Free Run to You by Tawnya Jenkins Page B

look as if they could rip his shirt in half at any moment.  I must be drooling since he leans in and whispers in my ear, “This is all yours later.”
      I blush…again.
      It only takes a few minutes to get to the coffee house.  Coffee Haven is its name.  Smooth jazz music greets us when we enter.  There are about 10 tables scattered around the cream colored tile floors.  The walls are a chocolate brown with white trim.  Each table has a small vase of small stemmed red roses.  The smell of Espresso is unmistakable paired with a slight hint of vanilla and cinnamon wafting through the air.  It smells heavenly.  I love the smell of coffee shops, it’s one of my favorite smells in the entire world.  People have started to appear in small groups.  I start to get nervous.  I’ve never shared my writing with anyone before. 
      A small squeeze on my shoulder from Travis calms me.  It’s like he always know what I need before I do.  When I glance up at him he’s smiling sweetly at me.  We grab a table near the front of the mic.  I opt for the back but I am out voted.  Everyone says they want to make sure they can hear me.  Great.
      A couple of people have signed up before me, so I sit there enjoying my Latte and muffin, listening to other people like myself pour their hearts out.  It is humbling and encouraging to hear other people’s pain for a change.  To feel their emotions, instead of my own. 
        “You’re next blue eyes, you sure you’re up for this?”
      I just nod and exhale.  Show time.
      It’s quiet as I approach the mic, at least 20 pairs of eyes are now staring attentively at me.  Goosebumps rise up over my body, and suddenly I feel light headed.  Someone near the front clears their throat.  Travis. He smiles at me, a small gesture, but it’s all I need.  I focus only on him as I pour out my heart.
        “Hello everyone, my name is Chloe and this is called Unreachable Light;
    I’m surrounded by the darkness, there’s no light for me in sight. I keep hoping and searching but the past fills me with fright.  Some days I wonder if I’ll ever be alright.  It consumes all of my dreams and destroys me from within; Pulls me to that breaking point, but I won’t let it win.  So, despite the impending doom, the darkness that consumes, I will always keep searching and searching for that unreachable light .Even when it becomes too much to bear, and when I feel like no one cares.  I’ll keep searching and searching for that unreachable light.  Sometimes the pain is almost too much, this tug upon my heart.  It’s always there. I can’t escape it, can’t fight it, can’t hide it. I often wish I could turn back time, just hit rewind.  So, despite the impending doom the darkness that consumes I will always keep searching and searching for that unreachable light.  Even when it becomes too much to bear, and when I feel like no one cares.  I’ll keep searching and searching for that unreachable light.  I will continue my fight, it won’t take up my life.  In time I will see there is light out there for me and I will find it, Yes I will find it…Because despite the impending doom, the darkness that always looms I will keep searching for that unreachable, maybe somewhat feasible light.”
      I look up when I’m finished, a few tears stream down my cheek.  People are clapping quietly and whispering between themselves.  When I finally steal a glance at Travis he has an intense look in his eyes.  His face is stagnant but his eyes are exploring mine.  I offer him a small smile, hoping to get something out of him in return but there’s nothing.  He’s just staring at me.  As I make my way back to the table, he stands up and grabs my arm pulling me gently behind him toward the hallway near the back.
      Once we round the corner and are no longer visible he lifts me up and crashes his lips to mine.  He kisses me with a fire I’ve never felt before, my whole body