressing against his. She was touching him, and she felt sublimely electric as Danny’s skin tingled.
    Danny was rigid, trying to retain that physical contact with her for as long as possible. Such a long bar too, and of all the places she could have stood at, she was right there next to